For better or for worse...

...For richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death us do part, according to God's holy law.

The Mail Online has reported that "Two million husbands and wives are not lawfully married because of a Church of England blunder" speculating that "marriage partners heading for divorce may try to deny their spouse maintenance, support or even a home on the grounds that they were never really married". What God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.

There is a serious point here. Constant change has made a complete mess of Anglicanism but in reality, however man or woman legislates it is in the sight of God that we shall be judged. The Anglican Church has been on a slippery slope ever since change was introduced to make it more 'relevant'. Gone is much of the mystery, the awe, the beautiful language making worship commonplace. Political correctness has replaced tradition, so much so that the catholicity of the church is being surrendered. The result? An Anglican Covenant that proposes the use of sticking plaster to heal broken limbs.

Drastic surgery is needed. The feminisation of the church must be halted. The first step is to abandon the divisive measure permitting women bishops signalling to the Universal Church that unity is more important than feminism. The alternative is further decline with the Anglican church becoming little more than a social network when the Lord's table might as well be used to serve tea and biscuits.

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Barry Morgan shot down again

The bishops of Monmouth, Bangor, St Davids (Bp-elect), Llandaff (Abp), Swansea and Brecon and St Asaph in Sacred Synod           Source: Church in Wales

Archbishop Barry Morgan retires today. Referred to on the Church in Wales twitter account as a 'progressive man never afraid to go against the grain', he leaves behind a legacy based on a liberal interpretation of the Bible designed to back his personal views on homosexuality. His interpretation of scripture has once again attracted scholarly criticism (here). Previous examples here and here.

On Sunday in what appeared to be a promotional service 'Light for Our Darkness', Dr Morgan gave a two part address which was oddly split by the singing of the Nunc Dimittus as if to add some sort of divine approval. The service was broadcast from the Cardiff Parish Church of St John the Baptist led by the Vicar, the Rev'd Canon Dr Sarah Rowland Jones, LVO, OBE, OStJ who, coincidentally, is hotly tipped to be the next bishop of Llandaff.

On listening to his address Dr Morgan appeared to be suggesting that opponents of his liberal views are guilty of 'hatred' and 'intolerance', hating the sinner rather than the sins Christ forgave.

Desperate to convert everyone to an acceptance of same sex marriage in Church the Archbishop has consistently put his own interpretation on Holy scripture. Had he been a junior cleric his views, though worrying, would have carried little weight when shared with a tiny congregation. But Dr Morgan is the Archbishop, eulogised by ill-informed commentators as the longest serving Archbishop in the Anglican Communion as if that in itself imparts wisdom.

As a bishop Dr Morgan was called to 'lead and teach', not to lead astray. He may be entitled to his own views but not to represent them as those of the whole Church or to penalise Church members who have disagreed while maintaining the faith of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church which the Church in Wales claims to belong.

Dr Morgan vacates office in full knowledge that faithful worshippers have left the Church because he has consistently refused to make acceptable provision for anyone who maintains orthodox views.

Consequently many devout women and men have been left with nothing but a spiritual vacuum. That in itself is reprehensible but for it to be inflicted by an Archbishop who believes that only he can be right is outrageous.

Speaking about his desire to see same sex marriages performed in Church, Dr Morgan told the BBC: "I haven't done that on my own. I've done that with the full support of the present bench of bishops and also with the support of the governing body" thus making the bishops complicit and the GB accessories.

What an utter disaster. A Province in the Anglican Communion has been led astray for political purposes. In doing so the Church in Wales has been reduced to little more than an outlet for social services. Addressing an invited congregation at his farewell service Dr Morgan said, "Without the input of churches, fewer food banks would exist, less help would be given to the homeless, the poor and asylum seekers".

Divine worship has become secondary. Without a dramatic volte-face the Church in Wales is doomed.

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Your new home?

Christ Church, Rhosybol, on sale for £45,000                                                       Source: Daily Post

This is just one of twelve redundant churches currentlyoffered for sale by the Representative Body of the Church in Wales following closure for worship which could be your new home. How many more to follow?

Worship often took place twice and more in bigger churches on Sundays, many with a daily Eucharist during the week. That was before they became the means of spreading political correctness, misapplying notions of gender equality to the priesthood, substituting equality for theology.

With few exceptions Church attendance continues to fall year by year. Ironically, in one of the largest ever surveys of peoples' attitudes towards the role and influence of churches in local communities published in Christian Today, more than a third of UK adults surveyed said that they would "campaign to keep their nearest church from closing because it provides 'vital' services to its local community." Without supporting members, who would maintain them?

MAE Cymru supporters. SourceChurch in Wales

In former years five of the bishops of the Church in Wales held Oxford Firsts in Theology. The bishop designate of Llandaff studied social sciences. When interviewed by BBC TV News she was very much into gender parity so regardless of merit no doubt there will be an explosion of female appointments in Llandaff along with St Davids where the first woman bishop was appointed. Bishop Penberthy is a strong supporter of MAE Cymru, an organisation spreading feminism in the Church Wales under the guise of equality but only as they see it.

In response to my previous entry some commentators became exercised over a suitable spiritual home for disillusioned Anglicans. Sadly, as the declining numbers indicate in all but a few churches, most Christians do not look for an alternative. They give up in despair and stay home. Robbed of its mystery and otherness, church-going has for many become another weekly social occasion while others turn up at Easter and/or Christmas expecting their church to be there for them.

The obsession with gender politics has been a disaster. It has spread from the acceptance of the ordination of women to demands for acceptance of just about every sexual permutation including same sex marriage, the red line for many Anglicans.

Woe betide anyone who dares to hold a contrary opinion or to question the basis of different beliefs. Witness the Tory MP forced to stand down after a sixteen year old student and LGBT rights campaigner did not like the answer to her question after she asked him if he was planning on attending the Isle of Wight's first ever pride event.

Shades of Germaine Greer who was pilloried for expressing her personal opinion that she did not think post-operative transgender men are women, an opinion shared by experts.

Devout Christian Tim Farron the leader of the Liberal Democrat party was hounded until he gave a politically correct answer when asked if he thought that homosexuality was a sin. He had no support from the Church of England.

The first Church of England vicar to marry his same-sex partner has announced his resignation as a parish priest complaining that the CofE is 'institutionally homophobic'. He claimed that he and other gay and lesbian clergy were 'barely tolerated'.

That is an odd claim given the experience of remaining churchgoers, a claim which also contradicts the experience of the Rev Sally Hitchiner who told viewers of the BBC Breakfast programme on 30 April while discussing the marriage of Pippa Middleton that she was to "marry" her same sex partner next month.

Many, particularly younger, people today simply shrug their shoulders and say, So what? It doesn't affect me. But it does. As churches close some are converted into mosques while new Islamic centres are being built to accommodate the growing number of Muslims resulting from immigration and higher birth rates. Mohammed already tops the list of most popular baby boy names in England and Wales.

Islam is not tolerant of homosexuality. Woman count for less than men. It is ironic, then, that the politics which have split the Church will be unacceptable to the predominant faith group when Islam becomes the largest religion in the world by 2070.

If church leaders spent as much time exposing the ideology that is stamping out Christianity in its birthplace as they do on gender politics and affirming Islam there would be less need for GAFCON to send a missionary bishop to our shores to speak for traditional marriage.

Meanwhile in New Zealand a transgender weightlifter is causing controversy. Olympic Weightlifting NZ high performance manager Simon Kent described Hubbard's performance as 'magnificent'. "This is such a new issue for society to have a conversation about," said Kent, of the transgender question. "It really challenges how people respond to it - it's not something that is openly discussed and talked about." [My emphasis - ED.]

Transgender athlete Laurel Hubbard  Source: NZ Herald Photo: Doug Sherring

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A Happy Christmas to my Orthodox readers

I need no excuse to indulge myself in the glories of the Russian Orthodox Church but their celebration of Christmas on 7 January is an opportunity too good to miss.

In the above video the congregation, male and female, young and old, rich and poor, are engrossed in the liturgy. There is a sense of spirituality lost in some other churches. Contrast their piety with that of many Anglican congregations in Great Britain today where reverence has been replaced by the familiarity of  'Other Forms of Worship' in which the Altar is no longer the focus of attention.

It is hardly surprising that congregations have dwindled when there is no sense of otherness. We are 'of this world' but losing the other worldliness of mystery and awe exhibited by our Orthodox brothers and sisters is a great loss.

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'Gif of God'

Orthodox worship                                                                                                                          Source: La France Orthodoxe

Latin worship                                                                                                                                          Source: CatholicEnfield

Anglican (CofE) worship                                                                                                                                  Source: Telegraph

These three photographs illustrate what, in part, has gone wrong with Anglicanism. Mystery and awe have given way to liberal secularism aided by technology.

The Church of England is encouraging clergy to embrace social media as it strives to make the church more relevant to society. In doing so it has lost its sense of otherness.

In church the focus of attention should be on the altar. In thisexample, which involves a presentation the Church of England'sLearning Labs Road Show, a screen becomes the focus, not for spreading the gospel but for 'practical advice on using social media'.

Information is spread at the touch of a button but frequently it is not the Christian message.

Justin Welby has beenenthusiastic about his 'pilgrimage' to India but it is all about politics. His performance is serverley put into context in the latest edition of Anglican Unscripted starting @28.50.

Liberal evangelist Dr Miranda Threlfall-Holmes recently shared the news on her Twitter account that she "Deleted slightly facetious last tweet. Read manifestos. Joined the Greens. Resigned from Labour. Let?S get changing the system not just tinkering with it, it?S the system that?S broken not just the individuals running it - unsurprising that they play the system. People do."

For others it is not so much politics but pride that matters as illustrated by this tweet about a visit to a neighbouring parish and the sharedwelcoming video.

Anglican clergy regularly tell us how 'very excited', 'thrilled' and 'proud' they are to share their daily experiences on Twitter as here:

"Very excited to be doing a placement at @ChesterCath as part of my curacy! So far I've met lovely people, seen parts of the cathedral that I didn't know existed  (and probably won't find again) and had some really interesting chats... And been to two services and held an owl!" - Wow!

Ex-Communard, the Rev Richard Coles, who has a habit of popping up everywhere recently shared this experience on Twitter:

"In a fit of conscience I told my host that I had to pee in his jug because I was trapped in my room this morning (due to his poor maintenance of the door handle). He now wants the jug destroyed rather than just thoroughly washed. I think this is an over reaction." He might have been advised to micturate elsewhere!

This passion for spreading personal experiences is part of the Gif of God initiative reported in the Telegraph in 2016:

"In the age of instant communications, when some people are thought more likely to venture into their parish church in search of Pokémon than pilgrimage, clergy are being advised - gently but firmly - to keep up with the tide.

The Church of England has issued new guidance to clerics and congregations to help them navigate the seemingly bewildering array of new apps and sites to incorporate into church life...

...clerics with time on their hands after visiting the sick, conducting services and writing sermons are encouraged to make their own Gifs – animated images – to spread the Christian message online."

Spreading the Christian message online would be a novelty.

#CofERoadshow                                                                                                            Source: Twitter

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"Soulless neutrality"

St Hilda's College, Oxford                                                                                                Source: web

From the Telegraph: St Hilda’s College in Oxford is set to become the first  undergraduate college in the University to cease having a dedicated Anglican chapel, transitioning instead to a multi-faith prayer room described by Elizabeth Oldfield as a victory for 'soulless neutrality'.

This decision even ruffled the feathers of Giles Fraser who wrote: "St Hilda’s College is the first college of the University of Oxford to have demolished its chapel. First of all they were going to replace it. But having knocked down the old one they have now decided they want a multi-faith space instead. The humanists are crowing that this represents a triumph for the forces of secularism – and they are, of course, perfectly correct."

But Fraser goes further: "This has nothing to do with an Anglican desire to maintain some sort of theological dominance within the University. If St Hilda’s decided it was going to have a mosque or a synagogue instead, I for one could entirely see the point and much prefer it. Such a space would have a particular religious character and be so better for that. Indeed, there are dozens of college chapels. So why not a bit of re-balancing? But of course they won't do that, too afraid of the Daily Mail, too afraid of being labeled as the college with the mosque."

Prior to 2007 St Hilda's was a Hall for Women Students. Women would have been able to worship on equal terms with men in the Anglican chapel unlike Muslim and Orthodox Jewish women who are segregated in worship.

Replacing the dedicated Anglican Chapel with a multi-faith prayer room is a politically correct, retrograde step signalling equal worth of beliefs contrary to the teaching of the Bible.

Ignorance of what Islam teaches is rife and is unlikely to improve without radical changes.

In July 2019 the Government appointed an "Independent expert" to tackle Islamophobia. The appointee, Imam Qari Asim, MBE, said at the time: "To tackle the alarming rise in anti-Muslim sentiment, it is imperative that Islamophobia is defined. I am deeply committed to working across Muslim communities and with relevant stakeholders to formulate a legally robust, comprehensive and workable definition of Islamophobia."

Talking at a workshop organised by The Centre for Muslim-Christian Studies the Imam "argued the case for Muslims to obey the law of the land most of the time. But he also made clear how he would like the law to accommodate Islamic ideas. For example, he would like to see polygamy legalised, and inheritance to favour male heirs in line with sharia principles. He also supports Islamic finance with its radical view that interest should be banned." He would also "support an explicit Islamic blasphemy law."

Qari Asim is facing calls to stand down after he was accused of questioning free speech. Replaced or not, a clear distinction needs to be made between Muslims and Islam. Having an opinion on the teaching of Islam is not anti-Muslim.

The 'soulless neutrality' of political and spiritual leaders also needs to be confronted.

The following is an extract from Christian Concern'sIs Islam a religion of peace? :

The teaching of the Qur’an

"Confusingly for the ordinary reader, the Qur’an is not in chronological order. The chapters (Surahs) come in order of length, from the longest to the shortest. According to classical Islamic teaching, however, earlier verses (in chronology of revelation rather than position in the Qur’an) are sometimes cancelled by later instructions in a manner somewhat similar to how Christians view the New Testament as cancelling some of the instructions of the Old Testament. This Islamic doctrine is called abrogation, and it is found in the Qur’an:

"We do not abrogate a verse or cause it to be forgotten except that We bring forth [one] better than it or similar to it. Do you not know that Allah is over all things competent? (Q 2:106)

"Or again:

"And when We substitute a verse in place of a verse – and Allah is most knowing of what He sends down – they say, “You, [O Muhammad], are but an inventor [of lies].” But most of them do not know. (Q 16:101)[10]

"This doctrine of abrogation enables apparent contradictions in the Qur’an to be resolved; later verses abrogate earlier ones. Furthermore, Muhammad did not advocate violence earlier in his career, but waited until he had amassed a following large enough to wage war. Earlier verses are thus more peaceful, while later verses are more violent.

"The most famous example of a peaceful verse is Q 2:256:

"There shall be no compulsion in [acceptance of] the religion. The right course has become clear from the wrong. So whoever disbelieves in Taghut and believes in Allah has grasped the most trustworthy handhold with no break in it. And Allah is Hearing and Knowing.

"However, this verse, and many others, is regarded as having been abrogated by the ‘verse of the sword’:[11]

"But when the forbidden months are past, then fight and slay the Pagans wherever ye find them, and seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem (of war); but if they repent, and establish regular prayers and practise regular charity, then open the way for them: for Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful. (Q 9:5)

"In fact, surah 9 is the last chapter to be revealed in the Qur’an and is seen as abrogating earlier instructions. Surah 9 is also the most violent chapter as the following verses demonstrate:

"Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued. (Q 9:29)

"Here ‘Jizya’ is the Islamic subjugation tax to be paid by Christians or Jews who have accepted the subjugated status of ‘dhimmi’.

"O Prophet, fight against the disbelievers and the hypocrites and be harsh upon them. And their refuge is Hell, and wretched is the destination. (Q 9:73)

"Allah hath purchased of the believers their persons and their goods; for theirs (in return) is the garden (of Paradise): they fight in His cause, and slay and are slain: a promise binding on Him in truth, through the Law, the Gospel, and the Qur’an: and who is more faithful to his covenant than Allah? (Q 9:111)

"O ye who believe! Fight the unbelievers who gird you about, and let them find firmness in you: and know that Allah is with those who fear Him. (Q 9:123)

"Note that these are open-ended commands without qualification. In total, there are well over a hundred verses advocating violence in the Qur’an.[12]"

Postscript

An extract from Christian Concern'sHow to tackle the Islamisation of prisons:

"The latest prison population statistics show that 16.1% of the prison population is Muslim, up from 12% in 2009. This compares with around 5.6% of the UK population who identify as Muslim. As of 2018 there were 61 full-time equivalent Muslim prison ‘chaplains’ (nearly 40% of all chaplains working in prisons), compared with 157 Christian prison chaplains. This makes the Prison Service one of the largest employers of Muslim religious professionals in the country. Yet former prison governor Ian Acheson, when reviewing Islamist extremism in prisons, found that virtually none of the prison imams he asked even knew about their Prevent duty."

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