What it means for others to be a Christian

“The Lord has not forsaken me.” - Open Doors Revisits Nigerian Widow of Pastor killed by Fulani militants

"Over 340 million Christians suffer persecution and discrimination. They follow Jesus, no matter the cost. With your help, we're bringing them resources and hope. - Open Doors" 

From The Nigerian Voice: "3,462 Christians Hacked To Death By Nigerian Jihadists In 200 Days,3000 Abducted, 300 Churches And Ten Priests Attacked".

These are far away problems for Christians in the West where Anglican clergy share their joyous lives with others on Twitter. Life is 'lovely' in their little bubbles. Less so for others.

 

Speaker's Corner   Mail Online

An article in Spiked poses the question: "You can be stabbed for criticising Islam?"

"When are we going to talk about Hatun Tash? She’s the ex-Muslim and Christian evangelist who was allegedly slashed with a knife in broad daylight in Speakers’ Corner in Hyde Park yesterday. And almost as shocking as the incident itself – as this horrific assault on a woman who was merely expressing her beliefs – has been the silence about it. There has been a trickle of press interest, but no big media splashes, no hashtag solidarity, no politicians expressing concerns that Britain seems to have become a country in which you criticise Islam at your peril. What is going on here?"

Mail Online reports: "Met Police are slammed for failing to catch knifeman five days after he stabbed Christian preacher, 39, in Charlie Hebdo T-shirt at Speaker's Corner in front of 30 witnesses in broad daylight."

Christian Concern addresses the problem in "Speakers’ Corner stabbing: ‘Freedom of speech is already in danger’."

But where is the concern from the top? Instead, the Archbishop of Canterbury apologises for events in the past. 

Now the Church of England is to apologise for medieval expulsion of Jews: "Bishops confirm that an 'act of repentance' is being planned to atone for anti-Semitic church laws which led to the expulsion of Jews from England in 1290." 

In 2752, in the unlikely event that there will be a Church of England, perhaps the Archbishop of Canterbury will apologise for ignoring the plight of Christians in 2021!

Church in Wales abandonment

 

An upbeat Archbishop Barry Morgan in 2013 with his Ass bishop and then Dean, Janet Henderson
before her shock resignation. It's been downhill for Llandaff ever since.          Photo: Church Times

Few if any people have sympathy for a mother who abandons her children. 

In 'Mother' Church in Wales under Barry Morgan that is exactly what happened to Anglicans who remained true to the faith of the Holy Catholic Church, something the Church in Wales claims to do but patently does not as it becomes more and more secularised.

Reading about the new structure set up in Australia by GAFCON to help conservatives in dioceses that bless same-sex marriages re-opens old wounds for 'traditionalists' in Wales.

A new Diocese will "operate in parallel with any Diocese of the Anglican Church of Australia. It will have a Bishop, and the normal structure of an Anglican diocese such as a synod (church parliament and a standing committee)", something that Morgan and his cronies refused to do. Society bishops are banned from ministering in Wales.

Other Provinces have made provision for those who, in conscience, are unable to accept progressive ideas contrary to scripture and tradition. In Wales, after an initial nod to ensure the success of bills to allow women to be ordained, traditionalists have been abandoned without thought or consideration from bishops charged with caring for all. 

Other Provinces have not been so heartless so why have Anglican bishops in Wales been so cruel? 

One obvious answer is that traditionalists are a thorn in the flesh in a Church in which matters of the flesh and sexual preference are considered more important than one's faith.

Archbishop Morgan was determined that there would be no long term alternative pastoral or sacramental provision for those who did not share his secularised vision of the church.

Seeing himself as a 'progressive' bishop, Morgan followed the secular, feminist agenda of admitting women to the priesthood and to the episcopate regardless of scripture and tradition while liberalising sexual attitudes to permit same sex marriages in Church. He showed no consideration for those he regarded as opponents once the measures were approved.

Morgan even promoted his his own interpretation of the Bible to advance his cause and was promptly shot down.

The archbishop imported ambitious clergy from England to aid his cause leaving him with egg on his face. Most spectacularly following the resignation of the Very Rev Janet Henderson from her position as Dean of Llandaff after only a few weeks in post. That led to all manner of speculation and rumours of a non-disclosure agreement. 

More recently Morgan's manoeuvrings which led to the 'election' of  Joanna Penberthy as bishop of St Davids came badly unstuck. He had promoted Penberthy as 'the best person to be a bishop'. Experience suggests the reverse was true.   

Another of Morgan's casualties, Ass bishop David Wilbourne, complained of a "sustained campaign forcing him to quit". He often reminded anyone prepared to listen, or not, that he knew John Habgood, not the best acquaintance for some. It has been claimed Habgood 's intervention was responsible for the Church of England's acceptance of the ordination of women. 

The Rev Peter Mullin wrote in The Telegraph (£), 06 Feb 2012:  "This stinking fish has been a long time on the slab. Back in 1992, the church voted to admit women to the priesthood, but this was only agreed upon the intervention of the then Archbishop of York, Dr John Habgood, who insisted that there were “two integrities” within the church: the one that could accept women priests and the other that could not. Room must be made for both. If Dr Habgood’s agreeable compromise had not been accepted then there would not have been a majority in favour of the ordination of women".

The Church in Wales and the Church of England now ordain women. While the Church of England maintains the two integrities, traditionalists in Wales have been abandoned.

Initially bishop David Thomas was appointed Provincial Assistant Bishop but archbishop Morgan made it abundantly clear that there would not be another when Bishop Thomas retired in 2008. 

Another of Morgan's imports from the Church of England, Peggy Jackson used her position as Archdeacon of Llandaff to do all that she could to get rid of traditionalists, leaving them "to make personal decisions and individual choices, to find accommodation as best they can".

 She, in turn was to be humiliated when Governing Body rejected her mean private members motion which called on the bench of bishops to "cease to ordain those who, refusing the sacramental ministry of women, expect to rely upon the conscience clauses of the Code". 

Nevertheless, the process of abandonment in Wales continues. After Barry Morgan's retirement, the new Archbishop of Wales signalled no change in policy. There would be more of the same - but faster.

Barry Morgan made no secret of the fact that he would not oppose the appointment of a gay bishop. A strong contender to replace him was Jeffrey John, Dean of St Albans.

From Llandaff stalemate: After three days of deliberations (note the link comes under 'Politics'), the Electoral College of the Church in Wales failed to produce a bishop-elect or, as the Rev Peter Ould tweeted, the Church in Wales "couldn't quite bring itself to elect Jeffrey John as Bishop of Llandaff".

While some argued that the appointment of Jeffrey John would attract too much attention for the wrong reason, others suggested that he was just too bright for the rest of the bench who feared they would be overshadowed.

The Church in Wales has two more imports from England sitting on the bench. A partnered lesbian elected bishop of Monmouth and an LGBT+ banner-waving sociologist who was appointed to Llandaff where she enjoys experimenting in her diocese regardless of the effect on existing congregations.

In Llandaff the continued absence of Barry Morgan's placement, Dean Gerwyn Capon remains a puzzle, as does the cause of the swift departure of his predecessor, Janet Henderson but given the mire Janet no doubt found herself in I would guess that she told Barry Morgan what he could do with his scheming. 

It says much about an archbishop who prides himself on his Welshness that, save for the one exception who escaped back over the border, he imported failures from England to do his bidding.

So faithful Anglicans across Wales have been abandoned, as Peggy Jackson directed, to find accommodation as best they can.

Some will have found an accommodation in the Church in Wales, presumably with fingers firmly crossed, while others will have advanced their careers, putting their souls in peril in the process. Others just have their memories.

Wales must be among the worst provinces in the Anglican Communion but who cares? 

Certainly not its bishops.

Phobias used to silence opposition

Source: imgur

I have not read of any reference in reports of the recent Church of England Synod to epistemophobia or sophophobia, unlike transphobia and homophobia, the clubs being used to silence opposition to revisionists. 

 Dr Ian Paul probably came closest when he asked at Synod: "Do you think it is at all helpful or permissible for members of this Synod to describe voices in the videos on Living in Love and Faith (LLF) as transphobic to seek to silence them?"

Former nurse, Dame Sarah Mullally, Bishop of London, who was leading the 'Passing the Baton' session on LLF had said that the Church of England 'should be a safe space for people with opposing theological views on the issues of marriage, gender and sexuality'.

In response LGBT activist Jayne Ozanne accused conservative Anglicans on General Synod of "transphobic and homophobic rhetoric".

Ms Ozanne told the bishop: "The LGBT community feel they are constantly being asked to love those who are abusing them and that in itself is abusive.

"There is transphobic and homophobic rhetoric even in these questions coming from people, which we are not even allowed to call transphobic and homophobic.

"I would remind people of what the definition of that is. It is views that are seen as transphobic by the person they are aimed at." [My emphasis - Ed.]

How convenient. The NHS definition of phobia is "an overwhelming and debilitating fear of an object, place, situation, feeling or animal".

Phobia charges have become weapons as have charges of misogyny. There is a well trodden path in Anglicanism of people claiming victimisation. Anyone who differs is charged with being phobic, a misogynist or, as the bishop of St Davids claimed, being 'at the receiving end of prejudice and discrimination' simply for taking a different position.

Such tactics stifle debate, perpetuating the notion of victimhood. 

The Church of England is being dragged along the road to secularism, seemingly ignorant of the fate of other Anglican Churches that have taken the same path.

David Virtue writes in The Episcopal Church: The Day The Music Died:

"Slowly, but surely, The Episcopal Church is being depleted of people. We still don't know what COVID has done to overall church attendance. As long as there is no scandal, the Episcopal Church is glad to see the back of orthodox bishops and clergy as they leave.

"Why and what does it really matter if bishops like Love, Howe, Bena, Herzog, Wantland, Ackerman, Iker et al., leave? After all, why would you want someone to stay if they did not share the same progressive views as you do about the faith once for all delivered to the saints? Why have a thorn in the flesh when you can have it removed?"

Closer to home the CofE has only to look at the fate of the Church in Wales on the other side of Offa's Dyke where virtually anything goes now that traditional Anglicanism has been all but snuffed out.

The days of both are numbered with ever decreasing attendances.

There is a personal price too. Christian Concern reports on the case of a Christian pastoral administrator who was sacked for two Facebook posts that raised concerns about transgenderism and sex education at her son’s Church of England primary school.

"Having worked for 7 years as a pastoral assistant at Farmor’s School in Fairford, Gloucestershire, Mrs Higgs was summarily dismissed in early 2020 after sharing a petition against the extension of relationship and sex education on her private Facebook case.

"After an anonymous complaint attacked Mrs Higgs’s views as “homophobic and prejudiced”, the school promptly dismissed her for bringing the school into disrepute. Last October, Bristol Employment Tribunal rejected Mrs Higgs’s claim for religious discrimination." She has won the right to appeal her case.

There is a much wider problem. 

While the Islamic terrorist organisation ISIS has been driven underground or dispersed, there is more evidence of atrocities committed by the Taliban which enforces a strict interpretation of Islamic law in Afghanistan.

A video has emerged of Afghan commandos being shot dead after an apparent surrender. The Taliban rejects the video, saying it's fabricated!

From All Africa: "After the so-called 'Islamic State' saw its influence in the Middle East wane, the group and its affiliates have targeted poorly governed areas in Africa.

"Jihadis have taken control of significant territories in the Sahel and the Lake Chad regions, which include parts of Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad, and Nigeria. In 2018, the West African Centre for Counter Extremism (WACCE) reported up to 6,000 West Africans, who had fought with the 'Islamic State', returned home from Iraq and Syria after the group's self-proclaimed caliphate collapsed.

"It was only a matter of time before we would begin to see ISIS activities replicated in their home countries," says Mutaru Mumuni Muqthar, director of the WACCE in Ghana."

The UN has told the BBC that the situation unfolding in Afghanistan is a "humanitarian catastrophe" and one of the worst crises in the world. Around 18 million people, more than half the country’s population, are in urgent need of life-saving support.

The fate of non-Muslims (Dhimmitude) in Islamic states has been made plain many times but still, in countries where Islam is not dominant, any questioning of Islam attracts charges of Islamophobia. 

Instead of heeding the warning, revisionist have taken the practice on board to silence opposition, leading to the slow demise of the Church of England, following in the steps of the Church in Wales and TEC. But nobody in authority seems to care!

Thank you - for what?

A voice from below!
Archdeacon Peggy Jackson (right) retires   Source: Church in Wales/Twitter

Llandaff diocese, Twitter: Join us this #NationalThankYouDay as we say DIOLCH - THANK YOU to all our Priests and Deacons whose dedication to serving God and their community is utterly inspiring! You folks are amazing!

Do the people in Llandaff know or understand anything about the Church in Wales? Or are they simply perpetuating the bench of bishops' strategy of marginalising any faithful Anglicans who do not fit the new, secularised profile of the Church in Wales. If Archdeacon Jackson had had her way, the Church in Wales would have barred from ordination anyone who objected, on grounds of conscience, to women clergy thus making a mockery of the promises made to allow the ordination of women.

At Governing Body in 2019 the mean spirited Archdeacon of Llandaff introduced a private members motion asking Church in Wales bishops to refuse to ordain anyone who objected to women clergy, reneging on the twin integrity formula which allowed Jackson to enjoy the privileges conferred on her by archbishop Barry Morgan as his chief hatchet woman.

Jackson was supported in her endeavour by the now disgraced bishop of St Davids, Joanna Penberthy, and the current senior Church in Wales bishop, Andy John, bishop of Bangor, whose private life attracted much speculation before his divorce and re-marriage. 

The two other bishops present, John Davies (Swansea & Brecon) and June Osborne (Landaff), signalled their lack of opposition to the measure by abstaining.

What amazing folks!

Responding to the debate the Archdeacon of Llandaff said that those who entered the priesthood were clear that the Church was not “in two minds” about women’s ministry. Those who found themselves “at odds” with a particular aspect of what the Church believed must “protect and operate their own arrangements and conscience how best they may.” 

Her aim as a former member of GRAS was clear despite her disingenuous claim after losing the vote that it was not her intent to drive conservatives or Anglo-Catholics out of the Church.

Others saw it differently: "Having won the battle she was intent on shooting the prisoners."

Archdeacon Jackson along with her co-conspirator, Canon Jenny Wigley, had already been successful in amending the Bill proposed by the bench of bishops to enable women to be consecrated as bishops. Their amendment substituted a meaningless, voluntary code of practice for the statutory provisions contained in the bishops' bill.

Illustrating the bench of bishops complicity, the Church of England Newspaper reported at the time: "The Bishops had backed a two-stage process with a first vote to establish the principle and a second bill to amend the constitution to make provision for traditionalists. When an amendment allowing women bishops to be appointed one year after a single bill was proposed by Archdeacon Peggy Jackson the bishops made it clear that they would not regard a vote in favour of the amendment as ‘disloyal’."

The archdeacon's private members motion was to be the coup de grâce but even some of her most loyal supporters could not stomach her mean, vindictive attitude to their fellow Anglicans. 

In the debate she complained it was 'hurtful' for her when she experienced 'denial or worse' from those who could not accept her calling. But for her, the only acceptable Anglicans are those whose vision of Anglicanism matches hers in a Church which, at 0.03% of the Anglican Communion and falling is way out of step with the vast majority of its 85 million Anglicans. Such is the conceit of these entrists.

The many faithful Anglicans who have been effectively un-churched by archdeacon Jackson's brutal implementation of the policies of 'His Darkness' are entitled to ask: Thank you for what?

Postscript [12.07.2021]

Bosom pals             Source: Youtube

From the Choral Evensong to mark the retirement of the Venerable Peggy Jackson. 

Captions welcome.

Holy Matrimony

My previous entry generated quite a lot of heat from commentators but not on my main point, the sanctity of marriage. 

Understandably people have become weary of the same-sex marriage debate. It drags on and on.

Revisionists do not give up. They maintain pressure until all become used to their ideas. They claim that, if approved, same-sex marriage would be accepted just as divorce and re-marriage in Church no longer raises eyebrows.

The protection of Holy Matrimony deserves more. The Church should be protecting marriage as defined,  the lifelong, faithful union between one man and one woman.

Defenders of traditional marriage are accused of homophobia and bigotry. That is unfair. What people  do in private is between them and their maker but that is not good enough for promoters of same-sex unions who expect others to legitimise their unions by redefining marriage. 

Defenders of traditional marriage who have homosexual friends are aware that many are equally upset by demands for same-sex marriage in Church. As one succinctly put it, marriage is for heterosexuals. Same-sex couples have civil partnerships. 

My entry in 2012, To be joined together, included a reference to an article 'The six ways homosexual activists manipulate public opinion' which stated: "Anyone who is concerned about the influence of the homosexual agenda on reshaping traditional values must become intimately familiar with the major tactics that homophiles commonly employ in order to anticipate them and respond in charity and truth. Homophile strategists are very adept at manipulating public opinion with an arsenal of six tactics that are based upon deceptions and half‑truths:

• Exploit the “victim” status;
• Use the sympathetic media;
• Confuse and neutralize the churches;
• Slander and stereotype Christians;
• Bait and switch (hide their true nature); and
• Intimidation.

"By far the most popular homophile tactic is the claim to victim status, which is a very powerful, almost paralyzing, weapon that gives them a distinct advantage in the public square."

The success of this strategy can be seen at the entrance to 10 Downing street where a pride arch was erected to mark Pride Month 2021. Prime Minister Boris Johnson held a reception to celebrate the achievements of LGBT people.

The Prime Minister said the UK’s first ever global LGBT conference will be about ‘kindness, tolerance and openness’ and will look at what more can be done to promote LGBT equality around the world.

We hear a lot about 'equality'. In the absence of hard theological evidence, secular notion of equality was used to justify the ordination of women. The same argument is being used to allow same-sex couples to marry in Church. 

Woke cajoling has not only enforced acceptance of political correctness. It seeks to legitimise that which defies logic as if black can be white and white, black.

'Female' is defined as "of or denoting the sex that can bear offspring or produce eggs, distinguished biologically by the production of gametes (ova) which can be fertilized by male gametes." 'Male' is defined as "of or denoting the sex that produces gametes, especially spermatozoa, with which a female may be fertilized or inseminated to produce offspring."

Woke personal preference permits those inclined not only to choose their own gender but to insist that others recognise their wish by using gender-neutral pronouns, something that Canadian university professor Dr Jordan Peterson challenged and suffered for expressing logical rather than woke opinions.

Demonized by progressives, the Guardian carried this vitriolic piece: 'How dangerous is Jordan B Peterson, the rightwing professor who 'hit a hornets' nest'?'

The selfishness of feminist ideas of equality has changed Great Britain's historic Anglicanism based scripture and tradition replacing it with an attitude of take what you want regardless of scripture and tradition or whoever you hurt. Consequently many have been left un-churched. The forgotten victims.

Holy Matrimony is being attacked under the banner of equality.  

From the Church in Wales web site Holy Matrimony is properly defined:

 

"Drawing on the teaching of the Bible, and of the Church down through the centuries, the Church in Wales Marriage Service talks about marriage as a gift of God. Marriage is described as the lifelong, faithful union between a man and a woman, and married love is compared with the love Jesus has for his people – a love expressed in his willing sacrifice of himself on the cross."

But the current bench of bishops, following their manipulation of the Governing Body, now claim that “it is pastorally unsustainable for the Church to make no formal provision for those in same-gender relationships”. 

The bench have published their proposals to introduce same-sex blessings. In their explanatory memorandum they write:

"The Bench believes that, in the fullness of time, the Governing Body will have to consider whether it wishes to consider a change in the Church’s teaching concerning marriage. This could enable a couple wishing to live in a faithful and mutually committed same-sex relationship to celebrate the rite of marriage in Church." 

Many same-sex couples already live in faithful and mutually committed same-sex relationships. They are accepted in the Church but to pretend under 'equality' rules that same-sex couples are no different to one-man - one-woman marriage defies logic.

The woke culture has become so prevalent that a poll in 2018 found that over half  of our MPs were afraid to speak their mind. The silent majority must speak up. From C4M:

Plot losers

Marriage!                                                                            Source:church Times

Great Britain's fourth largest Christian denomination, the Methodist Church, has voted to change the definition of marriage, thus permitting same sex 'marriage' along with the Scottish Episcopal Church, United Reformed Church and Quakers.

The Church of England continues its convulsions as trendy Lefties push to follow fashion rather than faith. 

The bench of bishops of what is becoming the LGBT Church in Wales have made no secret of the fact that they support same sex marriage but they rarely make the headlines unless plugging the latest LGBT news or having to apologise for offences caused as here and here.

A report to be presented to the General Synod of the Church in England says that, by July, approximately 5500 people will have participated in a Living in Life and Faith (LLF) event. Each diocese has at least one LLF Advocate and 9000 people have registered on the LLF learning hub.

Foremost among those losing the plot on this occasion is the bishop of Liverpool, the Rt Rev Paul Bayes, who says that "the Church of England should recognise marriage between people of the same sex and allow such ceremonies in church." A move that would break with centuries of Christian teaching.

Bishop Bayes told a conference of the neo-Marxist organisation ‘Mosaic Anglicans‘ that he wanted a gender-neutral marriage canon such as they have in the Episcopal Church or in the Scottish Episcopal Church.

As Archbishop Cranmer puts it in his Blog: "It is not only all gendered language which must be expunged – all mention of male and female, man and woman, husband and wife – but also every mention of children, for in a gender-neutral marriage canon there can be no presumption of or preference for procreation. The nuclear family becomes a partnership of two for mutual society; a contract to keep each other company (though why limit it it just two?): marriage ceases to be about a union to be blessed with babies for the future flourishing of society, because unions in a gender-neutral marriage canon must have a presumption of barrenness in the present. To talk of children is to presume fertility and so to discriminate against the naturally sterile union of man and man and woman and woman."

If that sounds far fetched, the LGBT charity Stonewall has told organisations to stop using gendered terms like mother and father and to close down single-sex toilets while teachers have been told to drop the terms 'boy' and 'girl' in favour of 'learners'. 

Bishop Bayes is not alone in his view of Christian marriage. Commenting on Matt Hancock's resignation as Health Secretary after he breached his own Covid regulations, the bishop of Manchester, the Rt Rev Dr David Walker dismissed Hancock's 'lies, deception and unfaithfulness' and as 'a bit of a fling', not something to be 'unduly concerned about'.

Bishops Bayes and Walker are just two Anglican bishops who have lost the plot who happen to be in the news.

Why is the Church so woke? asked Giles Fraser following a Savanta ComRes survey which revealed that only 6% of Church of England clergy admitted to voting Tory in the December 2019 General Election, whereas 40% voted Labour.

Writing in Christian Today, former Church of England vicar Julian Mann posed the question Why the left-wing bias of so many Anglican clergy? 

"The short answer would seem to be because that is the way of the world. Or at least the world of this country's institutions, from the BBC to the police, to the educational establishment, to the National Trust, since the 1960s.

"Britain's institutions, including the CofE, are now run by men and women who absorbed the left-wing doctrines that were becoming predominant in the universities they went to in the 1970s and 1980s, particularly the belief that the State is the most effective agent of human betterment."

"The watering down of the CofE's historic biblical teaching since the 1960s is arguably the reason why it has become so woke.

"Because historic Christianity stresses "the resurrection of the body, And the life everlasting" - as the Apostles' Creed concludes - the kingdom of woke, in which humanity can achieve a rainbow utopia in this world, is fundamentally opposed to the kingdom of God and of his Christ."

Exactly. They have lost the plot.

Postscript [06.07.2021]

Apology from the Bishop of Liverpool.