Church closures

An abandoned church in Newington, Gloucestershire. Photograph: Adrian Sherratt/Alamy                        Source: Guardian

Simon Jenkins writes in The Guardian: "The Church of England is panicking about declining congregations – here’s what it should do instead. Too many beautiful church buildings are going to ruin. Councils could run them better. Let them."

But could they? If uncut verges and weed infested streets are anything to go by, perhaps not. 

Church mainteneance, particulalry churchyard/burial ground mainteneance will become a serious problem as congregations decline and churches close.

Quoting the Bishop of Chelmsford, Jenkins writes: "The Church of England is in a state of “panic and fear”, of “deep anxiety”, and should stop being obsessed with numbers and face the reality of decline. So says one of its bishops, Guli Francis-Dehqani, of Chelmsford. It’s not hard to see why. Two years ago, as weekly worshippers re-emerged after Covid, church statisticians were desperate to see if they would return at least to their 2019 numbers, when about 854,000 people turned out to church. In 2023, that figure was just 685,000.

"Put another way, 169,000 weekly worshippers have vanished over a four-year period. Fewer people now go to their parish church than attend a local mosque or a Catholic mass. It is all very well for bishops to urge the church to stop worrying over “targets” and “growth” – to leave the planning to God and stick to praying. But the decline in attendance is relentless. At the turn of the century, 1 million people went to church each year; in 1980, the number was 1.3 million. Since cathedral worship is rising, something is clearly going wrong with parish churches, even under the present evangelical archbishop, Justin Welby. It cannot simply be that ever fewer Britons are professing the Christian faith, as is the case across Europe."

Church going can become a habit, hence Churchianity rather than Christianity. Covid broke that habit for many churchgoers while equality diversity and inclusion have replaced theology, scripture and tradition. Consequently minorities rule.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, is the latest to succumb to secular relationship values commenting in a podcast "that all sexual activity should be within a committed relationship and whether it's straight or gay".

That is not to judge the sentiments expressed by the archbishop, that will be left to Another. Rather it is to uphold the principle of traditional Christian marriage.

Secular notions of equality have become paramount. Churches are closing. Welby is treading the same path as the Archbishop of Wales and the Primus of Scotland.

The Bishop of Chelmsford is one of the front runners to replace Just Welby as Archbishop of Canterbury which would tick all of today's important boxes

Church and state leaders appear impotent as the British landscape  changes before their eyes. 

While churches close mosques spring up blasting out prayers five times a day from 5 AM. 

With no churches to go to and an alien culture foisted upon them, Anglicans will be like foreigners in our own land.

Islamisation continues

Former Christian Cathedral Hagia Sophia declared a mosque by Turkish court                                                                                                    Source: Wikipedia

Turkish President Erdogan has declared Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia becomes a mosque open to Muslim worship after a top Turkish court ruled that the building’s conversion to a museum by modern Turkey’s founding statesman was illegal, effectively raising their fingers to Christian feelings and concerns expressed by the United States, Greece and the Russian Orthodox Church.

Originally a Christian Cathedral Hagia Sophia (Holy Wisdom) was converted into a mosque when the Ottomans conquered Constantinople in 1453 after besieging the city for 55 days.

Hundreds of people who awaited the court's ruling outside the building chanted 'Allah is great!', the same chant used when murdering Christians in Islamist attacks.

The Times of Israel reports "the decision to reconvert Hagia Sophia - a former cathedral that was turned into a mosque after Istanbul’s conquest by the Ottoman Empire and had served as a museum for 86 years - sparked deep dismay among Orthodox Christians."

Abp Welby                Source: ENA

So far as I know archbishop Justin Welby, leader of the Anglican Communion has not expressed any concern but then he is busy fraternising with Muslim elders in their ‘Emerging Peacemakers Forum’ while his clergy invite Muslims into Christian churches for islamic prayers, effectively changing Christian churches into mosques in the eyes of Muslims.

In May 2019 when Jeremy Hunt was Foreign Secretary, according to a report ordered by him the persecution of Christians in parts of the world was at near "genocide" levels. The review which was led by the Bishop of Truro estimated that one in three people suffered from religious persecution and that Christians were the most persecuted religious group.

Genocide Watch warned in April that "350 Nigerian Christians were massacred in the first two months of 2020. Over 11,500 Christians have been murdered since June 2015. Four to five million Christians are displaced. 2000 churches were destroyed."

"Nigeria has become a killing field of defenseless Christians. Reliable sources show that between 11,500 and 12,000 Christians have been massacred since June 2015 when the Buhari Government of Nigeria came to power.  These statistics are based on careful records kept by church groups that include the names of victims and dates of their murders.

"Jihadist Fulani Herdsmen accounted for 7,400 murders of Christians. Boko Haram committed 4000 killings of Christians. ‘Highway Bandits’ who separated Christians from Muslims on buses and then killed the Christians committed over 200 murders.

Francis   Source: Church Militant

"Fulani Jihadists are now the world’s deadliest terrorist group. Five Nigerian Christians are massacred every day by Fulani and Boko Haram Jihadists. One hundred percent of the 7,400 murders by Jihadist Fulani Herdsmen since June 2015 were Christians. Fulani militias wipe out whole Christian villages, but they leave Muslim villages unharmed."

Despite all the evidence of  jihad over 1400 years, Pope Francis declared "It isn't right to say that Islam is a terrorist faith."

I doubt that the Christians being killed and persecuted in Africa and around rest of the world would agree with him.

With all the resources at the disposal of the papacy one would have thought that His Holiness might have been better advised about the aims of Islam as laid out in the Quran.

He would find all the evidence needed to expose a supremacist ideology that falsely claims to be a religion of peace when that peace arises only after all are Muslims subject to the will of Allah.

The bitter fruits of Islamic appeasement are everywhere but to no avail.

Hagia Sophia interior.                                                   Source: Church Militant

How long will it be before Christian images in Hagia Sophia are covered over to avoid the sensitivities of devout Muslims now that the Christian Cathedral has been declared a mosque?


Postscript [12.07.20]

World Council of Churches appeals to Turkey on mosque decision

A Greek Islamic leader has requested that Hagia Sophia remains a museum and not be converted into a mosque as "the name suggests Hagia Sophia is a Christian church".

Pope 'very pained' by decision to turn Istanbul's Hagia Sophia museum into mosque.


Postscript [13.07.20]

Extremist Islam Threatens Christians Across the Middle East

"It’s time that the purging of Christians and erasing of Christian history that predates Islam needs to be stopped."


Postscript [14.07.20]

Historian warns Islam will target St. Peter's after Hagia Sophia


 "'The goal of Islam is clear — after Saint Sophia, Saint Peter', Professor Roberto de Mattei told Church Militant, following Pope Francis' six word non-condemnation of Turkey's inflammatory decision to turn Hagia Sophia into a mosque."




Postscript [24.07.20]

Hagia Sophia’s Muslim Prayers Evoke Ottoman Treatment of Armenians

Declared a mosque in principle, Hagia Sophia is now a mosque in practice.

As Turkish president Erdoğan joins hundreds in celebration, Christians in the diaspora mourn their lost homeland and cultural heritage.

Absolute scum

That was not thought a fair description of two 16-year-old boys who "wrote sexual and racist graffiti on prayer books and bent an ancient St John the Baptist cross causing £3,000 worth of damage" after being invited to have a look around the cathedral in Blackburn. On sentencing them the chairman of the bench said: "This court is disgusted by the mindless destruction you have caused. Normal people would consider you absolute scum."

But that was too much for the Clerk of the Court who stood up and said she objected to the description of them. Consequently Austin Malloy has been removed from his post as chairman of the bench while he is investigated by the Judicial Office of Communications even though the bench was in agreement suggesting that they at least are normal people.

However one looks at it this is not acceptable behaviour, the more so given the desecration involved. If similar acts of vandalism had taken place in a mosque rather than in a Christian place of worship the consequences would have been grave. Do we care so little for our Christian heritage that such behaviour is regarded by some as trivial?

I too regard myself as a normal person so well said Mr Malloy.