Some reflections

Source: Evening Standard

For me, the expression on the Bishop of Durham's face said it all at the crowning moment. - Or was it the bishops' ill-fitting copes that troubled him?

Down, right a bit, up a bit, down a bit before the final inspection shown above in case further adjustments were needed. It has been calculated that the archbishop of Canterbury took 10 seconds to crown King Charles.

Queen Camilla looked almost petrified when it came to her turn before using a finger to poke her hair back under her crown. She looked frightened that the archbishop might stand on her feet to crown her.

Inevitably comparisons will  made with the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. The BBC has produced a video comparing both, side by side. 

Charles' coronation service was a cut down occasion designed to appeal to all faiths. Few will have given thought to the expression of Christian faith, going along as necessary.

The Leader of the House of Commons, Lord President of the Council, Penny Mordaunt, attracted considerable praise as she stood holding the Sword of State but I was moved to laughter when someone was heard to ask why she was wearing an air-hostess uniform. 

I thought the mid-service construction of an Anointing Screen rather than the more traditional canopy looked particularly awkward. 

Also the 'Alleluia' sung by a gospel choir appeared designed specifically to make the liturgy an inclusive service.

Otherwise more traditional choral music enhanced the ceremony in all its glory. The coronation procession from Westminster Abbey back to Buckingham Palace was a masterpiece of synchronisation.

It was heartening to see Catholic involvement in the Coronation especially given the involvement of people of other faiths and none.

Pope Francis' coronation gift of relics from the True Cross were incorporated into the processional cross, the Cross of Wales, a centenary gift to the Church in Wales from King Charles. 

The wording on the reverse of the cross are the words of St David: "Byddwch lawen. Cadwch y ffydd. Gwnewch y Pethau Bychain," which means in English: "Be joyful. Keep the faith. Do the little things". 

Keeping the faith is precisely what the bishops of the Church in Wales have failed to do, the same path being trod by the majority of bishops in the Church of England but not the Rt Rev Paul Butler, Bishop of Durham who continues to view marriage as "a union between a man and a woman". 

Lambeth Palace described the role played by a key element in the ceremony - the Queen's Ring - an octagonal mixed-cut ruby surrounded by 14 diamonds which bears the symbolism of a ring exchanged in marriage.

Some hope for the future.

Postscript [11.03.2023]

A lesson from the Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis

"People respect us when we respect our traditions."

Coronation thoughts

Their Majesties King George VI, Queen  Elizabeth II and King Charles III.  Source: Wikimedia Commons

I remember the shock of hearing that King George VI had died. It was a time of great sadness. 

Along with Prime Minister Winston Churchill the king set an example of fortitude which did much to encourage those of us huddled around the wireless listening to the endless WW2 news broadcasts, so many in fact that I wondered how the BBC would fill the airtime after the war. 

My lasting memories of Queen Elizabeth's coronation are of the Westminster Abbey entrance procession to Parry's, I was glad, and of Queen Sālote of Tonga shunning the rain, smiling and waving to the crowds from her open carriage in a procession of carriages with tops firmly closed.

Charles III's coronation will be different. It has been scaled down. Security is a greater risk but the processional route is much shorter. 

It will be a multi-faith occasion. I understand the motives but, as I mentioned in my previous entry, I doubt the wisdom of including believers of different faiths and none in what is essentially a Christian service.

On a more positive note, Pope Francis will be represented inside the abbey this time. When Queen Elizabeth II was crowned. the papal representative had to observe the ceremony from 'an especially-built stand outside Westminster Cathedral', because he was not allowed to enter a non-Catholic church.

Pope Francis has also sent a coronation gift, two shards of wood said to have come from the cross on which Christ was crucified. The shards have been incorporated in The Cross of Wales, a new processional cross presented by King Charles as a centenary gift to the Church in Wales.

An ironic choice since the bishops of the Church in Wales have abandoned the received faith of the Church in favour of secularism. 

The Pope's apparent obsession with taking the Catholic Church down the same path as the Anglican Church, deciding doctrine by committee, is not encouraging. He has only to look at the Church in Wales to see where that leads. Neither has the Church of England heeded the lesson, allowing revisionists to change Church beliefs for their own ends. 

They achieve this by introducing change gradually so that people become accustomed to it. It has happened in Church and State. A glaring example will be the crowning of Queen Camilla alongside King Charles. 

Much has changed since I heard of the death of King George VI. I can't imagine what the world will be like when Prince William is crowned, assuming the monarchy is not abolished.

Canterbury calling?

Archbishop of York (Source: Diocese of York)                                         Bishop of London  (Source: Crediton Courier)

Rumours abound that the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, will resign after the coronation of King Charles III.

He has said that he hoped to remain the Archbishop of Canterbury until he reaches retirement age in 2026, if he is in "good health" and "people are happy" with him in the post. 

Very many people are unhappy with Welby's performance as Archbishop of Canterbury, including the majority of Anglicans. Schism looms. Will he go?

Welby's role in turning a Christian coronation service into a multi-faith event has not gone down well. 

His 'off-piste' oath plan has backfired. "Buckingham Palace officials fear the Coronation oath could cloud the ceremony due to the criticism surrounding the 'Homage of the People'."

Those of us old enough to recall the solemnity of Queen Elizabeth's coronation will witness a different ceremony, one built around wokery to include people with entirely different beliefs, some of which reject the Christian message.

The Coronation Liturgy shows that the Epistle (Colossians 1: 9-17) is to be read by a Hindu Prime Minister. Hindus worship many gods so which god will the Prime Minister have in mind? 

Nothing seems to matter in the Church of England other than being conformed to the world.

On that score, if Welby were to retire, the Archbishop of York and the bishop of London have both shown themselves to be unsuitable.

Bishop Sarah Mullally ended  her Living in Love and Faith Presentation  with the words:

"I hope that we will not just ‘look to your own interests, but to the interests of others.’
...May God hold us in the redeeming love of Christ and bless us with the guiding
presence of the Holy Spirit.
Amen."

The guiding  presence of the Holy Spirit is evident not in the Church of England  but in GAFCON:

"Despite 25 years of persistent warnings by most Anglican Primates, repeated departures from the authority of God's Word have torn the fabric of the Communion. These warnings were blatantly and deliberately disregarded and now without repentance this tear cannot be mended."

The Archbishop of York has not heeded the message. In his presidential address at the April 2023 York synod he claimed that "We are not judged by 'doctrinal orthodoxy' but 'love', reminiscent of TEC presiding bishop Michael Curry's Love is the way!

What the Church of England needs is an Archbishop of Canterbury can bring the Church back to faith as neatly explained here by Calvin Robinson in his Common Sense Crusade.

Defender of the Faith!

Dechrau Canu, Dechrau Canmol (Welsh for 'Start Singing, Start Praising') is a television series featuring congregational Christian singing in the Welsh language. The programmes "celebrate important festivals and dates in the Christian calendar" and place on film the celebration of important national and international occasions where the music is of a devotional and religious nature.

The edition on Sunday 16 April celebrated Ramadan. An odd combination given that in Islam "the content of the song should not be against the morals and teachings of Islam."

There was a rendition of Let there be peace on earth, perhaps a nod to the so-called religion of peace which occurs when all become Muslims through submission. "The fundamental problem is that the majority of otherwise peaceful and law-abiding Muslims are unwilling to acknowledge, much less to repudiate, the theological warrant for intolerance and violence embedded in their own religious texts."

Filmed at Atlantic College in South Wales, students were encouraged to fast so that they could take part in the Muslim Eid al-Fitr celebration (the feast of fast-breaking). A student organiser said: "It's important because it unites us as a school community and as a Muslim community." Over half the students took part when Muslim prayers are offered. 

A Muslim chaplain emphasised "one thing that will be very important in the future is to have a full Welsh translation of the Quran. Some smaller chapters have been translated but a Welsh Quran would show that Islam is also a Welsh religion"!

Cultural jihad has the gullible falling over themselves to welcome other faiths while Christianity is under attack.

Just over a week ago the Chapter of Manchester Cathedral had to apologise for allowing the Muslim call to prayer to be made in the cathedral at an interfaith event. This was not an isolated incident among those who should know better. 

In the Holy Land Church leaders have spoken out about an increase in anti-Christian incidents including attacks on holy sites, schools and even funeral processions.

Persecution.Org reports: "44 People Killed in Jihadist Attack in Burkina Faso", adding to the growing number of Islamist terrorist attacks. See list of Islamist terrorist attacks.

The last thing Christians need is for the Sovereign and supreme governor of the Church of England to lapse like its bishops and turn his Christian coronation service into another multi-faith event which benefits other faiths to the detriment of our own.

Postscript [18.04.2023]

Over 50,000 Christians killed in Nigeria by Islamist extremists

    52,250 Nigerian Christians murdered since 2009      18,000 churches set on fire

"The attacks have led to mass forcible displacement. About 5 million Christians have been displaced and forced into Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps within Nigeria and refugee camps at regional and sub-regional borders, the Intersociety report says."

Defender of the Faith

King Charles III signs an oath to uphold the security of the Church in Scotland during the Accession Council at St James’s Palace, London,
where King Charles III is formally proclaimed monarch.   Source: Premier Christianity/PA Images /Alamy Stock Photo

The Tablet reports that King Charles III recently heard testimony of a Catholic priest who escaped 'abduction and death threats' in his native Nigeria from where there are regular reports of abduction and killings. 

Googling 'abduction and death threats in Nigeria' immediately delivers Christian Student Running from Death Threats in Nigeria. There are links to other stories of persecution, particularly of Christians. Muslim militants who perpetrate these atrocities are often referred to as ‘bandits’, much like those found guilty of the sexual exploitation of 1400 children in the Rotherham from 1997 to 2013 were described as of Asian or Pakistani origin.

It is surprising, therefore, to read again that whilst King Charles III is due to inherit the title ‘Defender of the Faith’, a clause will be added to his coronation oath in order to recognise that he serves all religious faiths and not just the Church of England.

No purpose can be served by inserting a clause to ‘reflect modern, multicultural Britain’ if it embraces an ideology that is capable of creating so much misery for so many.

Charles has already sworn an oath as Defender of the Faith when he was formally proclaimed King Charles III in September.

Despite the confusion spread by woke bishops the faith of the Church of England is the Christian faith which teaches that there is only one way to the Father.

Either we believe that or we do not.

Christianity on the wane in England and Wales

Homage of the Archbishop of Canterbury at the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Abbey. Source: Royal UK

The latest release from the ONS Census 2021 reveals  that "for the first time fewer than half of people in England and Wales describe themselves as Christian."

The ONS release emphasises that the religion question is voluntary but 94.0% (56.0 million) of usual residents answered the question in 2021, an increase from 92.9% (52.1 million) in 2011. 

“No religion” was the second most common response, increasing by 12.0 percentage points to 37.2% (22.2 million) from 25.2% (14.1 million) in 2011.

Wales had a greater decrease in people reporting their religion as “Christian” (14.0 percentage point decrease, from 57.6% in 2011 to 43.6% in 2021) and increase in “No religion” (14.5 percentage point increase, from 32.1% in 2011 to 46.5% in 2021) compared with England and Wales overall.

Following my previous entry a commentator trolled: "Another possibility is the infantile and derogatory nature of the thoroughly unChristian contributors to this site. The rest of us, however few in number, do at least try faithfully to address the injunction to love one another and leave the judging to God."

So what is a Christian? What is love? We are made a Christian at our baptism when we pledge to turn away from sin, reject evil and remain faithful to Christ to the end of our life.

Many of us are challenged for being unchristian because we do not accept the secularisation of Christianity. "All you need is love" say revisionists using the word synonymously for same sex relations despite the various forms of love referred to in the Bible.

Church going has declined because for many it has ceased to have any of the 'otherness' of old. Others continue to attend from habit or to seek affirmation of their life style based on the claim that 'all you need is love'.

The issue is coming to a head.

Warning bells are sounding as the coronation of  Charles III approaches. The King's coronation must not be 'woke-fest celebration of so-called modern Britain', former minister Sir Edward Leigh told the Commons. The event must be a 'spiritual one', he said. 

Concerns had been expressed following an interview in 2015 whether Charles would be 'Defender of Faith' or 'Defender of The Faith'. This was the response of the then Prince of Wales:

"No, I didn’t describe myself as a defender: I said I would rather be seen as ‘Defender of Faith’, all those years ago, because, as I tried to describe, I mind about the inclusion of other people’s faiths and their freedom to worship in this country. And it’s always seemed to me that, while at the same time being Defender of The Faith, you can also be protector of faiths. It was very interesting that 20 years or more after I mentioned this – which has been frequently misinterpreted – the Queen, in her Jubilee address to the faith leaders, said that as far as the role of the Church of England is concerned, it is not to defend Anglicanism to the exclusion of other religions. Instead, the Church has a duty to protect the free practice of all faiths in this country. I think in that sense she was confirming what I was really trying to say – perhaps not very well – all those years ago. And so I think you have to see it as both. You have to come from your own Christian standpoint – in the case I have as Defender of the Faith – and ensuring that other people’s faiths can also be practised."

The desire to protect freedom of beliefs is laudable but contradictory in part given the nature of some 'religions'. Under Article 9 of the Human Rights Act '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 worship, teaching, practice and observance.'

One has only to read the appeal from Release International to see how Christians are persecuted in Muslim countries. Blasphemy laws are used to persecute Christians in Pakistan while Islamic terrorism is rife in Africa.

One cannot justify defending a political ideology that does not respect the rights of others and mandates the death sentence for apostates.

Breaking the trend in the census results apart from the increase in “No religion”, there were increases in the number of people who described themselves as “Muslim” (3.9 million, 6.5% in 2021, up from 2.7 million, 4.9% in 2011) and “Hindu” (1.0 million, 1.7% in 2021, up from 818,000, 1.5% in 2011).

In 2015 a survey found that Islam was the fastest growing religion in the UK while the Church of England was in decline. "In 1983, the number of people following Islam stood at 0.6% of the population compared to a little under 5% in 2014." It needs no encouragement

In the past, leaders in the UK and in the USA have claimed that Islam is a religion of peace despite all the evidence to the contrary. Many in the Anglican Church follow the same line.

The BBC has already taken the lead in promoting Islam by appointing Muslims as Religion Editors. If this spills over to the coronation of King Charles the Church of England may as well shut up shop now along with the Church in Wales where the 2021 census showed that Wales had a greater decrease in people reporting their religion as “Christian” (14.0 percentage point decrease, from 57.6% in 2011 to 43.6% in 2021).

Postscript [01.12.2022]

From Christian Post: Christians are being butchered in Africa. What are we going to do about it?

"The number of Christians who paid with their lives for their faith was 5,898 in 2022, which is up from 4,761 in 2021, according to the Open Doors USA organization.

"Out of that number, around 4,000 Christians were killed in Nigeria by Islamist groups, such as Boko Haram, Fulani herdsmen, and Ansaru, which teach that Christians should either convert to Islam or die."

What are we going to do about it? 

Religious and political leaders can stop endorsing Islam's claim that it is a religion of peace.