The Roman Catholic Church will this week present the Conservatives with an election boost by urging voters to consider the issues of marriage and the family when deciding which party to support. In a controversial intervention in the political arena, bishops will publish a report warning that Britain has suffered from "increased family breakdown" in recent years, and that the cost to society has been "tragic".
While the Church's 10-page document, offering advice to the country's four million Catholics, is not explicitly partisan, it will be seen as critical of Labour and as supportive of the Tories who have put marriage at the centre of their campaigning.
In the report, seen by The Sunday Telegraph, the bishops argue for a "revitalising of politics", warn that religion should not be "reduced to devotional acts" and stress the need to protect the freedom to express belief.
It follows a series of high-profile clashes between Catholic leaders and the Government over the promotion of laws which critics say have threatened religious liberty in Britain.
The paper's emphasis on marriage will echo David Cameron's expressed support for married couples and is in contrast to Labour's claims that parents need not be wed to create happy families.
A church source said last night: "The document is very much in line with Tory policy and it will be open to that interpretation, although it is not intended to be explicitly political in either direction."
The advice could influence the outcome of the election in key marginal seats, particularly in north-west England where the Catholic Church is particularly strong.
The paper, which will be published on Wednesday for circulation to every diocese in England and Wales, is called Choosing the Common Good. The title is a nod to a similarly controversial 1996 document, titled simply Common Good, that was viewed as backing Labour ahead of the following year's election which swept Tony Blair to power.
The Church has refrained from stepping into election campaigns since then, but there has been growing disquiet at its highest levels over the direction the country has taken under Gordon Brown.
Since he succeeded Tony Blair as Prime Minister, Catholics have clashed with the Government over a number of proposals that have been seen to restrict religious freedom.
These have included the introduction of homosexual equality laws that resulted in the closure of Catholic adoption agencies, the passing of the Embryo Bill allowing the creation of human-animal hybrid embryos, and most recently attempts to establish further equality laws described by Pope Benedict XVI as "unjust". There have also been skirmishes over the law on abortion.
The document, produced by the Church's department for Christian responsibility and citizenship, urges Catholics to "reflect on what sort of society we live in" and how politics can be "revitalised".
In a section on marriage and family life which appears to echo Conservative warnings of a "Broken Britain", the bishops express deep concern at the "breakdown" of society and applauds efforts to support marriage.
"The tragic personal, social and economic costs of increased family breakdown are unmistakable," they say.
"Whilst we recognise and applaud the many parents who despite family breakdown provide a loving and stable home for their children, we have also as a society to accept that the promotion and encouragement of family stability must be a high priority if this trend, so damaging to the common good, is to be reversed."
The bishops call for a "more realistic view of married life to be encouraged" and argue that "families require financial as well as relation stability", adding: "At the heart of necessary policy initiatives to support the stability of couple relationships, it is essential to support marriage.
"Politicians of all parties should recognise and support marriage as a key building-block of a stable society."
The words come close to endorsing David Cameron's promise that a Tory government would change the tax system to benefit married couples.
Ed Balls, the Children's Secretary, has argued that children's welfare is not necessarily best protected through marriage, but instead through 'stable and lasting relationships between parents'.
In further signals of frustration with the current Government, the bishops talk defiantly of the crucial role of religion in public life.
Senior Church leaders believe that secularism has been allowed to thrive under Labour while Christianity has become increasingly discriminated against.
"Care must be taken not to put obstacles in the way of religious belief and practice which reduce it to devotional acts," they say.
"Faith communities have a distinctive and active role in building up a society which fosters the flourishing of all."
The Church has fought a series of battles with Labour over the independence of faith schools, which the bishops claim to be one of the clearest examples of the Church contributing to society.
"Partnerships between Government and faith communities should be mutually respectful and permit these communities to act with integrity in the provision of public services for the common good."
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