Bishop of Manchester praises tradition in the church!

Contrary to reports in the MailOnline and elsewhere, Manchester Cathedral's Spirit of Life Festival on 2 May will not be featuring tarot card readers and crystal healers although there will be a fire-breathing vicar. - There's a novelty these days!

It seems that the Bishop of Manchester, the Rt Rev Nigel McCulloch, is now happy to celebrate spirituality and tradition. According to his Cathedral website there will be "workshops and stalls covering poetry, Franciscan spirituality, arts and crafts, healing, icons, angels, meditation, personality profiling, music and blessings, labyrinths, dream interpretation, Christian symbolism of gem stones and Celtic saints, prayer bead making, choral evensong, foot and hand massage, Taize chants and, finally, fire breathing. - All of these events will aim to convey something of the Christ we follow as Christian people."

 When it comes to traditional worship however, the bishop sat on the fence. It was left to the Archbishops to beg for tolerance to allow traditionalists freedom of worship in the manner shared by fellow Orthodox and Catholic Christians throughout the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. How the new Synod will see things remains to be seen but let's hope dioceses will recognise that the drift from traditional worship is killing the Anglican Church.

His Lordship works in mysterious ways his wonders to perform!

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Charity? - Not for WATCH

I shall not repeat what can be read here:

http://www.Christiantoday.Com/article/archbishops.Proposals.On.Women.Bishops.Met.With.Mixed.Feelings/26185.Htm

Of their charity the Archbishops of Canterbury and York have struggled against the tide of liberalism to find a formula that will avoid splitting the church further.

As usual the women of WATCH are having none of it. All that matters to this ultra-feminist pressure class is outright victory for their cause.

It's time to put Christianity back at the heart of the Church of England.

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The bizarre world of the Church in Wales

When Canon Jeremy Winston was appointed Dean of Monmouth transferring his many undoubted talents to the Cathedral Church of St Woolos in Newport, many people in Wales and beyond were heartened that one of their brightest stars had, at last, received belated recognition, perhaps even opening a new chapter in the life of the Church in Wales. That joy was to be short-lived. Fr Jeremy's untimely death was a cruel blow. With the appointment of the new Dean, announced yesterday, comes another severe blow while it will be music to the ears of their Archbishop. Perhaps the Bishop of Monmouth is making amends for previously appointing a traditionalist to one of the top positions in the Church in Wales when preferment of those who do not toe the line is out of the question!

The official announcement looks straight forward enough - ignoring the implication in the Bishop's comments that former Deans may not have been up to scratch ("I was conscious that people were asking for a Dean who would make the Cathedral a place of prayer, welcome and pilgrimage so that it is truly the Mother Church of the Diocese") - but the Bishop's delight in welcoming to his diocese "someone with Fr Lister’s gifts and personality" may not be shared by the very people who were delighted by Fr Jeremy's appointment.

Following a link provided in the LNYD blog, at first there appeared to be an error but reading on,  two comments under the blog entry were made abundantly clear when I read the following from he who is to be the new Dean of Monmouth:

"But, having voted for the Archbishops' disastrous compromise (torpedoeing) ammendment, be aware that the Synod is likely to throw out any Code of Practice which undermines the episcopal integrity and authority of women which you and your male colleagues enjoy.

The game is up for those who would seek to stay and at the same time wreck the forward movement of the Church of England. Their bluff has been called by Rome. It now needs to be called by Canterbury.

Posted by: Lister Tonge on Wednesday, 14 July 2010 at 10:39pm BST"

With such credentials one wonders why the dear leader of the Church in Wales hadn't already spotted him. His uncompromising comments epitomise the sentiments I questioned in an earlier entry. Meanwhile in the Church of England the Archbishops are "keen to ensure the Church of England remains a broad church 'in which conscientious difference of theological judgement is fully respected' and 'do not want would-be priests to be discriminated against if they oppose the ordination of women'." How bizarre then that the Church in Wales continues policies contrary to those of its sister church across the border with whom clergy are inter-changeable as witnessed by the new appointment.

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Synod fallout

"Rev Andrew Foreshew-Cain, right, with his husband Stephen."             Photograph: The Guardian

The General Synod Report from the House of Bishops Marriage and Same Sex Relationships after the Shared ConversationsGS 2055 was debated on Wednesday 15 February after group discussions. Ahead of the group work there was a presentation by the Bishop of Norwich and the Bishop of Willesden.

What was said in the presentation should be broadly acceptable to anyone who wants to uphold the Christian faith. Church Doctrine must inform society not bend to it. That society takes a more liberal view of sexual activity today is irrelevant.

Most regrettable is the need constantly to apologize for upholding the Christian faith. The Bishop of Norwich said he regretted the pain and anger felt by those who were disappointed adding an apology to those who thought the tone of the Report was wrong.

Worse, the Archbishops of Canterbury and York have written to members of the General Synod setting out the next steps following the vote not to take note of GS 2055, a procedural motion allowing Synod to move on. Their tone is worrying.

In their letter they write "How we deal with the real and profound disagreement - put so passionately and so clearly by many at the debate - is the challenge we face as people who all belong to Christ...The way forward needs to be about love, joy and celebration of our common humanity; of our creation in the image of God, of our belonging to Christ - all of us, without exception, without exclusion."

Inclusion for LGBT campaigners means having their demands met, for same sex marriage in church to be accepted on a par with traditional marriage regardless of the consequences for the Church. Learning from the movement for the ordination of women they will agitate until they have what thy want. Ironically the lost vote was counter-productive as explained here.

When the Archbishops of Canterbury and York write about our belonging to Christ - all of us, without exception, without exclusion - they seem to forget the thousands who have left their Church in despair at the constant pandering to minorities who have no interest other than their own satisfaction.

Last year a group of gay Church of England clergy revealed that they were defying the official line taken by church leaders on same-sex marriage (the first pictured above). Ignoring the authority of their bishops and the teaching of their Church, half the signatories declared themselves already to be in a gay marriage. Why is the Church apologising to them?

Another Anglican priest, George Pitcher,writing in the Telegraph sets out the position plainly: "I'm a bleeding-heart liberal cleric – but the Church of England must not accept gay marriage". That is more like the authentic voice of the Church. If gay activists find that unacceptable it is they who should leave, not cradle Anglicans. LGBT people can live together. They can have civil partnerships. They can attend Church but they cannot be married there. Those are the rules. Greed does their cause no credit.

As the CEO of Christian Concern wrote, It's time for the Church of England to lay down the law on marriage.

Also, from a Christian Todaymemo, To Bewildered Bishops - Please Be Shepherds, Not Sheep

A desire to satisfy the wants of the few must not obscure the need to keep the many.

Postscript [23.02.2017]

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Limited view!

David Davies (centre) has challenged Archbishop of Wales Barry Morgan (left) and Archbishop

 of Canterbury Justin Welby (right) over their stance on refugees and people entering the UK

Wales Online today carries a report: 'This MP says the Archbishops of Canterbury and Wales are wrong about how to approach the refugee crisis'.

Monmouth MP David Davies said the Government is following the example of the Good Samaritan by caring for people in the 'nearest place of safety' and that if the archbishops listened to their “rapidly diminishing flocks” they would learn that people “want to help genuine refugees” but are “deeply concerned” about the implications of an “open door immigration policy”.

Mr Davies added, “Thousands of the most vulnerable will be rehoused in the UK. Yet nothing will be enough for campaigning clerics who contrast our policy unfavourably with that of the good Samaritan.

He suggested that they “should re-read the parable: When the Samaritan came across the Jew on the road between Jerusalem and Jericho he didn’t take him on to Samaria, instead, he paid for him to be looked after in the inn – the nearest place of safety just as we are doing today throughout the Middle East in our refugee shelters.”

A Church in Wales spokeswoman said: “We warmly welcome Mr Davies, and anyone else with a limited view of the scope of the ministry and concerns of the Church in Wales and the faith on which it is based, to join us and find out more. Our clergy serve every community in Wales.”

"Limited view"! As ever the Church in Wales exhibits no sense of proportion.

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And now the smears...

Source: Evening Standard

Many of us are used to smears if we hold an opinion contrary to the received wisdom. To misogynistic, homophobic and Islamophobic I can now add xenophobic and racist.

I was horrified when I read that the Polish and Social Cultural Association (POSK) in Hammersmith had beentargeted by vandals who had sprayed yellow paint on the front of the centre saying "Go Home".

Do these idiots not understand that after Poland was overrun by the Nazis in WW2 many Poles gave their lives fighting with the Allies and many of their pilots fought in the Battle of Britain?

In Prime Minister's Question Time today David Cameron assured the House that all possible steps will be taken to tackle the persoalan of a few extremists exploiting the Brexit vote but it does not help the situation when Ministers and others brand people as racists simply because they take a balanced view of immigration and the inherent risks to stability of an open-door policy which will bring further chaos to our over-stretched public services.

Writing in the Guardian Miqdaad Versi, assistant secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain, writes "Brexit has given voice to racism – and too many are complicit". Self proclaimed Brexit defector and former Conservative Party chair, Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, cited "hate and xenophobia" as the reasons for changing her position. Tell Mama is devoted to "Measuring Anti-Muslim Attacks" inviting complainants to submit reports. The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) has compiled "over 100 incidents reported of hate crimes following the referendum result" according to figures on their web site. For a world view click here.

AsArchbishop Cranmer wrote: "Brexit may have spurred a few racists but the heartbeat of the nation is unity and tolerance". All violence is to be deplored, from whatever source. We are constantly told that Islam is a religion of peace and that extremists do not represent true Islam despite all the evidence to the contrary in Islamic states where the Dhimmi status of non-Muslims is thought acceptable.

From Archbishops down, or up depending on one's point of view, Islam is being affirmed as if it were an acceptable religion on a par with Christianity. Justin Welby hosted an iftar this week at Lambeth Palace - a breaking of the Muslim fast of Ramadan.  Addressing the Muslims there, he said: "Your faithfulness in observing Ramadan in this way has been an example of what it means to take faith seriously"!

When I first clicked on the Welby link there was a link to another page "Soldiers beheaded, churches destroyed and constant fear: Syrian Christian on life under ISIS in Raqqadanquot;. Will we ever learn?

Earlier I read a report that the WATCH 'F-word' advocate, now Rector of St James' Piccadilly "opens doors for Muslims, hosts grand Iftardanquot;. So much for theclaim that "there will be no repetition of the March 2015 Muslim prayer service held at St John?S Waterloo".

While Anglican clergy are busy affirming Islam, MCB and their supporters are busy playing the victim. Again from Cranmer: "There are undoubtedly some vile people out there who are abusing Asians, Muslims, Poles and Romanians, but it seems particularly crass for Remainers (including some senior clergy) to smear all Brexiters with the whiff of racism (not to mention stupidity)."

A sense of proportion please.

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