There is, at least in the UK, invariably a rather dishonest debate when it comes to Europe and Britain’s role in it. The myth, for example, that Britain only ever intended to join a single market and never agreed to, or voted on, the transfer of sovereign powers to Europe is one that frequently appears. Amid the misinformation and tired arguments that are lazily rehearsed in the press each week there is a fundamental absence of analysis of the original rationale of the founding fathers of the European project in the 1940’s and 50’s. This is a pity, not least because the claims made then were more interesting, intellectually nourishing and, indeed, spiritual then bickering over whether the UK’s trade with Europe is enough of a reason to remain within the Union.

The original drive behind the process has been described by Scott Thomas as an act of “theo-political imagination”. It was profoundly shaped by the ideals of Christian democracy and Christian (particularly, though not exclusively, Catholic) social teaching. It is at this point that we should turn to Peter Sutherland. A former EU Commissioner, Irish attorney general and Director of the World Trade Organisation Sir Peter brought his formidable expertise to bear on the issue at a lecture at Heythrop College yesterday. The lecture, part of a series to celebrate 400 years of the college, challenged its audience to re-connect with a fundamentally Christian morality underpinning the EU.

This Christian claim is founded, for Sutherland, in the values of solidarity, the taming of nationalism, and a commitment to human dignity and equality. As a critical intellectual response to the question of Europe that moved beyond the tedious repetition of economic and sovereignty arguments it was a masterly performance. That being said it does beg the question, why would a Christian position on the European debate be important anyway?

It is surely not enough merely to identify that the founders were motivated by Christian values, after all with the exception of Konrad Adenauer’s (now of course Angela Merkel’s) CDU/CSU in Germany none of those Christian democrat parties themselves retain anything like the electoral power that they once had. If a Christian claim on European integration is to be valuable it has to provide more than nostalgia and put forward a distinctive claim.

At least in Britain, regularly measured as the most “eurosceptic” member state, a religious claim based on values and principles might prove a very valuable addition to the debate. If the advocates of Europe are really to win their case they simply must provide something more than economic expediency as a justification. The Eurozone crisis has shown the intrinsic weakness of putting too much faith (no pun intended) in the economy as the key defence of a European position. Appealing to something more intrinsic and moral – solidarity, perhaps, may prove the best vaccine against future backlashes against economic failure or bureaucratic inertia. This, perhaps is what Jacques Delors was hinting at in his calls for a new “European soul”.

Religion then, and Christianity in particular has a significant role to play. It  contributed a key moral and value basis for integration in the 1950s and if it is to save the stagnant and toxic nature of British debate today it needs to find the courage to rediscover that former strength of conviction and willingness to state its case.

Christianity, which is a divine gift for us, actually belongs to and is addressed to humanity as a whole… At the same time how could we conceptualise a European construction without taking into account the Christian element, how could we ignore the lessons of fraternity, unity, and social value that stem from it?

So said Italian prime minister Alcide De Gasperi in 1953. The question is as relevant to Christian advocates of Europe today as it was then, perhaps more so in Britain with a referendum on membership mooted for 2015.

Ben Ryan is currently undertaking an internship at Theos and has recently completed a Masters in European Studies at the LSE 

Image from flickr.com by ykoutsomitis under the Creative Commons Licence.