All the fun of the fair

The Dean of Norwich, the Very Rev Jane Hedges, slides down the helter skelter. The Rev Andy Bryant 

 insists the funfair ride has a ‘serious intent’. Photograph: Joe Giddens/PA/Guardian

Rochester Cathedral's nine-hole, bridge-themed crazy golf course divided opinion. The cathedral said it hoped visitors would learn about faith, building "both emotional and physical bridges". Opponents described the move as sacrilege here and here.

Not to be outdone Norwich Cathedral installed a 55ft-tall helter skelter in their nave "so that visitors can enjoy a better view of its ornate roof". The Rev Canon Andy Bryant told The Guardian that the idea came to him when he was visiting the Sistine Chapel in Rome. That was not something that occurred to me when I was part of a jostling crowd being ushered through the chapel. Nor is the nave roof anything like the roof of the Sistine Chapel.

There will be vastly more room in Norwich Cathedral unless there has been a change in fortune. Responding to the fact that the 2011 census highlighted that the City of Norwich was rated the most godless city in England, the then Communications Director for the Diocese of Norwich, the Venerable Jan McFarlane, said the good people of Norwich are 'doing their church-going differently'!" - ie, staying away.

Such inventiveness earned the archdeacon promotion to Bishop of Repton! Perhaps the Canon seeks to emulate her success but in today's Church of England his sex is against him.

As for providing an opportunity to view the ceiling, the helter skelter more likely provides yet another opportunity for racing to the bottom in the Church of England - no pun intended.

Point scoring

Source: Guardian  Photograph: WPA Pool/Getty Images

Following on from the Church in Wales (CinW) Christmas farce which continues to run over the festive season, the Church of England has announced her system for fast tracking ethnic minority clergy to senior roles:

"The Church of England (CofE) is to fast-track black and ethnic minority clergy into senior positions amid accusations of institutional racism. A “talent pool” of specifically black, Asian and minority ethnic (Bame) [oops! read here - Ed.] potential leaders will be identified in 2016 for training and mentoring with the aim of increasing representation among bishops, deans and archdeacons.

The church selected its first talent pool this year, but fewer than 7% of those chosen were from ethnic minorities. A second round is currently being selected. The church is to devote a third group specifically to Bame clergy."

Surprisingly the CofE has not followed the US lead of using 'people of colour' or 'visible minorities' in place of the outdated 'Bame' in their discriminatory scheme since they have followed the sexual ethics of the US Episcopal Church with great enthusiasm. No doubt the CofE will catch up eventually as will the CinW who continues to pursue the notion that self promoting women deserve preferment over more suitable male candidates.

When it comes to visibility I was interested to read that "Britain's rail bosses have censored an image of a saint from a display of art inside a railway station, saying it was 'overtly Christian' and would offend 'multi-cultural values'. Network Rail – which is partly funded by the taxpayer – banned an image of St John the Evangelist from Rochester station in Kent, which has just reopened after a £26 million revamp. The image of the saint, one of the apostles of Christ, was to be placed at the station entrance with other iconography inspired by Rochester's ancient cathedral."

Perhaps Britain's rail bosses have not noticed the Islamic dress worn by Muslims who have sought refuge in this country. Like it or not, it is something we have had to become accustomed to regardless of whether it offends others.

Rochester of course had a splendid bishop in Michael Nazir-Ali. A 'Bame' with a helpful understanding of Islam, but his adherence to the traditional Apostolic faith of the Holy Catholic Church was seen as too much of a handicap for an institution immersed in political correctness.

Let us hope that in 2016 state and religious leaders will take a step back to consider what has happened to this country by submitting to people who have nothing to offer but their misguided political correctness. To update a phrase borrowed from the late lamented Llandaffchester Chronicles (if I remember correctly), in the current climate, if a one legged, arse kicking, Jewish transgendered lesbian convert of colour were available she would have to be fast tracked to Archbishop in a system which awards points to minorities, unless they also belong to the minority of Anglicans who continue to adhere to the Apostolic faith of our forefathers.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

We were warned!

Back in 2008, the then Bishop of Rochester, the Rt Rev Michael Nazir-Ali, created a bit of a stir when he claimed that "Islamic extremists have created "no-go" zones across Britain where it is too dangerous for non-Muslims to enter". Some agreed while others differed to the point of rubbishing his remarks, most notably the Muslim Council of Britain. From the evidence presented in a recent French TV broadcast, Bishop Nazir-Ali was correct in his warning.

Although I am not familiar with the London Borough of Tower Hamlets itself, I have no reason to think that the programme was biased. Other media coverage, particularly of the Mayoral election process, highlights worrying influences. More information can easily be found on the internet, including a reference to "the loathsome Andrew Gilligan" indicating the amount of politicking involved there. Manipulation for political advantage aside, the more one reads, the uglier it looks with echoes of the reference to taqiyya in the video highlighted in my previous post.

Bishop Nazir-Ali, the only Asian bishop in the Church of England, warned in The Telegraph "that attempts are being made to give Britain an increasingly Islamic character by introducing the call to prayer and wider use of Sharia law, a legal system based on the Koran." Looking around I see plenty of evidence to support his view from the now familiar Muslim dress and occupation of redundant churches and chapels to the defence of their faith at the cost of others. Is that a sign of our religious tolerance or our complacency?

Link (Note the first comment). Link2 (Blog) Link3 (Video)