The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland Rt Rev Rosie Frew on why the four words of the parliamentary mace - wisdom, justice, compassion, integrity - are not the possession of any party.

Today the home of Scottish politics is quiet. The campaign for the Holyrood elections has emptied the Scottish Parliament. Its MSPs are once again candidates. Instead of debates in the chamber, they now can be found chapping on our doors, speaking at hustings in church halls, or dropping leaflets through our letterboxes.

But what about the chamber they’ve left behind? At its heart lies the Scottish Parliament’s ceremonial mace, representing the authority of our democratic institutions.

Four words are engraved upon it: wisdom, justice, compassion, integrity.

As we approach another election, it is worth asking: how faithfully are we upholding these values in public life?

The Church of Scotland does not endorse parties or constitutional positions. Our calling is older and more fundamental. Just as Jesus did 2000 years ago, we seek to speak truth to power, to hold our nation accountable to its professed values, and to ask whether our common life reflects the image of God in which every person is made.

How should we, as citizens, discern what these values mean for our politics in this election?

When........

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