We are still a Christian country despite claims to the contrary

Anglican clergy                                                                                                                                                      Source: News

Yes, we are a Christian country despite claims to the contrary following a poll by The Times which suggested that "three quarters of Church of England priests say Britain can no longer be described as a Christian country".

The story had wide coverage from Daily mail to The Christian Post among many others. The latest article comes from News which claims to provide 'information and analysis on the life of the Church'.

Their analysis gives rise to the false claim that "The clergy of the Communion of Anglican Churches in England are overwhelmingly supportive of the idea of completely ignoring biblical teaching on sexual morality. This is what emerges from a large-scale poll carried out by the London newspaper The Times, the results of which were published on August 29, 2023.

"The last similar poll was in 2014. The current poll shows a significant shift in opinion among English clergy regarding sexual morality over the past 10 years. The Bishop of Leeds, Nick Baines, told The Times the survey showed pastors faced the same problems as society as a whole."

But hang on a minute. The Times sent their questionnaire to 5,000 Church of England clergy of whom only 1,200 responded. 

The responders then became the sample giving rise to the misleading claims which have been appearing in the media as fact. 

The Rev Dr Ian Paul gives a detailed account of the 'survey' in his blog Psephizo while psephologist the Rev Peter Ould says "Anecdotally I've heard lots of clergy who refused to do the survey because they weren't sure whether results would be used against them personally, or they thought questions were biased." A sad reflection on the state of the Church of England today,

Meanwhile Jacob Rees-Mogg blasts a ‘defeatist’ Church of England amid 'Christianity failures'.

The BBC’s attack on gender puts children at risk

From Coalition for Marriage:

Dear marriage supporter,

It is an ill society which chooses to confuse and worry children in order to appease adults with an extreme agenda. Sadly, our national broadcaster continues to do just this.

This coming Wednesday, August 16th, BBC2 will screen a documentary titled No More Boys And Girls: Can Our Kids Go Gender Free?

In the programme, Dr Javid Abdelmoneim sets out to prove that there are no significant physical or psychological differences between young boys and girls.

To this end a classroom of seven-year-olds is subjected to an experiment in which books with characters “squarely aimed at boys” are thrown away, distinct male and female toilets abolished, and a male make-up artist is brought in to persuade boys to aim for less masculine careers.

Girls vulnerable

The children themselves are horrified at having to share lavatories, with Dr Abdelmoneim admitting that girls feel particularly uncomfortable as a result of the new arrangement.

This is the latest in a series of programmes by the BBC which appear determined to promote transgenderism as a positive, natural development in children.

Last week the Victoria Derbyshire programme renewed its coverage of two pre-pubescent children living as members of the opposite gender.

A nine-year-old boy who uses the name ‘Lily’ is featured along with his friend ‘Jessica’ who is a ten-year-old boy, and ‘Jessica’s’ step-mother who has decided to live as a member of the opposite sex named ‘Alex’.

BBC bias

The BBC’s persistent undermining of children’s natural genders is deeply upsetting for parents and children, as is the claim that gender is a question of feelings and not biology. Without an ability to meaningfully distinguish between man and woman, traditional marriage is greatly undermined.

Under section 6 of its charter, the BBC is required to “provide impartial news and information”. Its editorial guidelines also say:

“When dealing with ‘controversial subjects’, we must ensure a wide range of significant views and perspectives are given due weight and prominence, particularly when the controversy is active. Opinion should be clearly distinguished from fact.”

Raising pre-pubescent children to have no gender or to believe that they are members of the opposite sex is clearly controversial but there is no discernible effort to balance any of the Corporation’s output on the subject.

We believe the BBC’s decision to dispense with editorial impartiality on this issue is a breach of its legal duty. In the coming weeks, the Coalition for Marriage will continue to do all that it can to push the Corporation to demonstrate the balance and neutrality required of it by law.

ENDS

From the Mirror:

Star-Cloud being raised as gender fluid                   Source Mirror/Mark Pinder

Family where mum is daddy, dad is mummy and son, 4, is being raised as gender neutral

Star Cloud's mum is Louise, who was born a man but is transitioning to become a woman, while dad is pansexual Nikki, born a woman but who dresses some days as male. 

Parents Louise and Nikki Draven are raising Britain’s first gender-fluid family, bringing up their four-year-old son Star Cloud to “not get hung up” on being a boy.

Star’s mum is Louise, who was born a man but having hormone treatment ready to fully transition to a woman. Dad is pansexual Nikki, born a woman but who dresses some days as male and some as female.

Nikki, 30, says: “Neither of us gets hung up on the gender we were born as. “We don’t want our child constrained by that either. We’re just an ordinary family being who we want to be.”

Star is being brought up as gender neutral – told by his parents he is “a person” rather than “a boy”. He is free to wear make-up, paint his nails, pick out boys’ or girls’ clothes and play with dolls.

He will go to school for the first time in September wearing a boy’s uniform – but with pink vest and socks that he has chosen for the occasion.

And the youngster himself says he might grow up to be a man or a woman. But Nikki and Louise’s approach is likely to spark a national debate – on whether the urge not to force his birth gender on Star is projecting their own issues, denying him his true identity.

 Full story here.

Highlighting what we understand marriage to be

Like many readers,  I have been awaiting the publication of 'Highlights' following the April meeting of the Church in Wales Governing Body to read how the Archbishop's determination to open his churches to same sex marriage ceremonies regardless of the cost to the Church would be presented.

'Highlights' absence may be due to the retirement of the well respected Archdeacon who put it together or perhaps the bishops' same-sex marriage statement and Pastoral Letter are intended to replace the publication this time.

The above video graphically illustrates differing attitudes to marriage today and nails the notion that defenders of traditional marriage are either homophobic or religious bigots but this does not stop militant gay rights activists from condemning anyone who holds a contrary opinion to theirs as lacking in love and understanding.

The bishops of the Church of England are "all in agreement that the Christian understanding and doctrine of marriage as a lifelong union between one man and one woman remains unchanged". The bishops of the Anglican Church of Canada avow to guard church unity against "mounting pressure", but the bishops of the Church in Wales have again sold out to secularism by offering prayers (not a blessing) which may be used to celebrate same sex unions in church.

This comes as no surprise when the Archbishop, Dr Barry Morgan, fervently follows the lead of the US Episcopal Church (TEC) in dumping traditional Christian values in favour of TEC's disastrous Liberation Theology.

In the process of endorsing gay marriage the Bench of Bishops has engaged in deception on a massive scale using sympathetic clergy to influence what remains of their flock. This has included attempts to persuade the Mothers Union to support the policy and to vote on a personal basis regardless of views canvassed from congregations while demeaning the views of supporters of the traditional doctrine of marriage as the basis of family life.

The Archbishop's liberal leanings were well known before he sought the support of the Standing Doctrinal Commission of the Church in Wales. The Commission's sympathetic findings, summarised here, were duly printed and made available to congregations prior to diocesan 'consultations'. The procedure was for guidance only so a positive response could be used as justification while a negative response could be dismissed as the result of prejudice.

All this was designed to ensure that the Governing Body delivered the required verdict but when that failed the bishops simply did their own thing and published their Pastoral Letter to permit what had been rejected. What is unlikely to be found in churches is the theological rejection of the bishops' Pastoral Letter. But then the bishops' understanding of marriage is not Christian, it is secular.

Rugby descends to thugby

Jones defended his Prop's racist slur before dropping him. Source: Telegraph

Using brutality rather than skill England have the Six Nations rugby Grand Slam in their sights. Under their new coach Eddie Jones they aim to be the ‘most dominant team in the world’. If their aim were based on arrogance the other five nations, not to mention the Southern hemisphere would be left standing. Jones has found himself in like company but the All Blacks and the rest of the Southern hemisphere must be laughing their socks off.

For outsiders everything about the England team's performance has become a bore, ruining enjoyment of the game. Not only the team. Whenever they play compete, the BBC and ITV become the English Broadcasting Corporation. Viewers are subjected to a constant barrage of  England, England, England as if nothing matters but an England victory showing the utmost discourtesy to opposing teams.

Unlike in the days of the late, great Bill McLaren, biased commentators and their supporting pundits, notably Brian Moore, ruin the game with their inability to see beyond England and their presumed right to win every time, no doubt based on the resources they have to draw on which dwarf the resources of the rest of the Six Nations. If the competition were a handicap there is little doubt about who would carry themselves home with the Wooden Spoon every time.

In their match against Wales, one of England's exponents of Jones' brutality tactics was sighted on two counts but no action by the Rugby authorities was deemed to be necessary leaving the offender available to take England's brutality to France in the hope of an undeserved Grand Slam to the detriment of the sport.

Allez les bleus!