You are here . on the pale blue dot


Blog notes

'Anonymous' comments for publication must include a pseudonym.

They should be on topic and not involve third parties.
If pseudonyms are linked to commercial sites comments will be removed as spam.


Sunday, 31 January 2016

Government sell out to Islam


MPs will not be allowed to drink alcohol at their temporary premises    Source: Sunday Express

The Sunday Express reports that MPs are to be rehoused temporarily in Richmond House while Parliament undergoes much-needed repair. But the building, 91 metres down the road, was transferred from the British Government to wealthy Middle Eastern businessmen and banks under an Islamic bond scheme, called Sukuk, in 2014 in George Osborne's bid to make the UK a global hub for Islamic finance.

The lease terms stipulate the building is governed under Islamic law - which includes the banning of alcohol on the activities. Conservative MP Andrew Bridgen said he could not believe parts of Whitehall are being governed by Sharia law.

Mr Bridgen will not be alone in his disbelief. Mr Osborne would have done well to recall 1 Timothy 6:10. 

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

It is not the alcohol, it is the principle. Perhaps Mr Osborne is too busy to notice how Islam features in Syria, Iraq, Greece, Germany, Calais, etc, etc.

What a sell out.

Postscript [04.03.2016]

Five Whitehall buildings held by wealthy businessmen now operating under Sharia rules:

The historic Admiralty House and four other Whitehall buildings are now operating in accordance with some sharia rules – including a ban on alcohol – after they were used as part of an Islamic bond scheme. The properties must comply with some aspects of sharia under the terms of special bonds known as sukuk, announced by George Osborne two years ago when the UK became the first Western country to issue them. - Independent report here.

Friday, 29 January 2016

The road to ruin


The Bishop of Willesden, the Rt Rev Peter Broadbent, having a laugh.     Source: The Telegraph

From The Telegraph: Dress-down Sundays: Church considers making clerical dress optional.

"Heavenly hoodies? Church of England takes first step to relaxing clerical dress rules in effort to become more “relevant” to 21st Century". Surely they mean irrelevant.

Also, from The Guardian: Church of England members back same-sex marriage. Poll shows for first time more Anglicans supporting gay couples marrying than opposing it, despite leadership’s opposition. "The lowest levels of support for same-sex marriage – 24% – were found among Anglican men over the age of 55, a group that dominates the church leadership." But for how long?

"Jayne Ozanne, a leading gay activist within the C of E, who commissioned the poll from YouGov, said this finding was “deeply worrying”. “Unfortunately, this is exactly the profile of those in the senior positions of power and influence within the church,” she said.

Meanwhile ready to fill the vacuum UK Mosque Open Day is being promoted on social media and lists of participating places of worship are being posted on Facebook "which organisers hope will bring in more young people, among others".

As the Church destroys herself by becoming "relevant to society" the so called religion of peace is busy spreading its influence. Is it any surprise that "Islam may soon become the most dominant religion in the world, eclipsing Christianity". One thing we can be sure of there will be no mention that Christians will have to convert, pay the tax or die (Qur’an 9:29).

Postscript

Poll spun to apply pressure to Church of England on same-sex 'marriage'.

Thursday, 28 January 2016

Gender fluidity


Source: BBC


In March last year it was reported that there was a shortage of chicken sexers in the UK. The procedure can be read in the BBC report but suffice to say a bump makes the difference. If it has one, it is male.

Generally speaking humans are identified at birth as being either male or female by being with or without the bump which translates into being registered as a boy or a girl. That is not to say that behavioural differences go unnoticed in later life. Indeed many performers have profited by making capital out of contrary behaviour.

Julian and his friend Sandy in 'Around the Horn' on steam radio were the cause of considerable merriment in the 1960s but in retrospect many of us may not have fully understood the full extent of the innuendo, since translated into law. No longer the subject of humour, self-deprecating or otherwise, we are now expected to accept 'gender fluidity', an issue nicely put into perspective by Melanie Philips in The Spectator.

I have no desire to trivialise what may be a serious problem for a minority of people but gender fluidity is quickly becoming the new in thing after homosexuality under the sponsorship of Her Majesty's Government. In a government backed survey, children as young as 13 are asked to pick from a list of twenty-five genders: 

The list of alternatives is being offered to children as part of a campaign to ‘find out how gender matters to young people’. Celebrities who identify as something other than male or female include the cookery writer Jack Monroe, 27, (pictured) who has used the term ‘non-binary’
Source: Mail Online

Critics have accused the sponsors of ‘exploiting’ teenagers for political ends. Too right. Following on from the same-sex marriage debacle this smacks of another government campaign biased towards harvesting votes from minorities regardless of the consequences. 

To exploit the adult population for political ends was a disgrace but to exploit vulnerable children in the same manner is inexcusable.

Tuesday, 26 January 2016

Victims


Source: BBC/Welsh News Service

Readers who are a little longer in the tooth may recall holidays abroad when a tag was used to obtain services thus removing the need to carry cash. Indeed, in their student days they may even have experienced landlords economising on paint by using a uniform colour, green in the case of Jesus College, Cambridge.

Red has become the symbol of oppression for asylum seekers, something picked up by David Davies MP. No matter that many people in this country would be glad to have a roof over their head and be assured of meals without having to rely on food banks, as increasing numbers of people do in Great Britain today, wristbands it seems have become a sign of oppression despite being fashionable in some quarters and generally obscured from view unless revealed as in the illustration above. 

Baroness Cox knows only too well how difficult it has become to retain a sense of proportion regarding British values without someone complaining that they are being victimised as a consequence. The Baroness's Bill which seeks to protect women and challenge the application of sharia law in the UK has been approved by the House of Lords but it needs an MP to sponsor it and steer it through the House of Commons. Baroness Cox has already been accused of being Islamophbic so with parties fighting for votes from minorities the chances of success are not looking good.

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

People are falling over themselves to say what they perceive to be the 'right' thing regardless of the circumstances, seemingly oblivious to what else is going on in the world so here is victim, reminiscent of Rochdale, Cologne, Denmark, etc, reported by the British Pakistani Christian Association (BPCA).

This poor 17-year-old Christian girl in Pakistan was killed by a group of Muslim men because she spurned their sexual advances after they shouted "How dare you run away from us! Christian girls are only meant for one thing – the pleasure of Muslim men."



Wilson Chowdhry, Chairman of the BPCA said the world is ignoring the treatment of Christian women in Pakistan, where an average of two women a day disappear and are raped, sold into sexual slavery, or forced to marry Muslim men.

Not only in Pakistan. Christian Refugees Live in Fear. 

It should be clear who the real victims are. What is being done about them?

Friday, 22 January 2016

A Tonic


A tonic for the weekend against the miseries that new Anglicanism has afflicted upon the faithful.




Wednesday, 20 January 2016

Peace, perfect peace


The Cathedral Church of Saint Deiniol, Bangor. Source Wikipedia

An EXCLUSIVE from The Sun:

Cathedral, surviving on cash reserves, paying to re-home clerics

"A CHURCH is blowing nearly £1million to re-home two clerics after they whinged about noisy students. The pair say they are being kept awake at night by revellers from the neighbouring university.

Bangor Cathedral in North Wales has already bought a £465,000 four-bedroom detached house for Rev Kathy Jones. Now it is looking for a similar property for its Canon, Rev David Fisher."

The Rev Kathy Jones has been appointed as the new Dean of Bangor and Ministry Area Leader of the Bro Deiniol Ministry Area.

The Rev Canon David Fisher was installed as the Canon Precentor of Bangor Cathedral in 2013. His ministry is centred mainly on the liturgy and music of the Cathedral.

In July 2015 it was reported that Bangor Cathedral choir was to benefit from £30,000 grant which officials hoped would provide a "strong foundation for choral scholars from colleges in the area and Bangor University".

Perhaps they will include in their repertoire the hymn Peace, perfect peace for further reflection.

Peace, perfect peace, in this dark world of sin?
The blood of Jesus whispers peace within.

Peace, perfect peace, by thronging duties pressed?
To do the will of Jesus, this is rest.

Peace, perfect peace, with sorrows surging round?
On Jesus’ bosom naught but calm is found.

Peace, perfect peace, with loved ones far away?
In Jesus’ keeping we are safe, and they.

Peace, perfect peace, our future all unknown?
Jesus we know, and He is on the throne.

Peace, perfect peace, death shadowing us and ours?
Jesus has vanquished death and all its powers.

It is enough: earth’s struggles soon shall cease,
And Jesus call us to Heaven’s perfect peace.

Friday, 15 January 2016

Sour grapes




Ex-Anglican priest and Shadow Cabinet member Chris Bryant, MP, otherwise known as "Captain Underpants" has announced that he is to quit the Anglican Church saying its stance on homosexuality would one day look as wrong as supporting slavery. Given his record it is hard to see that he will be a great loss. He tweeted: "I've finally given up on Anglican church today after its love-empty decision on sexuality. One day it will seem wrong as supporting slavery"!

An odd response since this statement appears in the Primates 2016 Communiqué: "The Primates condemned homophobic prejudice and violence and resolved to work together to offer pastoral care and loving service irrespective of sexual orientation. This conviction arises out of our discipleship of Jesus Christ. The Primates reaffirmed their rejection of criminal sanctions against same-sex attracted people."

As the Guardian put it: "Bryant’s comments came as liberal Anglicans expressed disappointment and anger over an agreement reached in Canterbury on Thursday that penalised the US church for its stance on gay rights and explicitly reaffirmed 'traditional doctrine' on marriage as a union between a man and a woman".

Bryant was not alone in his condemnation of traditional doctrine. Michael Curry, the new presiding bishop of the US Episcopal Church  said: "For many who have felt and been rejected by the church because of who they are, for many who have felt and been rejected by families and communities, our church opening itself in love was a sign of hope. And this will add pain on top of pain."

The vocal LGBT lobby which called for the Church to repent for not agreeing with their liberal agenda would have us believe that they know best, even if it leads to the destruction of the Anglican Church. For once they find themselves on the losing side, experiencing for themselves what they have inflicted on others as they have sought to bend the Church to their secular way of thinking.

Quick to claim a majority when it favours them, the fact that their views represent a tiny minority in the Church is irrelevant to them. Traditionalists have been frequently told that if they don't like new Anglicanism they should leave so perhaps the LGBT agitators should follow Chris Bryant's lead but that would lead to many less clergy.

The LGBT lobby should realise that they have never had it so good and stop agitating unless they want to see Anglicanism in this country follow the fate of the US Episcopal Church, banned from representation on key bodies and barred from voting on issues relating to doctrine or strategy.