The shape of things to come, God help us.

Having discerned the will of God, theWATCH glee club has now discerned the will of the 'ordinary person' in the Church according to a BBC report. If they they prove to be correct, the end of the Anglican Church will come a step closer looking at theexperience [do read the comments - Ed] of the US Episcopal Church and the record of their women bishops.

The measure of their concern for those who do not share their politically correct view of what God should do for them is summed up by their persistent accusations of misogyny against (extraordinary?) men and women whose faith is guided by Christ's example rather than theirs and, that if they do not have everything their own way, they would be 'second-group bishops'.

The US experience is horrendous and is guiding what happens here judging by the attitude of the new church militant. God help us if this is what is in store for us.

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The burden of conscience

"Fight valiantly as a disciple of Christ

against sin, the world and the devil,

and remain faithful to Christ to the end of your life."

To the non-Anglican the Church of England must appear to be an archaic debating society in which the newly 'enlightened' struggle to drag reluctant members into the 21st Century. In a secular society most people at least have some understanding of conscientious objection but apparently not in a religious context so they employ secular criteria to arrive at the wrong conclusion. I remember men who were not called to fight in WWII being described as 'conscies' without any awareness of the facts. Possibly they were conscientious objectors but they were probably in reserved occupations which barred them from active service.

During WWI in their ignorance many feminists and suffragettes handed outwhite feathers to men who were not in uniform, including honourably discharged wounded soldiers and those on leave from the front assuming them to be cowards. So earnest were some of these women that the facts became irrelevant to their cause believing only what they wanted to believe.

Little has changed. Maintaining the baptismal promise to "remain faithful to Christ" in one's attitude to the ordination of women attracts the stigma of misogyny. Continuing to believe that Holy Matrimony is an honourable estate between one man and one woman attracts the stigma of homophobia while the charge of bigotry is freely hurled at anyone who fails to toe the shifting revisionist line. Fortunately a significant minority still consider relevant facts so they refused to vote in favour of the ordination of women bishops without the promised safeguards that enabled women to be ordained priests in the Church of England resulting in a defeat of their own making.

I have no idea what to expect from the July 2013 Synod but some have suggested that a two-stage Bill similar to that being presented to the Governing Body (GB) of the Church in Wales in September may be a way forward. According to a Press Release preliminary GB group discussions are to take place on 10 April but given the firm stand already taken by the establishment (here and here) it is difficult to see what could be offered that would be acceptable to traditionalists resulting in the danger that if no agreement were possible the establishment would seek to find a way around the problem in the knowledge that the ordination of women bishops had been agreed. That does not suggest a sensible solution for those who already feel betrayed by actions taken to date.

In looking for a new way forward women who would be bishops and their supporters must accept that for traditionalists, remaining faithful to Christ is not an optional extra but the faith of the Holy Catholic Church as we understand it in common with the majority of catholic and orthodox Christians worldwide. If we were a debating society to be swayed by secular criteria we would not have to bear the burden of conscience but that is not how it is. To say yes to secularism would be saying 'no' to Christ.

The honourable way forward would be to satisfy first the needs of traditionalists and evangelicals. To do otherwise would perpetuate the legacy of ordaining women to the priesthood by fair means or foul, in that case foul given the already broken promises. In conscience as Christians we can and must do better.

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So near, yet so far

The Agenda for the July 2012 General Synod has been published. As the news release succinctly puts it:  "The Agenda provides for the Synod to deal with the final stages of the major legislative process designed to make it possible for women to be bishops in the Church of England while also making some provision for those who, for theological reasons, will not be able to receive their ministry. If the legislation is approved, by simple majorities, by the House of Laity and the Convocations, the way will be clear for it to be presented for final approval on Monday 9 July. As with the women priests legislation in 1992, the whole of the morning and afternoon sittings has been allocated to the Final Approval debates."

'Some provision' just about sums it up. A mere nod towards those who were promised an honoured place in the church. WATCH has plotted their removal on just about every false pretext. Why? So long as traditionalists remain in the Church of England (and the Church in Wales) they are an embarrassing reminder that the Anglican church has separated itself from the historic faith which we affirm in our creed yet the feminist mitre is almost in their grasp, so near yet so far from the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church in which we profess our traditional belief.

If the liberal cause is just why has there been such a dirty campaign? It is no coincidence that the same weapon is being used to make people accept same sex marriage as has been used by those in favour of the ordination of women, deception. Regardless of their views, opponents of same sex marriage are described as 'religious hardliners and anti-gay'; homophobic bigots discriminating against homosexuals to deny them equal rights while ignoring the fact that many homosexual people oppose the move believing marriage to be the joining of a man and a women and what is being sought is not equality but a hastily ill-considered re-definition of marriage.

Despite the fact that thousands of woman petitioned against the measure, many of those in favour of the ordination of women accuse opponents of misogyny, homophobia, prejudice, discrimination and the brutalisation of women when in fact they simply disagree on theological grounds. Others try to read into the Bible anything that suits them. For example, much is made of Mary Magdalene being 'the Apostle to the Apostles' ignoring the important fact that what Mary did after she found the tomb empty was to run to tell the men, Peter and the disciple Jesus loved, the Apostles to whom Jesus entrusted His church.

Now the vote is said to be in doubt. Supporters of women's ordination threaten to vote against the measure just as they threatened to leave the church if they did not get their own way and have threatened again, even calling of strike action. There is a feeling by many that we have come thus far so just get on with it reminding me of the minister who suggested we raise the motorway speed limit to 80 mph because so many people ignored the law. The wider church is in no doubt, what is proposed is, in theological terms, unacceptable in the catholic church, Orthodox and Western. This is not about equality of opportunity in the work place.

There can be only one legitimate vote: NO.

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Misogyny

Thanks to Alan's Angle for his reporthere on Tackling Sharia Misogyny. The graphic descriptions of the way women are treated under Sharia law in this country serve to highlight the absurdity of the charge of misogyny thrown at those of us who oppose the ordination of women on theological grounds.

A clue to this phenomenon may be found in the recent blog by Miranda Threlfall-Holmes who previously compared the Church of England to an abusive husband. She claims that at the heart of Christian Feminism is liberation theology. Liberation theology isdefined as a political movement in Christian theology which interprets the teachings of Jesus Christ in terms of a liberation from unjust economic, political, or social conditions. I do not see the link between the suffering of the poor and the demand for the ordination of women but we can be sure of one thing. There is no need to 'interpret' the teachings of Jesus Christ with regard to the ministry of women in the church. Like it or not, he left us His example.

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Opinionated obfuscants

Over the weekend I read a couple of articles offering opinions which made me despair of the direction that Anglicanism is taking. 'God loves you'; a simple message contorted by groups desperate to validate their own rencana at the expense of others. The emphases below are mine.

First up, from the Belfast Telegraph (here) in an article headed 'Women bishops, yes... But female Pope a long way off'.

A few quotes: "Of course, there are still die-hards who believe that women should not become bishops...", "Such historical sexism was acceptable in societies where women were, and still are, treated like chattels", "The Church of England seems particularly out of touch with modern society, and it is hard to take seriously most of its stately Bishops gliding along in gorgeous dress-like regalia and funny hats", "The Roman Catholic Church, which venerates Mary, has strict views on women in the church, lay and otherwise. That view will not change in my lifetime or yours, so don't hold your breath for a female Pope", "the ordination of women as leaders in all the main churches will depend on their limited man-power. One reason for the Church of England's urgent requirement for women bishops is the lack of good male candidates for these key posts".

And from The Guardian (here), 'Vivienne Faull: a pioneer tipped to be the first female bishop' - yet another article about women being best suited to be bishops because they are women, contrary to scripture, tradition and Christ's own example.

Again a few quotes: "If she were not a woman, she'd have been a bishop years ago. Her mixture of competence, energy and honesty would propel anyone to the top of the Church of England, and her CV ticks all the right boxes", "She was among the very first generation of women to become priests, and has slogged through 20 years of institutionalised misogyny as a result", " she once explained: 'The local population took the view that if a woman led the funeral service, how would you know that you were properly dead?' ", "For 10 years Faull has been a member of the high-level commission that explores theological agreement between the Anglican and Roman Catholic churches. She believes the Roman Catholic church will eventually introduce women priests", "She looks forward to the blessing of same-sex partnerships", "Faull's finely judged intervention would mean the churches that allowed for same-sex marriages would still be Christian churches – something the homophobic parts of Anglicanism would utterly deny", "Despite a career spent working against the misogyny of the institutional church, what is striking about her manner is the lack of rancour."

'God loves you' means ALL, including the allegedly sexist, homophobic, misogynistic die-hards who are regarded as 'out of touch with modern society'. But faith cannot be determined by modern society. To believe that "the Roman Catholic church will eventually introduce women priests" is simply an opinion contrary to the historic teaching of the Church. 'God loves you' cannot be used to undermine what is also true, that “The Church of England affirms, according to our Lord’s teaching, that marriage is in its nature a union, permanent and lifelong, for better for worse, till death them do part, of one man with one woman, to the exclusion of all others on either side”.

A blog entry (here) offers a personal response to the House of Bishops Pastoral Guidance on Same Sex Marriage (here). The comments are heartfelt and the pain real but that does not make it right that the Church should be governed by modern society because individuals feel the need to witness God's love on their own terms. Traditionalist 'die-hards' who only wish to remain faithful to the Church will not be side-lined merely to watch as the complexities of modern society, which are of our own making, are used to rob the Church of the real meaning of 'God loves you' simply to advance minority causes at the expense of others.

Postscript [19/02/2014]

Read David Ould on 'Real love' here.

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Misogyny, repression and stigmatisation

Source: Church in Wales Diocesan press releases

One of the less important casualties of the severe weather was the launch of a new book under the category Gender Studies in Wales.

Due to be launched at that bastion of inclusiveness, St Asaph Cathedral, it claims to offer "significant and original insights into women, Welsh identity and religion":

"Women, Identity and Religion in Wales by Manon Ceridwen James, a Canon at the Cathedral, is the first comprehensive study of its kind from a present-day perspective. At the heart of the book are conversations with thirteen women whose lives and experiences reveal how women facing misogyny, repression and stigmatisation are able to respond with resilience and humour." [My emphasis - Ed.]

I have not read the book and at £24.99 for a paperback copy which, from the reviews, trots out the usual gender studies cliches, I have no intention of doing so. From the abstract of the author's University of Birmingham Ph.D. thesis:

"The thesis is structured as a theological ‘critical conversation’. Dialogue partners include Western feminist theologians and their claim that women find it difficult to assert an authentic self and also sociological and historical texts looking at religion, women and identity in Wales. Christianity has played a significant part in Welsh identity construction, particularly in creating a repressive self-image for Welsh women for political reasons."

Putting such claims in the context of my own grandmothers, mother, wife, mother-in-law, daughters to granddaughters, a period getting on for one and a half centuries, over half of which I have personal experience, nothing could be further from the truth. Quite the contrary which later generations are happy to confirm. It is all politics.

One reviewer described the book as a "valuable and challenging contribution to our understanding of womanhood". What she means is those women who have used religion to further their careers in a so-called equality campaign.

Equality of opportunity in the workplace is to be applauded but the church is not the workplace. Vicars are not employed by the church. They are 'employed by God'.

Blind to the reality that surrounds them, feminists are stuck in the past. They speak for themselves advancing their own cause regardless of the cost to others. If other women become casualties, falling by the wayside in the name of equality, hard luck.

As the Archdeacon of Llandaff candidly explained before she was imported from the Church of England to execute Barry Morgan's disastrous plans for the Church in Wales "new individuals with conscientious difficulties over women’s ministry will simply have to make personal decisions and individual choices, to find accommodation as best they can". With resilience and humour?

Many faithful women have been ousted from their church. I know from experience how it has hurt them to be abandoned but many more women suffer physical hurt and hardship through FGM, human trafficking and slavery. The inferior status of women according to different cultures in our midst is a scandal. To help them requires genuine service, not self advancement while supposedly fighting for social equality so real injustice continues.

Claiming misogyny, repression and stigmatisation is part of the feminist strategy. It has reached the highest levels in the church. We have witnessed two women bishops appointed in Wales followed by one in Scotland in addition to those in England and numerous female clerics repeating the same allegations of discrimination.

Mud sticks. There is plenty of it bringing the church into disrepute. The consequences are all too clear. Christianity in Great Britain is waning fast. When pressed the so-called abuse amounts to no more than a difference of opinion.

When secular values are applied to the church repression and discrimination are alleged. It is not misogyny to take a traditional, theological view on the ordination of women, in fact many more Christian women fervently believe that a woman's place is not at the altar. That is not repression. It is their deeply held faith.

Secularisation of Anglicanism has been a disaster resulting in decline, not growth, but still the alleged 'victims' peddle their untruths to gain advantage. That people outside the church are taken in is hardly surprising when clerics in the church complain it is so. The result is further opportunities to attack the church and our Christian values.

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Not another victim!

Bishop steps down after speaking of campaign forcing him to quit - Christian Today

The Ass Bishop of Llandaff is resigning after speaking of a "sustained campaign forcing him to quit". David Wilbourne, a strong supporter of gay cleric Jeffrey John, will step down on Easter Sunday after 'considerable and increasing pressure to relinquish' his post for the past 18 months.

The Ass bishop of Llandaff knows all about victims. Back in 2011 when he was justifying his appointment by the Archimporter of PC persons, Barry Morgan, he claimed that the ordination of women would rid the world of homophobia, misogyny, brutalisation of women in all situations including those in war zones.

The Church in Wales has since ordained sufficient women to illustrate the nonsense of his comment. With so many women now in place, accusations by Jeffrey John of homophobia must be absurd.

After his appointment vicars in Landaff  received a letter from Wilbourne instructing clergy how he was to be received. Suitable parking was to be provided and a bag carrier was to conduct him into church. Perhaps unsurprisingly his symbols of office were to be displayed on the Altar to emphasis his authority. It proved never to be obvious otherwise. In an unwise move the Ass bishop also let it be known that he would be honoured to made the diocesan.

Wilbourne mentioned nothing in his statement about a sustained campaign forcing him to quit, or of the alleged considerable and increasing pressure to relinquish his post for the past 18 months. He was brought in by someone with no scruples and supported a candidate with no scruples. He has been part of the say anything, do anything campaign to advance the liberal cause that has so damaged the Church.

Pray that the bench has the imagination to recognise the errors of the past. No more of the same please.

Going, gone, gone. Ass bishop Wilbourne and the briefly Dean Janet Henderson

with their appointer Archbishop Barry Morgan.      Picture credit; Church Times

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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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In good faith and bad

A row has broken out in the diocese of Oxford because, horror of horrors, an advert for a new vicar at St Barnabas and St Paul with St Thomas the Martyr Parish specifies that it is seeking a male priest.

This is entirely within the rules adopted when the Church of England agreed to ordain women but of course rules are there to be broken now that feminists in the Church have what they always wanted - control.

According to an Oxford Mail report the advert provoked outrage in the community with one councillor 'slamming the church' for being 'too cowardly' to confront misogyny, presumably unaware that many women are more opposed to the ordination of women than are men and are suffering the consequences of effectively being excommunicated, a matter of complete indifference to the type of women who are calling the shots in the Church.

Showing her apparent ignorance of the workings of the Church, Labour city councillor for West Oxford Susanna Pressel said she was 'shocked and appalled' and asked: "What century are they living in?" She went on: ?They have several excellent women church wardens who do most of the work. It?S profoundly insulting to regard them as not good enough to be paid for what they do. It?S such a pity that the government has exempted churches from the legislation that enforces equal opportunities in every other organisation of any size.

?The Church of England has the power to prescribe equal opportunities within their churches, but they are too cowardly to confront these dinosaurs and to challenge their misogyny."

It is not clear whether Cllr Pressel ever darkens the door step of a church other than perhaps in connection with her civic duties but in any event her understanding of the roles of vicar and churchwardens appear to be strictly limited.

Her support on the other hand for the 20th anniversary of the Oxford International Women’s Festival may explain her outrage. The theme was 'Pioneering and Inspirational' women.

Following on from the outrageous protests at the appointment of the Bishop of Burnley, the Rt Rev Philip North, to become Bishop of Sheffield, this is yet another case of feminists bashing the church regardless of the facts and agreed procedures.

It was no surprise to read, therefore, that Emma Percy, chair of  the feminist pressure group Women and the Church (WATCH) said that she would like the church to be in a place where ‘people don’t worry about or have to specify the gender of their priest’ although she was kind enough to stress that she ‘respected’ the parish’s decision.

In England and in Wales women cried, begged and cajoled, promising to abide by agreements made but the ink was hardly dry before the wrecking began.

It is interesting to read in hindsight a WATCHpaper written by the then canon F A Jackson, now archdeacon of Llandaff having been imported by the former archbishop of Wales to drive forward his secularisation of the Church in Wales.

The intention is clear. Despite claims to the contrary, there is no room for traditional Anglicanism in today's church. This from a woman who was welcomed by the Anglican church at a difficult time in her life only to do her damndest to punish men and women who do not share her self-centred approach to Anglicanism. In doing so the spiritual lives of many who were faithful Anglicans long before Jackson took to religion have been ruined.

One of the brightest stars in the Church in Wales, a traditionalist Anglican who towered above the bench, was told ?There is no place for you in this church?. By contrast one of the many men he inspired to become ordained has risen to the top having bowed to Barry Morgan's secularist agenda.

Traditional Anglicans in the Church of England have, for the time being, access to alternative  episcopal oversight, something denied Anglicans in Wales where a 'brood of vipers' pretended to care but clearly did not.

The Code of Practice claimed "The Church in Wales therefore remains committed to enabling all its members to flourish within its life and structures as accepted and valued".  They reneged on the agreement to provide acceptable pastoral and sacramental oversight for traditionalists by refusing to re-appoint a Provincial Assistant Bishop and have forbidden other bishops to cross the border to support them.

Consequently Anglo Catholicism in Wales has been virtually eliminated. If by some miracle there were a change of heart there is hardly anything left of the Anglican church itself as it crumbles into obscurity leaving the architects of its demise to sit out their retirement on their un-earned pensions.

The media along with ill-informed outsiders continue to use secular values to attack Christianity from a position of ignorance while protecting political ideologies which would bridle free speech. For Christians and Anglicans in particular the outlook is grim.

Many were surprised at the choice of words used by the former Archbishop of Canterbury in reaction to the lost vote in 2012. In a speech to the General Synod he said, "The failure of the vote in the house of laity...Had made the church's governing body appear "wilfully blinddanquot; to the priorities of secular society before adding that "the ultimate credibility of the Church does not depend on the goodwill of the wider public. We would not be Christian believers in divine revelation if we held that."

The Church of England, as represented by those in authority, is no longer blind to the priorities of secular society. Hence the mess we are in which is clear for all to see except the wilfully, spiritually blind.

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