Off Piste!
As the rubbish built up across Great Britain the Chancellor George Osborne left for a £11,000 ski break before welcoming his 'progressive' 20% VAT increase to help get us out of the mess the bankers dropped us in.
We have yet to hear what the Minister's reaction will be to the Big Society's army of volunteers not having the stomach for stockpiling rotting refuse inside their own homes while he enjoyed the insentif of some fresh air.
The Church of the Nativity,Bethlehem
While we in the West celebrate the Epiphany of Our Lord today (January 6) the Armenian and Orthodox Churches are celebrating or are preparing to celebrate theirChristmas. For Christians, Christmas is the time for peace and goodwill. This is not shared by Islamic extremists who have threatened the Coptic Church with even more violence after the atrocity already committed in Egypt. For a 'religion of peace' there are far too many Islamists who don't understand the meaning of the word.
To their great credit, I heard two prominent members of the Muslim community speak on the BBC 6 o'clock News about their disgust that Muslims could perpetrate the sexual predatory crimes currently in the news. This is in stark contrast to the report in The Telegraph that charities and agencies working with victims of sexual abuse have been accused of covering up the role of British Pakistani Muslims in sexually exploiting young white British girls.
Meanwhile The Independent reports today that according to the Coalition for the Removal of Pimping (Crop) "On-street grooming is a well-established, lucrative and successful method of coercion of young people that has been around for more than a decade. Part of the problem of discussing the practice was that some organisations were accused of racism when many of the alleged perpetrators of such child sexual exploitation turned out to be of Asian descent.
Evil is evil. Holding-up the race card serves no-one, least of all children solicited for sex regardless of race, creed or colour.
Following yesterday's sexual exploitation story, there has been a revealing interview with a former Home Secretary, Jack Straw, who described how vulnerable white girls are regarded as "easy meat" while Muslim women are out of bounds. Similar double standards were evident when the bodyguard arrested for the killing of Punjab Governor Salman Taseer was showered with rose petals by lawyers. Demonstrators in Pakistan had earlier accused Christians and Jews of double standards by suggesting that they respect our prophets while we do not respect theirs. What respect is there for Jesus of Nazareth who healed the sick, proclaimed "love thy neighbour" and said, "Suffer little children to come unto me"? He brought life not death but for some Islamists death is not good enough. Be warned, unless you are a hardened Muslim fanatic the suffering here should make you weep yet to raise a voice against alien beliefs is regarded as racist. This problem must be confronted. It is too late for excuses. Judging by events in Pakistan, if the sexual predators had been subject to Sharia law, what justice would there have been?
Postscript
Further evidence as come to light here and here.
In a comment on my previous posttsavogadfly said... "I want the whole world to think about the phrase you put so neatly, regarding the merits of pen versus the sword to express disagreement." The illustration above is one of many which neatly emphasises the problem facing us in the free and democratic society radical Muslims seek to exploit.
The reaction to Baroness Warsi's claims of Islamophobia suggest that we may have reached a watershed. Islam claims special privileges under the cloak of persecution while preaching hatred and supremacy. Why is this tolerated? Previous warnings were ridiculed. Politicians must grasp the nettle before it is too late. The spread of Islam must be stopped to protect our democracy.
Just a glass of water!
Many die for lack of it. Another will probably die because of it.
Many people in the world are without clean water but in Pakistan some Muslim women said that a glass of water was unclean because it had been touched by a Christian. This small episode has already cost the life of the Governor of Punjab,Salmaan Taseer, who was assassinated by a member of his security team and was widely praised for the murder. The Christian mother, Asia Bibi, is in prison for her alleged 'crime'. If she escapes the noose she will almost certainly be killed by a self appointed executioner who fails to see the blasphemy of assuming that the Almighty needs an earthly hand to judge another of God's children.
Accusations of blasphemy areincreasing in Pakistan. Although Muslims are not exempt, the law is easily used against minority religions such as Christianity in Islamic countries . Pope Benedict has beencondemned throughout the Muslim world simply for highlighting the problem. An alliance of Pakistani Islamist organisations have said they would hold rallies to protest Pope Benedict XVI's remarks that called on the country to scrap an anti-blasphemy law which allows for the death penalty for insulting Islam.
To comment is not to insult Islam. Such charges are designed to make Islamists untouchable regardless of excess. Charges of racism and Islamophobia are frequently raised in Great Britain when searching questions are asked, ignoring the overriding problem. Killing people simply for having different religious beliefs in the twenty-first century is totally unacceptable by any measure. Silence implies acceptance of religious intolerance which results in the 'religious cleansing' of which President Sarkosy haswarned.
Some of the 600,000 redundant public sector workers lucky enough to find another job may be less than thrilled with those the Prime Minister and his allies have managed toconjure up for them.
"Was it right for Jack Straw to say that Pakistani men saw young white women as easy meat?" A perfectly reasonable question from Asim Khan (apologies if the spelling is incorrect) on a topical issue proper to BBC Question Time but the panel completely missed the point referring to crime, race, colour, ethnic group, culture, multiculturalism, ethnic minority, class and gender. The only time religion was mentioned was a smear of the Catholic church in a comment from the floor. A girl in the audience claimed that instead of blacks, young Pakistani men were now the victims of stop-and-search. The oppression of women was mentioned only in the context of feminism, not religion.
The question and responses were a gift to those who regard searching questions asIslamophobia. Michael Gove actually suggested that those outside a particular community were ill equipped to comment. None of the Asian community men in the audience did so. Was the panel's response based on political correctness, ignorance of Islam's aim of world domination or fear of raising the problem? The more forthright make no bones about world domination under Islam and Sharia law. Some ex-Muslims have had the courage toaddress the problem on pain of death for their apostasy. Others simply sweep the problem under the carpet in the apparent belief that those without a religion are exempt. Perhaps oblivious to the persecution of Christians they fail to appreciate that they defend a religious ideology that does not tolerate independence.
Just a small item listed among other 'News' items on Google but a momentous event despite the fact that the major interest in the Ordinariate would appear to be from abroad. Listed among the overseas commentators was theBBC although 'auntie' chose to highlight the opinion of Prebendary David Houlding who "belongs to the Catholic Group on the Church of England Synod, and regards the ordination with sadness and anger."
Whatever 'sadness and anger' there may be, nothing should detract from this momentous occasion in which the Ordinariate brings together Catholics, Roman and Anglican, in the spirit Christ prayed for on the night of His betrayal, that we all may be one.
His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI is clearly a man of vision. Full marks are also due to the Archbishop of Westminster who reflected Pope Benedict's vision in his homily at the ordination of three former Anglican bishops today and to Archbishop Rowan for his prayers and understanding.
Postscript
Less understanding (or deliberate misrepresentation in the style of WATCH) is shown by Peter Stanford whose article now heads the Google news item. He writes "It is the Vatican's negative attitude to women's ministry that formed the backdrop to the whole affair. The three recruits oppose the Church of England's plans to appoint female bishops and regard the Catholic priesthood as a safe, female-free haven." His article in today's Observer (16 Jan 2011) is beautifully unpicked here.
Government plans for reform of the National Health Service are under fire before they have been officially published. While cutting expenditure left, right and centre the Government has already made a start in lining the pockets of the private sector. The average patient may be more than a little bemused that General Practices that cannot cope with patient demands for appointments will be expected to spend billions of pounds trying to arrange appropriate care from a business led delivery service which puts profit first.
Despite his Freudian slip, Mr Cameron heaps praise on the NHS based on his family's experience of maternity care and the care of his disabled child. If I were PM or any other high profile minister with my wife in a maternity hospital I would be amazed if the staff didn't ensure that the service provided was more than adequate. In reality there are endless stories of crises in the maternity service. At the other end of life's span, 'care' of the elderly is often atrocious sometimes bordering on cruelty. Treatment for Illness during life's journey can be a lottery. The care Ivan Cameron received before his early death was clearly appreciated by his bereaved parents but is not typical. He benefited from a purpose-built medical centre in the basement of his home but many have tostruggle to survive, often in poverty and receive indifferent care when it is needed most.
Whatever Mr Cameron's experience of the NHS it certainly isn't typical. He benefits from a system in which private care is available to the wealthy until complex treatment is needed, then the NHS picks up the tab. That change is necessary is undeniable. Whether this is the way to go about it must be a huge political gamble and may yet come to haunt him. - Claire Rayner's dying words were “Tell David Cameron that if he screws up my beloved NHS I'll come back and bloody haunt him.”
Don't worry!
I'll prescribe Asprin and if you make it to the next financial year we'll get you into hospital then if we can afford it.
From Mail Online: "The christening without much Christianity: Anglican church offers 'baptism lite' to attract non-worshippers". The story refers to "themotion from the Liverpool Diocesan Synod [which] asks for additional texts to be prepared as alternatives for passages in the Common Worship Baptism Services, which would be expressed in more culturally appropriate and accessible language than is perceived to be the case with the present services."
Constant tinkering has already robbed the Anglican church of the beauty of its language, its tradition and now its meaning as it strives to be relevant to a politically correct society. The average person in the street presumes to instruct worshippers what they should believe without knowing the first thing about it, much like many of the terkini religious correspondents who refer, eg, to such as Reverend Smith or Reverend Jones. The illustration in the Mail article in fact appears to be a Roman catholic baptism, not Anglican, but baptism nevertheless.
If the church continues to be driven by a desire to be relevant to society, how long before Christianity has any relevance whatsoever to the Church of England?
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| Credit |
phobia /pho·bia/ (fo´be-ah) a persistent, irrational, intense fear of a specific object, activity, or situation (the phobic stimulus), fear that is recognized as being excessive or unreasonable by the individual himself. There is nothing irrational, excessive or unreasonable about the fear of Islam. In her University of Leicester speech today the Tory Party Chairman, Baroness Warsi, raises the now familiar cry of Islamophobia, warning that describing Muslims as either “moderate” or “extremist” fosters growing prejudice. If it is a question of either we would have to choose "extremist" because at the root of the Islamic ideology is a belief that Islam is supreme and that any means, including lying (taqiyya), are legitimate weapons to achieve world domination.
The illustration above may be old but the hideous practice depicted continues today. (Dreadful images can be readily found by 'Googling' if anyone doubts it.) Many web sites raise issues of concern but the response is invariably "Islamophobia!" No-one is suggesting that all Muslims are bad, indeed Lady Warsi is to be congratulated for her support for women in Pakistan where she worked with Pakistan's Ministry of Law on a project to fight forced marriage. What people have a problem with is the ideology.
Islamists protect their religion by reacting to any supposed criticism, even killing Christians for believing that Jesus Christ is not just another prophet as in Islam but God incarnate. Is it less reasonable for Christians and those of other faiths to protect their religion by using the pen rather than the sword?
Back in 1985 Harold Macmillan likened Margaret Thatcher's policy of privatisation to selling the family silver. Much of Britain's infrastructure is already in foreign ownership and in 2010 the Office of Fair Trading set up its first UK stock-take to see who owns Britain. Now our ancient woodlands are under threat.
We are assured that protective measures will be put in place to protect woodland trees and guarantee public access leaving one to wonder why anyone would want to buy the woodlands if they are unable to profit from their investment. A YouGov poll found that 84% of people agreed the woods and forests should be kept in public ownership for future generations, while only 2% disagreed. The Big Society has spoken. Is the Government listening?
According to The Telegraph "A group of influential MPs will tomorrow call for Parliament to intervene over the historic reform as fears grow that the Church will reject plans allowing female bishops." For 'intervene' read 'interfere'. I am not surprised to see Sir Peter Bottomley involved. He lost my respect some time ago but I am disappointed to read that Frank Field has tabled an early day motion, which could abolish the Church's current exemption from equality laws relating to gender discrimination and ultimately force it to consecrate women.
Why is it that MPs tread so softly on the faith of Muslims yet when it comes the Church of England some see the Vicar as someone doing just another job in the workplace? Men and women are equal in the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church but not interchangeable. Faith in Christ's example, the tradition of the church and the overwhelming opinion of Christians is not discrimination. That is something manufactured by Women and the Church (WATCH) to suit their cause. MPs should know better.
Nat Wei, the man charged by the government with making the big society happen, is to cut down his government role from three days to two, because he needs more time to earn money, see his family and "have a life" after discovering that working for free three days a week is incompatible with "having a life".
The UK Border Agency (UKBA) says it is working with the Church in Wales to train clergy to spot fake marriages.
Meanwhile their Archbishop has been otherwise engaged in business, care of the elderly and tracing ancient footsteps for aTV series although he did have some time for religious duties over the Christmas period when he preached about happiness and serving others . In his sermon at Llandaff Cathedral Archbishop Morgan said, "We would be a happier nation if we stopped thinking of ourselves and learnt to put other people first, treating them with fairness and compassion."
That must be provided they are not traditionalist Anglicans trying to exercise their catholic faith under his authoritarian regime.
Prison vote vultures: No-win, no-fee lawyers line up thousands of convicts to claim compensation for being denied their polling rights
Bankers' bonuses, obscene football fees and now compensation for convicts. According the the Mail online article highlighted above, "lawyers have set up shop in dozens of prisons, encouraging inmates to claim compensation for not having the right to vote. They have already collected 2,500 clients seeking payouts at the European Court of Human Rights."
People go to prison for breaking the law which is what many Members of Parliament propose we should do. Others suggest we simply defy European Human Rights law. The Prime Minister reportedly felt physically ill at the prospect of giving prisoners the vote, so much so that it has caused impotency leaving MPs on the backbenches to put a motion before the Commons to do something about it.
Voters fed up with the 'ambulance chasing' culture that pollutes our justice system don't want to see it spread to aid convicts rip-off taxpayers. We are constantly told to tighten our belts while others get fat at our expense. Some problems simply can't be left to 'localism', the Big Society or simply laissez faire.
What a shame we no longer have the Llandaffchester Chronicles to comment on the state of the Church in Wales, ruled as it is with the rusty iron hand of Bazzer, the boy from Neath. Unable to find anyone worthy in the Principality, His Darkness appointed David Wilbourne as Ass Bishop in his campaign to reduce the church to complete irrelevance to society. Browsing through Church matters as she does, my wife happened upon a Church in Walesreport of the address given by the Ass Bishop at a recent induction. Still incandescent after reading it I asked her to give her reaction which follows.
"So now we have the Gospel according to David Wilbourne. The ordination of women will rid the world of homophobia, misogyny, brutalisation of women in all situations including those in war zones.
Those of us who cannot in all conscience succumb to this terbaru day form of feminism and political correctness are therefore responsible for all the horrors inflicted on women in the world.
What a complete and utter fool this man is!
Pope Benedict has put all in perspective with his customary thoughtfulness, prayerfulness and indeed holiness - all far removed from the Ass Bishop of Llandaff. The Church cannot change what Our Lord started. Read Light of the World David Wilbourne and learn true religion."
For years those who have remained faithful to Christ's example have been belittled and abused, not only by people who have invaded the Anglican church bending it to their will, but by the general population which has been infected by frequent false claims of misogyny and discrimination but this silly Ass has taken criticism of the faithful to an janggal level.
An Englishman's word is was (?) his bond.
Promises are in the news again, this time thepromises that were made in the winning of the 2012 Olympic Games for London - as if we need them with huge cuts in essential services plus the security implications but broken promises are my concern here.
Political pledges such as those given on tuition fees are often looked at with scepticism in the shifting ground of politics but what excuse can there be for the Church of England breaking its promise to traditionalist Anglicans as it ponders the question of women bishops? - A 'Broken Promises' summary was published inForward in Faith's "New Directions" last month (page 10).
For some MPs it is not faith butpolitical correctness that counts as they attempt a fix regardless of the wishes of the new Synod. If honour means nothing at the highest levels of government in Church and State with promises continually broken, as the question goes to dioceses for discussion it will be interesting to see if, for the grass roots, still "An Englishman's word IS his bond".
If God had intended this, why did He make male and female? He could have done without men and perhaps tucked something under Eve's arm to go with her hand bag.
Apparently the Church of England has pledged not to allow any of its buildings to be used for civil partnership ceremonies. Now call me cynical but haven't we had promises and pledges before? Civil partnerships were not weddings but that didn't last long. As the Google headline puts it:
Gay and lesbian couples will get right to marry in church .
I have no duduk perkara with civil partnerships or with gay and lesbian couples. The treatment that many have experienced and still experience around the world is shameful but why is it that liberals can't let things be? Grab an inch and take a mile is their motto with the consequence that religion is becoming irrelevant to many leaving a vacuum to be filled by the one that appears untouchable.
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| Mr Cameron's Big Society is under the spotlight again (Photo: Getty) |
Back in the news is the Big Society. As a former communications man one would have thought that the Prime Minister would be able to put over his big idea with the utmost clarity but people still struggle with it. Could it be that it is all wind and no substance? I thought Cameron'sinterview with the BBC's political editor revealing in the sense that Nick Robinson asked tougher questions than usual suggesting that even he, a former President of the Oxford University Conservative Association, had doubts. The government were simplywashing their hands of responsibility by letting local councils take the flack after starving them of the funds needed to make the project work.
People at the local level are being played off against each other as the Prime Minister claims that in a "grown up society" people have to make tough decisions but empowerment is not that simple. Ministers keep reminding us that it is going to be a tough year. The elderly have been hit particularly hard by inflation, shrinking pensions and erosion of savings but how much worse for the young unemployed with little or no prospect of work, fuelling fears of a lost generation. The current inflation rate of 4% is double that of the Bank of England's target rate of 2% making life even more difficult for many while the few carry on regardless. Barclay's today announced profits of £6.1 billion increasing pay packages by 20% despite reduced bonuses.
In his interview with Nick Robinson, the prime Minister let slip that it was not the previous government who dropped us in the mess but bankers. With an army of unemployed left roaming boarded-up streets in the Big (divided) Society there could there bebig trouble ahead. Oak trees from acorns grow.
Postscript
Thanks to Charon QC (see Blog list) I've just picked up this video of Francis Maude, the Minister responsible for pushing the Big Society, explaining his contribution. Brilliant! One comment suggested the the clip had been doctored so you can see a fuller version here. Well at least he goes to church.
May Angels lead you into paradise;
may the Martyrs receive you at your coming
and lead you to the holy city of Jerusalem.
May a choir of Angels receive you,
and with Lazarus, who once was poor, may you have eternal rest.
Pray for the repose of the soul of Shabbaz Bhatti, Pakistani Minister for Minorities, assassinated for his Christian beliefs.
For many Christians Lent begins with the sign of the cross, in ashes, generally on the forehead. Less fortunate Christians around the world from Ethiopia to the Philippines have ashes all around them, their churches burned to the ground often with mosques built on the hallowed ground. There is a good review of the situation here.
I reflected on the horrors being inflicted on fellow Christians after the penitential rite when the celebrant read the commandment:
I am the Lord your God:
You shall have no other gods but me.
You shall love the Lord your God
With all you heart,
With all your soul,
With all your mind,
And with all your strength.
How can the perpetrators of these crimes believe in one God, the God of Abraham? There is a useful explanation in thisanalysis. So why are we forced to support the implied legitimacy of another god by being surreptitiously soldhalal food, even to Church of England schools? The barnabasfund is taking up this fight through its Operation Nehemiah.
Christians can make their mark to assert that there is no other god by signing thispetition.
Keep the faith, spread the Word and have a good Lent.
There is a delicious irony in today'sannouncement of government plans to allow churches in England and Wales to host civil partnership ceremonies. The church is complaining of "a breach of undertakings made by government ministers during debates on the Civil Partnership Bill". That has a familiar ring about it here and here and here and here. Need I go on?
While taking a half-term break I thought I might leave some video links to ponder. Above is the 'pale blue dot that we call home' taken from the video linked under my Blog header. As Carl Sagan said, that is where every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. It is useful to watch it when things get out of perspective. Perspective is difficult to grasp in the vastness of space. To start, take a look at this video which puts the Earth, the 'pale blue dot' into perspective compared with other heavenly bodies. We are microscopic specks of star dust in space and time yet we often feel that we are at the centre of the universe with everything going on around us. But how big is the universe? This video offers a clue. Mind boggling?
"Lord, I do not seek to understand so that I can believe,
but I believe so that I may understand;
and what is more,
I believe that unless I do believe, I shall not understand."
Anselm of Canterbury
Though deprived of media links during my half-term retreat, much sad news reached me via another's mobile phone. Amongst stories of the tragic loss of life and destruction in the New Zealand earthquake and in the turmoil in the Middle East was areport that 3.2 million foreign migrants were added to the UK population during the Labour party’s 13 years in power (enough foreign nationals to fill Birmingham three times over) and that the level of net migration into the UK rose by 36 per cent last year. Regardless of party politics, this is a staggering figure which is devastating the lives of thousands of young people in the UK. Three-quarters of all new jobs have gone to foreigners according to a report in The Sun . Meanwhile employers complain about skill shortages!
It is hardly surprising therefore that a new poll found that almost half of those questioned were open to supporting a new non-violent, far-right anti-immigration party provided it eschewed 'fascist imagery'. Enoch Powell's prophetic 1968 speech angered many but in general what he had to say was spot on. Despite all the rubbish talked aboutIslamophobia, over half of respondents (52%) agreed with the proposition that "Muslims create problems in the UK". Meanwhile,lawyers continue to peddle theirtrade joining with big business adding to the Immigration figures while lining their pockets at our expense. As Mr Powell said, "we must be mad, literally mad".
No, not bankers with their noses in the trough, completely oblivious to natural justice, but judges themselves who persist in trying the patience of ordinary law abiding citizens.
Yesterday it was the turn of Mr and Mrs Johns from Derby who had already fostered many children but were disallowed from further fostering homeless children under the equality laws because of the way they expressed their Christian faith. The judges said, “We sit as secular judges serving a multicultural community of many faiths. We are sworn (we quote the judicial oath) to 'do right to all manner of people after the laws and usages of this realm, without fear or favour, affection or ill will’.” An ironic comment following the Prime Minister's remarks following on from Angela Merkle's that multiculturalism had failed. Once again it appears that any views can be expressed provided they are not Christian or perceived to question other faiths.
Also in our one size fits all society, the European Court has decided that insurance risk assessment must be abandoned in the interests of gender equality resulting in higher premiums in general and for women in particular. Coming hot on the heels of the votes for prisoners farce, many law abiding citizens must be wondering where all this is leading and would be justified in thinking that 'equality' and 'human rights' judgements have become a load of cobblers - unless they are football fans.
As the 7/7 inquest drew to a close following five months of hearing evidence,Shahbaz Bhatti, Pakistan's Minister for Minorities was being laid to rest, after being assassinated, the latest but probably not the last Christian victim of the so called religion of peace. What possible excuse can there be for atrocities carried out in the name of religion?
"Islam is a religion of peace." I don't think so!
Thanks to the Voice of the Copts blog I have just picked up this moving video which you may wish to share with others.
Postscript: Meanwhile the battle for hearts in the US continues.
The cost of two minutes chanting during the Remembrance Day silence followed by burning the poppy, the symbol of remembrance, calculated to insult our dead and those who mourn or remember them - fine ?50.
Emdadur Choudhury, 26, of Spitalfields, east London, receives £792 a month in benefits from the state he despises on top of his wages. Sorry or regret?Not a bit of it.
Is it Islamophobia to question why we tolerate this behaviour which the perpetrator himself regards as trivial, justified by the meagre punishment? In Pakistan and other Islamic countries just a word out of place results in death. Surely there is something more deserving in between.
Another report of the burning of a Coptic church in Egypt has appeared on the Voice of the Copts blog (see blog list).
Looking at the scale of this attack perhaps that is whatEmdadur Choudhury had in mind when he described his punishment for burning our national symbol of Remembrance as 'trivial', claiming that it was "only £10 more than a parking ticket".
"The common practice today is to measure the Bible against the so-called modern worldview, whose fundamental dogma is that God cannot act in history - that everything to do with God is to be relegated to the domain of subjectivity. And so the Bible no longer speaks of God, the living God; no, we alone speak and decide what God can do and what we will and should do. And the Antichrist, with an air of scholarly excellence, tells us that any exegesis that reads the Bible from the perspective of faith in the living God, in order to listen to what God has to say, is fundamentalism; he wants to convince us that only his kind of exegesis, the supposedly purely scientific kind, in which God says nothing and has nothing to say, is able to keep abreast of the times."
Pope Benedict XVI
'JESUS of NAZARETH'
The 2011 census forms are due for completion on 27 March. Included is the voluntary question, 'What is your religion?' giving eight options including 'No religion' and 'Any other.....'. In addition to English and Welsh forms, translations are available in 56 languages which should lead to some interesting answers. In 2001 'Jedi' was the talking point but this time the emphasis is on persuading people with no religious belief to indicate 'No religion' rather than ignore the question.
To coincide with the census, a poll commissioned by the British Humanist Association suggests that two-thirds of Britons are not religious. This comes on top of another report that suggests religion may become extinct in nine nations.
The 'nine nations' referred to were Australia, Austria, Canada, the Czech Republic, Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Switzerland, countries in which the census queried religious affiliation. The implication that Christianity is on the wane appears to be confirmed. For Humanists that may be welcome news but the religious vacuum increases the risk ofcultural jihad.
The BBC has been doing its best to achieve the extinction of Christianity for some time. After theappointment of a Muslim as Head of Religion and Ethics, previously held by an agnostic, we are offered programmes such as the "Bible's buried secrets" presented by a senior lecturer from the Islam indebtedExeter University pondering such questions as the existence of King David and whether God had a wife. Given that Islam regards Jews and Christians as inferior and little better than heathens perhaps such propaganda is to be expected:
The treatment of non-Muslims is also carefully
spelled out in classical Islamic teaching. Pagans are
to be fought until they convert to Islam, but Jews
and Christians (known as the People of the Book)
are permitted to practise their faith within the
Islamic state. This is however conditional on them
conforming to various demeaning regulations
designed to reinforce their lowly dhimma status in
comparison with Muslims. One particular condition
imposed on them was the payment of a special
poll-tax called the jizya. Like women, they receive
less compensation and their testimony carries less
weight than that of a Muslim man.
'What is Islam'The Barnabas Fund
Some religions may become extinct but that only increases the danger of Islamisation, then where will we be!
My thanks to theCranmer Blog for this beautiful video link on the anniversary of Thomas Cranmer's martyrdom.
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| Stir up Sunday collect from 1637 Book of Common Prayer (St Andrews copy) |
"The Book of Common Prayer provides for Anglicans worship that is majestic, beautiful, above the ordinary level of their lives, and orderly and dependable. It is Scripturally based, it has been developed by the Holy Catholic Church through the centuries and it is thoroughly beloved by Anglicans in all its similar forms everywhere." - Perry Laukhuff
I have long lamented the replacement of prayers in the Book of Common Prayer by trendy language which rarely if ever adds anything, and more often detracts from the beauty of the original. Take the beautifully explicit Prayer of Humble Access, admirably explainedhere, which is frequently dropped from services despite its enduring popularity, or updated by a word here and a word there until it almost becomes - Actually, we really do presume...! It is in that regard that a remark by a speaker at the recent Church in Wales' The Time is Now Conference (here) stuck in my craw, not for what he was trying to say but for what he is reported to have said about the Anglican prayer book, one of the jewels of Anglicanism:
"John explained that the Church has started to get alongside the community and they did this by thinking about the language people use in Caia Park. Now referring to themselves as ?St Mark in the Park?, they are starting to work with local voluntary groups in the area. John said the language of the Church has been alien to the culture ? Especially from the Anglican prayer book. Instead the Church, led by Revd Eric Owen, have started to use positive language that people can relate to."
Now what could be clearer than this? This prayer from what is affectionately known as the Church in Wales 'Green Book' seems to me to go to the heart of the matter without any qualification and should be readily understood from Caia Park to Llys Esgob:
FOR HARMONY IN SOCIETY
(TheChurch in Wales)
Almighty God, who has taught us that we are members one of another: remove, we beseech thee, from among us all distrust and bitterness; and grant that, seeking what is just and equal, and caring for the needs of others, we may live and work together in unity and love; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Or from the unexpurgated version:
A Collect or Prayer for all Conditions of men, to be used at such times when the Litany is not appointed to be said.
(The Church of England)
O GOD, the Creator and Preserver of all mankind, we humbly beseech thee for all sorts and conditions of men; that thou wouldest be pleased to make thy ways known unto them, thy saving health unto all nations. More especially we pray for the good estate of the Catholick Church; that it may be so guided and governed by thy good Spirit, that all who profess and call themselves Christians may be led into the way of truth, and hold the faith in unity of spirit, in the bond of peace, and in righteousness of life. Finally we commend to thy fatherly goodness all those, who are any ways afflicted or distressed in mind, body, or estate; [*especially those for whom our prayers are desired;] that it may please thee to comfort and relieve them, according to their several necessities, giving them patience under their sufferings, and a happy issue out of all their afflictions. And this we beg for Jesus Christ his sake. Amen.
And from The Episcopal Church, now with great irony as it follows its liberal agenda:
For the Church
(The Episcopal Church)
Gracious Father, we pray for thy holy Catholic Church. Fill it
with all truth, in all truth with all peace. Where it is corrupt,
purify it; where it is in error, direct it; where in any thing it is
amiss, reform it. Where it is right, strengthen it; where it is in
want, provide for it; where it is divided, reunite it; for the sake
of Jesus Christ thy Son our Savior. Amen.
It is not that the language of the Church has become alien, rather congregations have become alien to the language of mystery as they indulge in trendy new-speak, apart from some notable exceptions which liberals are doing their best to get rid of.
If the language of the Church has been "alien to the culturedanquot;, how are we to respond in a multicultural society? If we are to believe the former Bishop of Oxford, architect of Wales 2020 we will be having readings from the Koran at the next coronation. Would that be "kill the infidel wherever you find themdanquot; or "cast terror into the hearts of the unbelievers"... Listen here. Christians in Syria, Iraq, Africa, and around the world are being killed or driven out of the homes by people who believe that the only religion is Islam. Is there no limit to the stupidity of some liberal Anglicans?
LIGHTEN our darkness, we beseech thee, O Lord; and by thy great mercy defend us from all perils and dangers of this night; for the love of thy only Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.
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| Women in waiting Photo credit: Telegraph/Jane Mingay |
From today's Sunday Times (here £) "Most bishops... do not automatically qualify for a seat in the Lords and there had been fears that it would be a decade or more before a churchwoman sat on parliament’s red benches. Now, in a historic move championed by Nick Clegg, the law will be rewritten so that female bishops jump the queue when a place among the 'lords spiritual' comes up. The first could be appointed to Westminster’s upper chamber as early as next year."
Last year Mr Clegg was awarded an A-plus for hypocrisy in this Mail Online report: "This week it’s the announcement that he — an atheist and the leader of a party that has pledged to make faith schools more inclusive — has succeeded in getting his son into one of the most over-subscribed Catholic state schools in Britain. Entry to the London Oratory School is dependent on at least one parent not only being Catholic, but regularly attending Sunday Mass at the Brompton Oratory for at least three years. Even with these strict criteria, the school had 800 applicants for its 160 places. How very fortunate that the Cleggs were, as the Deputy Prime Minister put it himself yesterday, ‘lucky’ enough to get one."
Mr Clegg is an atheist married to a Catholic. He told the Mail Online that he wouldn’t impose his political will on his wife when it came to educating their children. But that has not prevented him from imposing his political will on religious matters.
In a radio phone-in Mr Clegg said that he would like to see the disestablishment of the Church of England which would lead to the Queen's removal as the head of the church: "In the long run it would be better for the church and better for people of faith, and better for Anglicans, if the church and the state were over time to stand on their own two separate feet." Mr Clegg believes that the Anglican Church would “thrive” if no longer “inhibited” by its role at the heart of the British constitution.
The Anglican Church in England and Wales was supposed to "thrive" following the ordination of women to the priesthood but last month the Bishop of Truro warned that the Church of England has only "five or six years" to save itself. Previously, when the Bishop of Blackburn launched a 12-year-plan to attract younger people to the Church hefeared that unless the Church reinvented itself in his own diocese, it would disappear like the region’s textile industry.
An elected House of Lords has been a "long-cherished goal of the Lib Dems" but plans to reform the second chamber had to be abandoned after the Conservatives "broke the coalition contract" (here).
Perhaps Mr Clegg is getting his own back, doing the same for the House of Lords as women's ordination has done for the Church, steady decline.
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| Creation of Eve, Sistine Chapel ceiling Michelangelo |
At its meeting on 4 December the Dioceses Commission unanimously agreed with a proposal received from the Archbishop of Canterbury to fill the vacant see of Maidstone. The see, which had been vacant since 2009, had been identified by the Archbishop as one that should be filled by a bishop who takes a conservative evangelical view on headship. - CofE News Release; see also Ruth Gledhill on 'headship' bishophere.
One small step after the Church Society hadcalled for the appointment of 12 Conservative Evangelical Bishops given the proportion of worshippers attending evangelical parishes in the Church of England.
A report in The Economist in 2012 claimed "The rise of evangelicalism is shaking up the established churchdanquot;. But not proportionately according to these figures:
"As the number of people who are actively committed to the Church of England falls, the proportion of churchgoers who are serious about their faith?And its implications for private and public life?Is growing. Peter Brierley, a collector of statistics on faith in Britain, reckons that 40% of Anglicans attend evangelical parishes these days, up from 26% in 1989. That is against a background of overall decline; he thinks the number of regular worshippers in the Church of England will have fallen to 680,000 by 2020, down from about 800,000 now and just under 1m a decade ago. The lukewarm are falling away, leaving the pews to the more fervent."
Given the calls for so-called equality in the Church one would have thought that an established movement based on scripture and reason would take priority over a religious novelty based on feminism and relativism. But not so. The feminist movement has seen its rise to dominance in a steady progression through the deaconate to the priesthood and now the episcopacy while a sizable chunk of the Anglican Church is left marginalised and largely ignored.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, predicted that in 10 years, half the Church of England?S bishops might be women. "Ten to 15 years would be reasonable. It depends when people retire," he said after the vote. Abp Welby said the church was working to train women as potential bishops. "The aim is that you end up with a big pool of people where gender is irrelevant. We are going to take this very, very seriously." - Working to train women as potential bishops, then fast-tracked into the House of Lords. Seriously indeed - but only on terms acceptable to the ruling liberal elite!
Gender may be irrelevant in the new Church of England. So too it seems is belief when 40% of Anglicans are not properly represented. But it is not really about equality. It is just about Eve.
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| WATCH: "To choose a bishop based on one specific view, held by only a small group, can only serve to be divisive." Photo Credit: PA |
Following on from Saturday's entry, Just about Eve, a response from Women and the Church (WATCH) to the announcement of a 'headship' bishop has been published (here) - HT to Anglican Mainstream.
The Chair of WATCH, Hilary Cotton, said: "We have never accepted the appointment of any bishop on the grounds of a particular minority belief: this is distinctly un-Anglican and unorthodox. This goes far beyond disagreement about the ordination of women: it is about bishops recognising each other as bishops. If we lose that, what kind of unity are we demonstrating as a national church?"
This double speak is designed to fool the man or woman in the street who has little if any interest in religion by appealing to their ignorance. According to the Church of England's own estimates of attendance in their self-congratulatoryFacts & Stats, 'one million participate each Sunday'. That is just 1% of Anglicanism. For the vast majority of the 80 million Anglicans who hold to the Apostolic faith of the Church, unity really does matter so selfish desires are put aside in the interests of genuine Church unity.
WATCH, along with ECUSA, the Church in Wales and other marginal, liberal dominated Provinces, hold to a specific, divisive view which gives them dominance in their national church. But that is to the detriment not only of the Anglican Communion but to the unity of the Holy Catholic Church which is again gathering pace following the declaration signed on the feast of St Andrew (20 Nov 2014) by Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. As Erasmus succinctly put it in The Economist -Hello ladies, goodbye Communion?
As feared, these disgruntled feminists cannot help rubbing salt into the wounds which others have been trying to heal. As Erasmus pointed out, to get the women bishops legislation through "the feelings of low-church evangelicals who oppose women bishops have to some degree been assuaged by a promise that one of their number will be appointed to high office". Just as the bishops of the Church in Wales have done these women and their supporters were prepared to go along with any procedure which guaranteed them victory, saying anything, promising anything to get their own way, then renege. The statement added:
"In a separate development, we are keen to know whether the Archbishop of York will consecrate the newly appointed Bishop of Burnley, Rev Philip North, who opposes the ordination of women. It would seem to us bizarre if a suffragan bishop declined to be consecrated by his own archbishop and even his own diocesan bishop, because he did not recognise them as bishops."
Conscience is not a word that has any resonance for the duplicitous. While the Church of England strove to achieve an honourable solution to resolve conscientious differences, WATCH along with Barry and his bench sitters in the Church in Wales remain determined to achieve unity by exclusion.
This is"distinctly un-Anglican and unorthodox".
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| Credit: negativityscene.Com |
While reminding us of the poor and needy this Christmas, Dr Morgan takes the opportunity to advance his personal revolutionary topics: women bishops and his next big project, the "advent of same-sex marriage". That sounds like another foregone conclusion to me. Story here - but not the Christmas story.
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| Fast food giant Subway has removed ham and bacon from stores, halal only - Pamela Geller |
Some 2014 headlines:
"The Muslim population of Britain reached tiga.4 million in 2014 to become around lima.Tiga% of the overall population of 64 million, according to figures extrapolated from a recent study on the growth of the Muslim population in Europe. In real terms, Britain has the third-largest Muslim population in the European Union, after France and Germany.
Islam and Islam-related issues were omnipresent in Britain during 2014, and can be categorized into four broad themes: 1) Islamic extremism and the security implications of British jihadists in Syria; 2) the continuing spread of Islamic Sharia law in Britain; tiga) the sexual exploitation of British children by Muslim gangs; and 4) Muslim integration into British society.
In January, an analysis of census data showed that nearly 10% of the babies and toddlers in England and Wales are Muslim. The percentage of Muslims among children under five is almost twice as high as in the general population. By way of comparison, fewer than one in 200 people over the age of 85 are Muslim, an indication of the extent to which the birth rate is changing the religious demographic in Britain."
For a chronological review of some of the main stories involving the rise of Islam in Britain during 2014 click HERE.
This is not Islamophobia. It is what is actually happening in Great Britain. The reality of Islamic expansion which is changing our culture at an alarming rate. Denial contradicts reported facts. We have become so paralysed by accusations of racism and prejudice that "Asian gangs" (no mention that they were Muslims who are taught that non-Muslims are inferior) were able to abuse at least 1,400 children in Rotherham alone (report here) resulting in this condemnation:
"On August 31, the Independent on Sunday reported that a House of Commons committee would launch an investigation into whether Tony Blair's Labour government knew about the Rotherham child abuse scandal as far back as 2001, but refused to act because of his government's desire to pacify Muslim communities."
"On November 10, the BBC reported that police in Rotherham not only ignored, but actively obstructed investigations into child abuse victims, apparently because the perpetrators were Muslim. On November 19, the Birmingham Mail reported that the Birmingham City Council "buried" a politically incorrect government-funded report that revealed to sexual exploitation of young white girls by Muslim men. The author of the report, Jill Jesson, told the newspaper that the report was never published and all copies were to be destroyed."
To view how British Islamist Abu Waleed thinks Muslims should humiliate Christians in order to make them convert to Islam click HERE.
A few more statistics from Fr. George Rutler interviewedhere:
"There have been lima.Tiga million fewer British-born people describing themselves as Christians, a decline of 15% in just a decade. At the same time, the number of Muslims in England and Wales surged by 75% ? Boosted by almost 600,000 more foreign-born followers of the Islamic faith. While almost half of British Muslims are under the age of 25, almost a quarter of Christians (Protestants and Catholics) are over 65."
Pray that in 2015 HM Government abandons political correctness for reality for the sake of our children and our children's children and that political parties do not harvest cheap votes from Muslim communities by ignoring obvious problems.
Meanwhile, from Cranmer (here) "SOPHIE WESSEX AND THE FASHIONABLE BURQA". - God save us! - And allMuslim women.
A Happy New Year!
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| "Rev Barry Morgan, Archbishop of Wales at the vote for women bishops." Photo: WalesOnline |
According to media reports today (here) the Church of England’s first woman bishop has been chosen. That must be one in the eye for the Archbishop of Wales. The Church in Wales won the race in the vote for women bishops but Dr Morgan has lost the chance to appoint the first woman bishop in England and Wales.
To recap, the Archbishop expressed delight at the result when Church in Wales voted to accept women bishops adding ominously that "he now hopes the church will have the courage to embrace further change". From the WalesOnline report after the vote:
"This time, the bishops proposed a two-stage process – holding a vote on the principle of women bishops but not appointing any until the constitution was amended to establish provisions for traditionalists. But Archdeacon Peggy Jackson and Canon Jenny Wigley tabled an amendment which opposed this two-stage compromise. Under their proposal, women could be appointed a year after the vote and the bishops would establish a code of practice to ensure that “all members of the Church in Wales” have a “sense of security in their accepted and valued place. When asked if he tried to persuade them not to take this action, Dr Morgan said: “It’s not my job to persuade people to do things which are against their conscience. " [My emphasis - Ed.]
It was suggested that the 2008 rejection of female bishops in the Church in Wales was one of the most disappointing moments in Archbishop Barry Morgan’s time at the helm of the Anglican church. Perhaps that accounts for his vindictiveness towards anyone who disagrees with him by simply excluding them.
Postscript
And the winner is.................................
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| Source: Getty Images |
Also said to be in the running for the post were the Reverend Rose Hudson-Wilkin, 53, chaplain to the House of Commons and a chaplain to the Queen, the Very Rev Vivienne Faull, 59, Dean of York Minster and the Very Rev Dr Jane Hedges, 58, Dean of Norwich.
One would have thought a mere suffragan post beneath them so a case for discrimination seems unlikely to arise.
