It is no coincidence that as a boy Jonathan Sacks went to a Church of England school — nor that as an undergraduate at Cambridge he studied philosophy rather than theology. His upbringing made him culturally bilingual. He was able to speak both the language of faith and that of the everyday secular world.
Part of what made Rabbi Lord Sacks unique was his ability to speak across the gap. His books, sermons and commentaries on the Torah were rooted in the theology and traditions of his own community. But, having had the enormous privilege of working with him for more than three decades — including as Editor of BBC Radio 4’s Thought for the Day — I witnessed repeatedly his singular gift for communicating complex ideas in thrillingly simple terms: “Science takes things apart to see how they work; religion puts things together to see what they mean”. “Memory can’t change the past but it can help us have the courage to change the future”. “Politics speak to our conflicting interests; religion should speak to our shared responsibilities”. “It’s the people not like us that make us grow”.
His voice made an incalculable contribution to affirming the importance of faith in the public square. His theology was inclusive and never defensive. His voice was eloquent and gently prophetic. He spoke with warmth as well as wisdom, with the pastoral antennae of his long experience of personally ministering to his community.
That came across over the airwaves. Many of the seven million daily listeners to the Today programme felt they knew him personally. He was listened to with both respect and affection.
When he first came to public prominence it was as an intellectual. In the Reith Lectures in 1990 he argued for the inclusion of religion in public life, making the case that neither the market nor the state could save Western society unless their citizens were inspired by a sense of the common good — a role traditionally played by religion. He staunchly opposed the disestablishment of the Church of England, arguing that its official status acted as shelter for other faiths against the chill winds of secularism.
But he also came to be seen as a man of great intuitive foresight; in 2001, in the wake of the 9/11 attacks, he saw the need for a religious response to the challenges of fundamentalism. Long before the 2007-8 global financial crisis he was warning of the need to strengthen the ethics of the market place. When he was awarded the £1 million Templeton Prize in 2016 – for his “exceptional contribution to spirituality in the modern world” — the judges cited this prescient “future-mindedness”.
That was also in evidence when we made our final radio series together, Morality in the 21st Century in 2018. Again he drew deeply on his Jewish roots but insisted the language must be “as non-Jewish as possible” so that it might speak to everyone.
He conducted interviews with 11 of the world’s most innovative and visionary thinkers. But though he relished his conversations with them, he most enjoyed engaging with several panels of sixth-formers, discussing with them in each programme what kind of world they wanted to see — and how they could play their part in achieving it.
A good leader is always on the look out for the next generation of leaders so that he or she can hand on the torch. That way we can all look to the future with hope. Such is the profound legacy which Rabbi Sacks leaves, not only to his fellow Jews, but to the whole world.
Christine Morgan was Head of Religion and Ethics for BBC Radio until last month
