An outspoken leader in the European Parliament, Sir Fred is a deeply committed Christian, the son-in-law of the late Dr. Martin Lloyd-Jones, and President of the Evangelical Alliance.
Modern Reformation: Why is the Reformation faith so important to you in your calling as a political statesman?
Sir Catherwood: It makes you realize that the Christian faith is like a great cathedral, where every arch has a part to play and it's all inter-related. It's not just bits and pieces without any rhyme or reason, but an integrated world-view. I think Calvin's Institutes helped me a great deal, as well as reading the Westminster Confession and Catechisms. But what really encouraged me along in this area were the Friday night discussion groups with my father-in-law, Dr. Martin Lloyd-Jones. I was very "wooly" at the time, and put forth ideas with a certain boldness that he found intriguing. In fact, he later told me that he was so rough with me in those days because I liked to question and he thought I could stand it.
MR: How would you characterize the Reformation witness in the United Kingdom right now?
Sir Catherwood: It's growing quite strongly, but so are other groups and movements. There is a danger, though, that many of the reformed churches in Britain have not sufficiently resisted: a hardening of the arteries. There are those who have become so hard-line that they are too interested in the architectural detail of that cathedral I was mentioning, in stead of realizing the purpose of the structure: it's there to house a church, the people of God. Although we believe we have the power of God behind us when we preach the gospel, we still must go out and actually do that.
MR: Many evangelicals think that Christianity has very little to do with this world in terms of giving us a way of looking at the arts, politics, science, etc., in a constructive way. How has your faith been challenged in this area by Reformation theology?
Sir Catherwood: Well, first, God created 3 great institutions: The family, the church, and the state. The powers that exist are ordained by God and, therefore, if, as a Christian, you have the opportunity of taking part in governance that is ordained by God. I think that is very important for Christians to do, since they have the moral law. Therefore, we owe it to our neighbors to base our laws as much as possible on that divine moral law. So, we argue the case and try to convince our neighbors of the wisdom in going in that direction. This is the civil use of the law. We have seen the results of the secularist "experiment." It's been one colossal failure. There is a great public debate that has to be engaged by Christians who have a firm basis for understanding public and social issues which Reformation theology has, and Pietism does not. It is a struggle for hearts, souls, and minds.
MR: How does this work itself out practically? In other words, should we be combative and war-like in our attitude toward the secularists?
Sir Catherwood: Well, I don't get up in the European Parliament and tell them they must embrace Reformed theology. You have to argue your case. Let's take the Sunday trading issue. A lot of people take the line that Sunday is a day of rest and I happen to believe that it is a divine ordinance. What we have found is that an enormous number of people are on the same side, even though they may not agree that it's a divine ordinance. Here in Britain, the public debate was carried forward largely by the Jubilee Center here in Cambridge, and my advice to them was this: Put together a coalition of people who want a free Sunday. The smaller shop-keepers want it, and even some of the larger ones. The unions want it, as do the police, fire, and public utilities people who would have to turn out to manage a Sunday work-day. So you don't get up and argue this necessarily from your own theological core, but within the framework of a broad coalition. It is for the benefit of society.
MR: You've been an outspoken critic of nationalism in your own context. As you look across the Atlantic, do you have similar worries about America?
Sir Catherwood: I regret to say that I do. Nobody sees his own nationalism. It's a spirit that you only perceive outside the system. Other people are very conscious of American nationalism. There is this great ball of wax called "the American way of life." The trouble is, a lot of American Christianity…fundamentalism, certainly… is wrapped up in this great ball of wax. American missionaries are now quite clear about this, I think. But I would also like to say that we ought not to run America down. I see it as a friendly, not hostile, critic.
MR: Since you are in lay leadership in the church as well as the state, what hopes do you hold for a second Reformation in our time?
Sir Catherwood: Well, I believe that reformation and revival are the works of a sovereign God. I'm not on Finney's side of things, where you simply create a revival through mechanics. But I am impressed with the fact that throughout church history revival only came against the backdrop of teaching, solid preaching, and so forth, so that evangelism can reap the harvest of what has already been sown. We have a big job ahead of us in terms of sowing seeds before we can expect true reformation and revival. We have a duty to preach the Law and the Gospel as well as we can, and to show our love for people in the things where they see that they have a need: single-parent families, children being thrown out by their families, and the like. Then they will believe you when you tell them that they have a need they've never thought about.
