Marriage: Dodgy discipleship?

People will oppress each other-- man against man, neighbour against neighbour. The young will rise up against the old, the nobody against the honored. - Isaiah 3:5

The Spring 2015 issue of Croeso, the Diocese of Llandaff's news sheet, leads with the Archbishop of Wales' latest hobby horse, same-sex marriage dressed up as pastoral care. If marriage is a state instituted and ordained by God for the lifelong relationship between one man as husband and one woman as wife, what is there to discuss? The response of the Church in Wales is the usual, what would Jesus do if He met a gay person in Wales today? 

Actually he does, everyday, for anyone who truly believes that Jesus lives. But what we are being led to believe is that Christ would update His teaching on the street today to embrace modern lifestyles. In political terms, if you keep missing the target, change the target.

The Church in Wales is being guided by their Archbishop into what appears to be his ready acceptance of same-sex marriage. If not, wouldn't it have been much simpler to re-state what Christians have believed for centuries as part of their faith? 

From "A REPORT BY THE STANDING DOCTRINAL COMMISSION OF THE CHURCH IN WALES THE CHURCH IN WALES AND SAME-SEX PARTNERSHIPS":

"In studying Jesus’ initial encounters with strangers in the Gospels we discover repeatedly his compassionate and immediate response to human need. Where he does pose questions, these are invitational rather than testing: ‘Come and see’, or ‘What is it that you seek?’ Instances of doctrinal or moral challenge are usually issued not by Christ himself, but by the person with whom he speaks. [Para. 139]

"If Christ were born in Wales in 2014 and walked our streets aware of the trembling touch of those who dare not express their need, he would doubtless encounter someone whose sense of exclusion or even guilt were bound up with their experience of a sexuality which in their lifetime had met with
condemnation and disgust." [Para. 140]

In England the Dean of St Paul's has weighed in with: "The Church of England is seen by many as 'toxic' and 'oppressive' because of its stance on women and gays, he said. Some gay Christians had even committed suicide because of the pressure of being told they had to be celibate". Calling for the Church of England to consider what accepting same-sex marriage would mean for the future he says, "We need to consider what the acceptance of same-sex marriage in the Church would mean in reality, and how it would be understood in relation to the theology of Christian marriage and the chequered history of that institution, as well as contemporary social practice around sexuality."

To 'love your neighbour' does not require marriage. Labels such as 'toxic', 'oppressive' and the more customary 'homophobic' are designed to make the innocent feel guilty. For many of us our lives would be the poorer without the friendship of gay people but to believe that marriage is the union of one man and woman for life is not being disloyal, toxic or homophobic even if some find it oppressive.

The Church in Wales 'consultation' has the hallmark of a previous consultation on the Code of Practice, to be ignored if the results are not to the Archbishop's liking. Again it looks as if the Governing Body of the Church in Wales will be expected to deliver the result their Archbishop wants. If I am wrong, the faithful would have been better advised to read such as "THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH: RECLAIMING MARRIAGE". 

The not so quick and the dead

The Archbishop of Canterbury The Most Revd and Rt Hon Justin Welby pays a visit to St Alban's
  Academy in Highgate                                                                        Photo credit: Birmingham Mail

In my previous entry I referred to a report that the Archbishop of Canterbury was to visit a school in Birmingham where 80 per cent of its pupils are Muslim and just eight per cent of its pupils are Christian. He has. A report on his visit to St Alban’s Academy can be read here.

The reports I have seen so far concentrate on gays and gay marriage. Referring to Church of England’s laws the Archbishop said, "Marriage is between one man and one woman for life and sexual activity should be confined to marriage" before adding that he [like many of us -Ed.] has many gay friends who do "incredible" work. He  admitted that he "struggled" with his views on homosexuality adding: "I’m listening very, very closely to try to discern what the spirit of God is trying to tell us." That sounds like sandy ground to me, just as in Wales where 'consultations' are taking place to to be ignored, as before, if they don't meet their Archbishop's expectations set out here.

Important though the sanctity of marriage is it was this quote which worried me more:

"Answering a pupil who asked whether he would encourage him to convert from Islam to Christianity, the Archbishop said: 'I am not going to put pressure on you, and I wouldn’t expect you to put pressure on me'."

'Pressure' is reserved for Muslims who have no scruples about gaining converts for Allah. Examples here and here; ideology here. From another report today on the Facing Islam Blog:

"ISIS has abducted dozens of Assyrian men, women and children, including 12 from Tel Hurmiz, 15 from Tel Goran. They have been brought to Jabal Abdul Aziz. The residents of the villages of Tel Shamiran (approximately 50) and Tel Jazira (about 40) are being held captive in their own villages by ISIS.

 A number of churches have been destroyed, including the church in Tel Hurmiz, one of the oldest churches in Syria, the Mar Bisho church in Tel Shamiran, the church in Qabr Shamiy and the church in Tel Baloua.

Three weeks ago ISIS ordered Assyrians in the region of Hassaka to remove the crosses from their churches and to pay jizya (Christian poll tax), warning residents that if they failed to pay they would have to leave or else be killed."

The Principal of St Alban’s Academy told reporters: "Our collective Christian, Muslim, Sikh and Hindu parents and those of other faiths or none send their children to St Alban’s because of its high expectations and good discipline founded on strong moral and religious principles and because they recognise the value of children being encouraged and supported in their faiths. Despite the fact that the school has a Church of England ethos, its multi-faith intake means it has strong partnerships with various establishments including Birmingham Central Mosque. [My emphasis - Ed.]

The Principal talks about a Church of England 'ethos' but I see little evidence in the reports. Perhaps he is unaware that it is the duty of all Muslims to convert infidels to Islam believing that "Islam is the one true faith that leads to salvation". Archbishop Welby may have been caught on the hop but I was disappointed that he didn't grasp the opportunity presented to him when asked about conversion.

Muslims need to know Christ. How else are we to conquer the evil that is being allowed to spread around the world on the absurd pretext that Islamic extremists have nothing to do with Islam? They are emulating their prophet while non-violent Muslims are spreading their religion surreptitiously. Turning the other cheek is one thing, turning away from Christ is quite another. According to research by the Pew Research Center, "in 34 of the 38 countries where the question was asked, at least half of Muslims believe that Islam is the one true religion that can lead to eternal life in heaven". We need more Christianity and less political talk so that people know the truth.

If I may Archbishop, some recommend reading from 2 Timothy 4:

In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.

If everything else fails, read the instructions

Mock-slave market where niqab-wearing women were seen chained together while
 masked men used loudspeakers to auction them off to the highest bidder.

The newspapers and television reports are full of it. "UK police launch hunt for London schoolgirls feared to have fled to Syria". At least these "academically gifted" girls had a choice. Unlike the young Yazidi woman forced into sex slavery by the Islamic State who "begged the West" to bomb the brothel where she was being held after militants raped her 30 times in just a few hours (here). As for their menfolk their fate was to be expected.

Slavery is nothing new to Islam. The plight of the Yazidi people is slipping from the memory as each blood curdling atrocity tops the previous act of depravity. According to a study released last month by the Institute for Strategic Dialogue "There is no doubt … that the women who migrate to the territory controlled by Isis revel in the gore and brutality of the organisation. They appear desensitised to the horrific nature of the violent acts being committed."

Where will it end? Will anyone speak out? A 'Brave German woman' did here when an Imam began his call to prayer in a Christian Church. But where are the other voices? As Christianity becomes sidelined Islam advances. People are too paralysed to question how Islam can be the 'Religion of Peace' despite all the evidence to the contrary. Pat Condell does here when 'Islam is Dismantled In 6 Minutes' but his is just another lone voice crying in the wilderness.

So what about you and me? Today's reading in Marianne Dorman's 'Living Lent' is "Follow me". She writes "The Gospel reading [Luke5:28] tells of the calling of Levi, a tax collector for the Roman government, who immediately left his desk after hearing Christ's words "Follow me". How can we imitate Levi's example and be a true follower of our Lord in all the perplexities that modern society offers?

Good question! It is central to Christian belief that God was made man. This being so, Muslims must be deluded about their faith which is based only on the word of one man who claimed to hear the word of God which just happened to support his lifestyle as a warlord. Does the casual Muslim know this let alone non-Muslims? Probably not, because questions are discouraged. Islam means submission. Accusations of Islamlophobia are designed to put Islam above criticism. Consequently people remain baffled.

British people with no religion usually have a basic, inherent Christian understanding based on the British way of life and the process of law, hence their live-and-let-live attitude to a religious ideology which, unknown to them, seeks to convert them to Islam, subjugate them or, as is evident in Syria and Iraq, dispatch them. People need to be educated about this. Some good advice for people who are baffled is 'if everything else fails, read the instructions'.  Unlike the Bible which is a collection of stories developing over time until the prophecies were fuliled in Jesus Christ, the Quran, which apparently can only be properly understood in Arabic, is a book of instructions emanating from a single source said to be the word of God. Where verses differ the later verse abrogates the earlier verse but it is common for Muslims to quote earlier, peaceful verses rather than the 109 or so verses that call Muslims to war with non-believers for the sake of Islamic rule. Hence the need to look at various topics to guard against "popular misconceptions".

It was no surprise to read that the Archbishop of Canterbury is to visit a school in Birmingham where 80 per cent of its pupils are Muslim and just eight per cent of its pupils are Christian. The school been declared "outstanding" by Ofsted, just like the Bethnal Green Academy which the "academically gifted" girls attended before boarding a flight to Turkey.

Along with the Prime Minister Muslim leaders at the East London Mosque are "extremely concerned". Not so concerned though that they will permit their faith to be held up to the same scrutiny as others. Pity really. If anyone needs to see the Light it is our Muslim friends, especially the "devastated" families of children who, despite all the advantages offered to them in this country choose submission.

Footprints

The God of Abraham, ... Christian and Muslim!

Deluded or devious? 

The beheading of 21 Coptic Christians on a beach in Libya - for being Coptic Christians - has "brought ISIS to the doorstep of Europe". Italy has been warned that Libyan jihadists are ‘just south of Rome’. We are assured by all and sundry that these people are not Muslims, they are terrorists, but has no-one in authority noticed that there is an elephant in the room?

Dr Shuja Shafi, Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain says that he has “no idea” why some young people become radicalised. Really? He should watch this video. He says "many British Muslims feel very disillusioned that the government is not treating us as equal." Really? Read here and about discrimination against Christians in British Society here.

"All we are looking for as British citizens is to be treated as British citizens. Anything that is done with a community identified as having the potential for extremism or terrorism is not going to make you feel comfortable" said Dr Shafi. "That is one of the problems: there is a trust deficit.... The Muslim community as a whole is being "treated with suspicion" pointing to instances such as counter-terrorism officers visiting nursery schools.

To avoid charges of Islamophobia we are expected to show tolerance and understanding of everything Muslim regardless of the circumstances while Islamic states see no problem suppressing Christianity and exporting Islamic extremism around the world. Saudi Arabia has being identified as "a cash machine for terrorists". The French government has announced a series of measures to clamp down on radical Islam being spread in mosques and wants to cut financial support from countries like Qatar and Saudi Arabia. We should do the same.

According to a  report in The Spectator, "British mosques aren't that moderate after all" and "only two out of 1,700 mosques in Britain follow modernist interpretations of the Koran". Hard line Sharia Islam has no place in Britain. If British Muslims are genuine in wanting to live as British citizens they should be demanding change holding up their faith to the same scrutiny as others. Excuses are wearing thin.

No doubt the majority of Muslims in this country want to live their lives peacefully as British citizens but being a British citizen requires more than being "treated as such", there are obligations. One is to be honest about the problems facing us all, Muslims included. It is no good pretending that the footsteps on the Libyan beach have nothing to do with Islam when the perpetrators are following verses in the Koran. The facts are here.

These facts must be faced. If a religious ideology can be used to justify barbaric executions of believers and non-believers, followers are either deluded or devious in denying that it has anything to do with their religious faith when the evidence to the contrary is freely available. Here is the important test:

"Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance". The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 18).

Every British citizen must be able to subscribe to that. If not there are serious questions to be answered.

Further reading:

Beheading of Christians is clearest indication yet of religious cleansing. Evangelical Alliance

If ISIS could kill us all, they would. Fr Alexander Lucie-Smith, Catholic Herald

What will it take to stop Isis using rape as a weapon of war? The Guardian

The True History of Christendom and Islam Raymond Ibrahim, FrontPage Magazine

Will it be a Halal Easter?

Credit: Silversurfers

The season of Lent has not begun but supermarkets have long been gearing up for their Easter bonanza. True observance of this major Christian festival has long since been forgotten as dwindling congregations testify.

Hot-cross buns have been on the shelves for weeks while other items associated with Easter such as Cadbury creme eggs are a constant presence in many stores. The few children who still attend Sunday School may be looking forward to the prospect of receiving an extra special treat, an Easter egg, the symbol of new life.

It is indeed a new life for Cadbury creme eggs. The wrapper may look the same but that is as far as it goes. The recipe has been changed and you now get five for the price of six. Story here. But that is not all. The wrapper conceals the complete and utter contradiction between Islam and Christianity.

The long list of Cadbury halal products (here) includes a range of  "Seasonal (Easter and Christmas)" products. Easter and Christmas are the major Christian festivals which are no-go areas for devout Muslims. A Muslim may not exchange a Christmas greeting because it would acknowledge that "God was born on 25 December, the most evil of shirk" (idolatry). Not only is the Resurrection denied in Islam but so is the death of Jesus on the Cross.

We are no longer surprised by the actions of money-grabbing multi-national companies and their broken promises as they take their pieces of silver, regardless of the sensitivities of non-Muslims but I hope people will also surprise them by boycotting products containing any ingredients obtained from ritual slaughter. Halal slaughter must be performed by a Muslim after invoking the name of Allah in a similar way to Islamists slaughtering non-Muslims in the name of Allah if they don't convert or pay the jizya, accepting subjection as the price of being spared.

The non-labeling of halal products is a deception too far, adding to the impression that only Islam is regarded as sacred. The recent report that a grandfather's body may be exhumed in a multi-faith cemetery after relatives of a Muslim buried next to him complained that the Roman Catholic was an unbeliever serves to emphasize the point. Current reports suggest that the request has been rejected but this episode is an uncomfortable reminder of the plan to dig up 350,000 bodies in the historic London cemetery of Tower Hamlets to provide a mainly Muslim burial site. The Council's environment spokesman said: "To preserve the respect and dignity for everyone, I think most of the graves would have to be cleared out and we'd start afresh. Officially it would be known as a "multi-faith" cemetery but it is likely that it would principally answer calls for a Muslim graveyard in the largely-Asian East London borough."

Tower Hamlets council displayed their moral bankruptcy in 2011 when they were prepared to allow banquets to be staged in the Merchant Navy Memorial gardens which are dedicated to the thousands of mariners who died during the two world wars and the Falklands. Alcohol was to be sold from 11 am until midnight, yet another Islamic contradiction if ever there was one. The Mayor, Lutfur Rahman subsequently used his 'executive powers' to stop the event taking place after the furore the plan created.

It is difficult to escape the conclusion that Islam receives deference way beyond the number of Muslims as a percentage of the population and that specific areas have become Islamised. It has been claimed in the High Court that supporters backing Tower Hamlets mayor Lutfur Rahman told people to vote for him because his party were "Muslim people", and that activists for Mr Rahman's party, Tower Hamlets First, handed out curry to voters from the backs of cars outside polling stations. Expert evidence has been presented to the Court suggesting that one in four postal ballots cast in the re-election of Mayor Lutfur Rahman in one ward in Tower Hamlets were completed by the same person.

To these 'isolated' incidents we should add the 'Trojan Horse' campaign to impose 'faith-based' ideology in Birmingham schools and the revolting child abuse by 'Asian heritage' men in Rotherham, Rochdale, Oxford and elsewhere. It was claimed in 2013 that "Nowadays jails are run mostly by Muslims". The supporting figures showed that the rate of increase of Muslim inmates in British prisons is "eight times faster than that of the overall prison population, and the numbers show a clear over representation of Muslim convicts: Muslims, who make up roughly 5% of the British population as a whole, now make up 13% of the British prison population (compared to just 6% in 1997)". The Report goes on:

"Prisoners told the researchers that they had felt overwhelming pressure to convert. In some instances, they said, Muslim inmates had left Islamic literature in their cells and ordered them to 'read this'. In other instances, inmates were promised that if they converted to Islam, they would be safe from physical assault." Non-Muslims and prison officers inside Whitemoor Prison in Cambridgeshire where '39% of the prisoners are Muslims' described Islam as an 'organized gang' and a 'protection racket', which "glorified terrorist behavior and exploited the fear related to it."

The latest report shows that the Muslim population in England and Wales has nearly doubled in 10 years. "In 2011, 2.71 million Muslims lived in England and Wales, compared with 1.55 million in 2001. There were also 77,000 Muslims in Scotland and 3,800 in Northern Ireland". Responding to the report, the atheist deputy prime minister, Nick Clegg, said: "I believe that every person, whatever their background and circumstances, should have an equal chance to thrive". Like many other political and well meaning religious leaders he is deluded. Islam means 'to submit' or 'give in' or 'surrender'. Our democracy is being used against us to that end. Evidence abounds on the placards used in Islamist demonstrations and is clearly voiced here.

A couple of days ago I read an interesting article by Ruth Gledhill titled the Future of religion in Britain is Islam and black majority churches. According to figures published by the Office for National Statistics 80 per cent of Muslims actively practised their religion, the highest proportion of those with a religion, compared with just 32 per cent of Christians who said they "actively practised" their religion. According to Professor David Voas who specialises in population studies at Essex University, statistics show that Islam and newer forms of Christianity are overhauling the Church of England as white Britons lose their taste for worship. Is this the key?

Islam has been allowed to expand unhindered in Britain while Christianity is being obliterated in ancient Christian lands such as Syria and Iraq to name but two. Criticism or even comment is met with accusations of racism and Islamophobia but we are failing in our duty if we keep silent. Christians were warned, "Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves". Proselytising is seen largely as a one way activity converting non-Muslims to Islam be fair means of foul. This must change. There is only one Way. It is not Christians who are the 'unbelievers'. The Muslim world is being reached here. We need to do more.

A halal Easter is an utter contradiction. No sacrifice is required after Christ's death on the Cross. If Muslims understood that we would all be spared the slaughter going on around us today in the name of Islam.

Looking forward to Easter, remember the Lamb - or the turkey. If it is halal, reject it. It is easy to be fooled by the wrapper. What you see on the outside may hide sinister ingredients on the inside. Be aware, keep the faith and above all, help others to see the Light.

Christianity before Islam

The spread of Christianity by the 7th Century when Islam was being established in Arabia.

On Newsnight Last night Rowan Williams, the former Archbishop of Canterbury spoke about the plight of Christians and Muslims in the Middle East under the IS threat. Link here [advance to 14.47 - sadly not available outside the UK but the message in the picture is clear]. There is a narrative of 'How Christianity's Eastern history has been forgotten' here. An interesting perspective with a follow-up interview by Evan Davies offering a more balanced view of the problem after President Obama's recent reflections.

Prince Charles has expressed his alarm at young people being radicalised yet he still suggests that as King he should defend all faiths: "He believed an important part of the role was to be a 'protector of faiths', defending every religion in multicultural Britain". Why anyone would want to protect a faith which seeks to do away with all others is a mystery, especially coming from the heir to the throne and future Defender of the Faith given The Great Commission.

"All of our people are suffering.They lost everything but they didn't loose their faith in Christ. Christ is in their hearts." - Archbishop Athanasias speaking of Christians in the Syrian Orthodox Church.

Time to move on - but is it possible?

The Crusades - history

The Inquisition - history

President Obama's reference to the Crusades and the Inquisition in the same breath as IS atrocities was unfortunate. No doubt he meant well but listening to what he actually said (here), he left himself open to misunderstanding: "People committed terrible deeds in the name of Christ", he said. So they did.
Nobody can excuse that. But the Crusades and the Inquisition are history. The world has moved on but Islam has not.


Islam makes much of the Crusades in their propaganda war to justify their aggression. Apologists fall for it every time with no apparent knowledge of what actually took place. As  Prof. Thomas F. Madden put it in The Real History of the Crusades:

Regarding the modern day reference to the crusades as a supposed grievance by Islamic militants still upset over them..."if the Muslims won the crusades (and they did), why the anger now?  Shouldn't they celebrate the crusades as a great victory? Until the nineteenth century that is precisely what they did. It was the West that taught the Middle East to hate the crusades. During the peak of European colonialism, historians began extolling the medieval crusades as Europe's first colonial venture. By the 20th century, when imperialism was discredited, so too were the crusades. They haven't been the same since." He adds, "The truth is that the crusades had nothing to do with colonialism or unprovoked aggression. They were a desperate and largely unsuccessful attempt to defend against a powerful enemy. The entire history of the crusades is one of Western reaction to Muslim advances." [My emphasis - Ed.]

Muslim jihad continues to this day acting on a 7th C. instruction manual which forbids changes to its instructions and imposes ancient punishments such as stoning, amputation and crucifixion plus the death penalty for apostasy. 'Their' (Muslim) lands are lands held as a result of conquest, a process still going on, most noticeably in the Middle East and in Africa. The Temple Mount in Jerusalem and the Hagia Sophia in what was Constantinople are obvious examples of mosques replacing Holy sites after Islamic victories. Mosques continue to be built in increasing numbers in the West through cultural jihad while Christian churches are being destroyed in what used to be Christian countries abroad. Do Muslims not understand this or are they merely being devious when they deny the truth of what is mandated in their religion?

Excuses are fruitless. Islam should be held up to the same scrutiny as other religions and ideologies if any progress is to be made in the fight against so-called extremism.

The present. (Actual graphics are too gruesome for illustrative purposes)

Do we want a Church of England as intolerant as the Church in Wales and ECUSA?

"Children at the church's Sunday school have written letters to the bishop about the protest"

It used to be "Give me a child until he is seven and I will show you the man". Now it is more likely to be 'Give me the child... and I'll show you the woman' as witnessed by the work of St Oswalds' Sunday School children in Knuzden, Lancs.

Their work illustrates that the children in St Oswald's have been tuned to the same wavelength as their vicar's by enthusiastically endorsing her decision to maintain a ten minute silence instead of preaching a sermon in protest against the consecration of the Rev Philip North as the Bishop of Burnley. As the Archbishop of Canterbury has indicated there are many clergy today who could follow the vicar's example, allowing their congregations time for silent reflection but not for the reason stated.

The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, made his position abundantly clear in his outright rejection of accusations that he was giving credence to a theology of taint but that was not good enough for those who presume to know better. From the Telegraph: The Campaign group WATCH (Women And The Church) said: "We are dismayed that it seems that the Archbishop of York will not lay hands on Philip North at his consecration as Bishop of Burnley. We believe it is unprecedented that an archbishop should be present at a consecration in his own province and not lay hands on a candidate, and not preside at the Eucharist. We are saddened that there will be such a powerful visual sign of a divided College and House of Bishops at the moment of consecration."

They would say that, wouldn't they? If the example of Our Lord Jesus Christ is not good enough for them, who the hell is the Most Reverend and Right Honourable Dr John Sentamu?

Following the Libby Lane circus, the 'new bishop' frenzy has subsided to the point that the consecration of Fr Philip North has warranted only the briefest of mentions, mainly to emphasis divisions invented by the women's lobby in their continuing divisive campaign despite the strenuous efforts of Archbishops of Canterbury and York to put the troubles facing the Church of England behind them. But these farcical feminists frivolities continue. The Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple (Candlemas) was celebrated in St Mary’s Church, Thatcham, last night with a special service to a mark the consecration of the first female bishop in the Church of England as if to emphasis what has become the main priority in the Church of England today.

These sideshows detract from the essential teaching of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. The Catholic faith has been redefined in the Church of England to suit the wants of a few. As one of the art works in the above illustration puts it: "One Church not two!" Unfortunately the irony of that will be lost in St Oswald's under the guidance of their protesting vicar.

The show is over for now, to be resumed when the next woman bishop is consecrated and possibly the one after that. Then what, when the occasion becomes old hat?  United we stand, divided we fall!