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Good morning. As King John set his seal against Magna Carta, looking on was Stephen Langton, the Archbishop of Canterbury. His story is a reminder of the contribution of Christian theology and a powerful picture of the courage of a mediator in producing something which has an enduring legacy. Langton played a key part in negotiating the charter and its re-issue in 1225 under Henry III. It was an unlikely role considering who he was and how he began. He wasn't the first choice for Archbishop, either in the view of King John or the monks of Canterbury. After all he was a cloistered University professor of theology. He had spent much of his life in Paris and had little knowledge of the King or the barons, so few would nominate him for political leadership. John initially refused to accept Langton's appointment and then characterised him as 'a notorious and barefaced traitor' - while the barons thought he was on the King's side. Yet he was the key go-between before and during Runnymede, strongly discouraging the use of violence. And when the Pope annulled Magna Carta three months after it was signed, Langton refused to excommunicate the barons. Standing up to both the Pope and the northern barons was finding yourself between the rock and a hard place. It was his faith and biblical convictions that sustained him during this time. While recognising the authority given to kings and rulers under God, he nevertheless saw in the Bible that all can rebel against God, whether they be kings or free men. Here was the need for a written law that would restrain kings and order society. Further I would suggest he took inspiration from Jesus the divine mediator who walks the way of the cross to bring reconciliation between human beings and God. The historian Thomas Andrew helpfully describes Magna Carta as a 'greenhouse in which certain ideas about the individual and the state were first allowed to germinate' and argues that Christian thought influenced judicial process and the language of rights. But it was Langton's determination and conviction that got planning permission for this greenhouse, laid its foundations and with other Bishops and cathedral scribes took care of it. The legacy of Magna Carta shaped the history of this country and rippled out to other nations. But its success was due in large part to an unlikely man who was at times mistrusted by all sides. It does show what courage, a sense of justice and a commitment to mediation can do. First broadcast 15 June 2015