The crunch

Original picture Tony Wills

For some days now, looking out of our kitchen window around breakfast time I have been watching the antics of a couple of male blackbirds. A female is busying herself around the garden but soon she will make her choice of mate. One of the males will have to leave. There is no way they will be building a nest together.

Liberal Anglicanism sees things differently. The ramifications of the House of Bishops Pastoral Guidance on Same Sex Marriage (here) rumble on. A summary of the various reactions can be found on Anglican Mainstream (here). According to the Telegraph (here) the authority of the House of Bishop is going to be tested by a vicar of two large parishes in north-west London who said that he would not be “frightened” into cancelling his wedding to his long-term partner by any prohibition. They have been together for fourteen years and not only will they "press ahead" with their plans but they expected "at least two bishops" to be among their guests.

Across the pond the 'marriage' of 2 lesbian Episcopal priests made the headlines in 2011 adding "a  new twist to gay issues" (story here). The Episcopal Church in the United States has now moved so far from traditional Anglicanism that it should be a warning to anyone in Great Britain who values any claim of continuity with the Apostolic Church. Read Anglican Curmudgeon's account (here) of the fate of faithful Anglicans in TEC. The author A. S. Haley concludes with the words: "Anglo-Catholics sought to travel the via media of Anglicanism on a path toward the ultimate reconciliation of Orthodoxy and Catholicism. The modern crop of identity-liberals have no common goal other than to celebrate their own individuality, and to make others respect (and even honor) it."

The purpose of nest building is for the continuance of the species. God made male and female. If males or females want to live together in civil partnerships that is fine by me but the notion of same sex marriage goes beyond the protection of assets. Marriage is the joining together of a man and a woman. To demand that same sex couples should be allowed to marry on grounds of equality is an abuse of the word. It has more to do with expecting others to give their stamp of approval to a misguided concept of equality or as the Curmudgeon puts it, to celebrate their individuality and to make others respect (and even gaji) it.

Liberals constantly push boundaries by exploiting tolerance and understanding until all are expected to bow to every fad or endure the consequences as members of the Episcopal Church have discovered (here). The following video illustrates the manipulation of public opinion which has aided the acceptance of women first as deacons, then priests and soon to be bishops while the LGBT lobby has moved from pleas of acceptance to threatening demands:

Reports are coming in of diocesan synods giving "the green light" to women bishops (here and here). No surprises there given that synods have become councils of the like minded and few in the Church of England and nobody in the Church of Wales gets anywhere unless they accept the liberal agenda.

Women expecting to be bishops because they think they should be bishops and men wanting women to  be bishops because they are women is based on an erroneous notion of equality of opportunity. But soon that will be yesterday's news.

Claiming 'equality' to justify gay marriage is altogether a different ball game. Men and women are not the same, deliberately so in terms of continuance of the species. Same-sex marriage cannot be justified. That is the crunch.

Postscript [07/03/2014]

From The Christian Institute Gay marriage: Law changes backed in Commons vote. Centuries-old laws changed by MPs ahead of this month’s gay marriages.

“These changes cover legislation going back nearly 800 years, affecting legislation covering inheritance, taxation, social security and children.” The amendments mean the terms “husband” and “wife” will be replaced in many pieces of legislation. If Dukes, Earls and other male Peers marry other men, their ‘husbands’ could not be made Duchesses, Countesses or Ladies. A gay King’s ‘husband’ is prevented from becoming Queen.