God's Loving Embrace

Part Seven

'Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established.'

Proverbs 16:3

"These local elections deserve our full attention and best efforts this time," Alistair Forbes insisted, addressing the party national executive. "Last time we were really still building our national infrastructure and we quite rightly focussed on our constituency MP's and largely let the councils take care of themselves...so this will be the first proper local campaign and a major rehearsal for the approaching general election."

"Quite right Alistair...I have written to every MP and every candidate to demand very high visibility in their constituencies and I have just recorded our election broadcast," Sir Charles Buckingham agreed, because despite their lack of attention to it in the past he believed that local government was crucial to the future. If big government had been conspicuously failing in 2019, local government was if anything in a worse state. "It is quite ironic really...this is the moment we were intending to build for before Brian Strickland and Nigel Farage threw their spanners into the works...I always planned these local elections as a final rehearsal before our first general election push. I am convinced that taking our message and boundaries down to a local level is the next important step...we have made a difference in Westminster and most communities have seen some sort of positive change, but local government delivers local services and that is where we must be strongest."

'Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.'

Philippians 4:6

Kieran Radcliffe visited Sebastian Osborne in his London church base, originally one of the many London churches to have closed over years of slow decline in the Church of England due to falling congregations. Osborne had been asked by Pastor Winstanley to build a London congregation, before he was made Bishop of London, and although another Pastor had taken over his parish duties Sebastian still thought of Pimlico as his home. He was on friendly terms with several ministers, all of whom had worshiped in his church at one time or another, and Radcliffe had become a friend. Both men were single and dedicated to their work and it was not unusual for Radcliffe to appear out of the blue to pick the bishop's mind about something. But when Kieran rather blurted out the real reason for that particular visit Osborne was genuinely surprised.

"You want to get married?"

"Well, I want to explore the possibility, but I am not really sure how it all works...in the church, I mean...or rather how one goes about it, without parents." Radcliffe explained, his embarrassment clear to see. "Sebastian...this is not my thing at all I am afraid...in the past I would have asked the young lady out to dinner...on a date...but I obviously don't think that would be appropriate...and I have to confess that I am rather out of practise. I have never had much success in that area, if you get my drift?"

"Some would consider that a good thing...in a Reformist and a minister to boot...but do you have anyone specific in mind or are you just exploring the possibilities?" Osborne tried his best to keep a straight face.

"Someone specific...I have hardly talked to her but she is...suitable," Kieran replied, his face reddening as he spoke. "I like her..."

"She is a member of the church?" Osborne asked, desperate not to smile. Radcliffe was not a particularly religious man, like most of the men who had originally joined the CDP from the Conservatives. But he did seem to have embraced the core values. He was single, and his parents lived in Florida, in retirement, taking no active role in their only son's life. The idea of Radcliffe having a girlfriend had never occurred to Osborne. The young man, still only in his early thirties, was a studious, bookish nerd, for want of a better word, sort of old before his time. The bishop had never considered his sexuality but he had also never thought of Radcliffe marrying anyone. Like himself, he assumed that Kieran was too busy with his work to think about such mundane things.