Another top job post has been created at the Church in Wales' expensive new HQ while ministry areas continue to scratch around for clergy and any help they can get if it is freely provided.
This time the bench of bishops require a Director of Welsh Language and Bilingual Mission to assist them having been negligent in ensuring that Welsh speaking bishops were appointed where appropriate. The diocese of St Davids is a glaring example where political correctness in appointing a woman bishop took precedence over all else.
Andy Pandy, as he is affectionately known in some quarters, gives his spin here on the need for a new post to promote Welsh within the Church in Wales which he says is "beginning" but there is more work to do.
Typically +Andy's account is in Welsh as if he has a vast Welsh speaking audience while Welsh speaking congregations are neglected. Certainly there is more work to do, starting with inadequate bishops engaged in empire building. Three dioceses have already come to readers' attention where the number of clergy is in stark contrast to priests out in the country dashing from church to church.
The Church of England's House of Bishops voted Tuesday to block the creation of a new liturgy to celebrate gender transition but urged bishops to use the existing baptism rite as a way to mark the passage. (Niklas Halle'n/AFP/Getty Images)/theblaze
...who’s the fairest of them all? - Neither Church nor State that's for sure. Both are engaging in absurd distortions of reality.
General Synod paper GS Misc 1178 provides an "update" on ‘Welcoming Transgender People’, as if they are not welcome already, using the now familiar propaganda techniques of exploiting the 'victim' status - see earlier entry - just as the LGBT lobby has done to secure a dedicated chaplaincy and "a safe, sacred space for our LGBTI+ friends to share their stories, explore their faith and enjoy time together with no fear of judgement" - [click here and scroll down to "Open Table come as you are"].
In July 2017 the General Synod carried, "with strong support in all three Houses, a motion brought forward by the Blackburn Diocesan Synod, that this Synod, recognising the need for transgender people to be welcomed and affirmed in their parish church, call on the House of Bishops to consider whether some nationally commended liturgical materials might be prepared to mark a person’s gender transition."
'Theblaze' summerises how the Church of England’s House of Bishops voted on Tuesday to block the creation of a new liturgy to celebrate gender transition. Bishops were urged instead to use the existing baptism rite as a way to mark the passage. Dodging the concept of second baptisms the Church of England has instead given the green light to using existing liturgies similar to the way gay unions are being blessed with all the outward appearances of church marriages.
The State, as in NHS England, is also pandering to fashion as if money were no object in offering biological males a smear test for cervical cancer if they identify as females, even though they do not have female organs, while women who could be at risk but identify as men are not being routinely offered potentially life saving NHS screening for breast and cervical cancer amid fears it might offend them.
If people want to ignore their biological sex they are free to do so but they should not expect others to engage in their fantasies. Cervical Cancer Prevention Week from 22-28 January.
The Bishop of St Asaph (centre) launching the UK’s first LGBTQIA+ chaplaincy with the bishops of Llandaff (left) and St Davids strutting their credentials.
This triptych emphasis what is now the most important issue for bishops in the Church in Wales today, accepting minorities - as if hey were not already - provided of course they are not the minority which strive to keep the faith against all the odds.
The first woman bishop in Wales lost no time in identifying with Pride Cymru. The bishop of St Davids led a Eucharist service in the Pride faith tent which celebrated "people from different religious backgrounds and their place in the LGBT community".
The bishop's involvement in Cardiff's Pride Cymru festival was described as "fantastic" and "extraordinary" by Cardiff University Methodist Chaplain the Rev Delyth Liddell who "co-ordinated" the faith tent.
Years ago one of the impediments to unity for some Methodists was the presence of alcohol in Communion wine. Now it appears that homosexuality could be the glue which binds Methodists and Anglicans together, or those who are left, adding a new dimension to 'when two or three are gathered together'.
Love wins according to the pride banner so enthusiastically carried before her by the bishop of St Davids. Many of the bishops in the Church of England have fallen for that trite little phrase ignoring the wider connotations but a far greater impediment to reconciliation will be voted on after the Church of England Synod debates sharing Methodist ministers. This would mean a break in the Apostolic Succession if Methodist clergy who have not been ordained by a bishop were entitled to hold Church of England services.
Sadly, few will care any more. Many of those who did care have left the church which nurtured them; rather, the Church has left them.
In response to my previous entry, commentator O.wot.a.blunda wrote:
"In the meantime morale among the clergy is at an all-time low. The misery areas or whatever they're called now are a complete shambles, with PCCs and all sense of order having gone to the wall. No one wants to be a ministry area leader except for newly ordained clerics who haven't a clue how to run a parish much less a ministry area. Some long-time clerics I suspect would rather drink poison than take up that role. I'm surprised that you haven't spent more time discussing this awful mess on the Ancient Briton blog. Who would have thought that the Church in Wales review would have resulted in such a dreadful mess." [My emphasis - Ed.]
Perhaps this should serve as the opportunity for other readers to share their experiences. To date the hopes expressed in the lead video are not evident. Instead there is anecdotal evidence of disillusionment and regret.
"Let anyone with ears listen" said one of the propagandists in the video. The expectation was for a "new flourishing", a vibrancy resulting in "re-imagining ministry, revitalising the churches and rejuvenating the people".
The Anglican News Service explained the plan thus:
"From ministry areas to community cafes, changes happening in churches across Wales can be seen in a short film now available online. The 2020 Vision film highlights stories from each of the six dioceses in Wales which show how they are responding to the Church in Wales’ strategy for growth."
There has been no growth, only decline, contrary to the expectations of Ministry Area devotees, much like the suggestion that women priests would revitalize the Church and halt decline. The reverse is true.
The only 'benefit' for the Province of Wales accrues to the bishops and an increasing number of senior staff while the workers beaver away to develop a system nobody really wanted apart from Archbishop Morgan's devotees. Compare the inactivity on other recommendations in the Review to trim administrative offices and downsize, possibly to three dioceses [Section 15 of the Church in Wales 'Harries' Review].
Better still the Church in Wales should be returned to the Church of England so that England and Wales can at least go down united. Prior to disestablisment in 1920, there were four dioceses in Wales. The Diocese of Monmouth was created in 1921 and the Diocese of Swansea and Brecon in 1923.
In 2008 "new figures" compiled after an analysis of membership of religious bodies revealed the numbers attending church on a monthly basis could fall from 200,000 to fewer than 40,000 over the next four decades, less than the average attendance at Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge football ground. Church in Wales regular attendance figures were already down to 28,291 in 2016.
The bishop of Bangor said in Sept 2013 that the speedy adoption of Ministry Areas was for positive reasons about "new ways of doing church" but he acknowledged that "it is undeniable" that the Church in some places is in crisis. The position is much worse in 2018.
The "landmark report" by Church in Wales which recommended replacing parishes with ministry areas, was summarised by Wales Online in September 2012.
The Church in Wales claims that "Ministry Areas reflect huge changes which have taken place in our society. The parish system, as originally set up with a single priest serving a small community, was put in place when people lived and worked in the same parish. All this has now changed – the communities to which people now belong are very varied and people travel freely."
Given that the entire province of Wales with its six diocesan bishops including an archbishop is about the same size as a diocese in the Church of England, one has to wonder why the struggling Church of England has not adopted the idea.
Law & Religion UK commented: "Our post in July 2012 observed that many of the symptoms underlying the CiW Review were present, to a greater or lesser degree, in the Church of England, and there is clearly much for those within both Churches to consider" but there were important differences. Unlike other churches in the Anglican Communion [the CIW] does not have a fully developed system of synodical government. Suspending parishes in the Church in Wales is a much easier matter, legally, than it is in the Church of England and Deaneries, as at present constituted [in the CiW], are not always a natural geographical unit - fuller details here - indicating that it was easier to get away with in Wales.
Readers of Highlights which reports on the Church in Wales’ Governing Body meetings might have expected a fuller explanation of 'progress' but the cat was let out of the bag by the Revd Dr Stephen Wigley representing the Methodist Church who "welcomed the greater co-operation between denominations brought about by the change to Ministry Areas", strengthening the view that the Church in Wales looks to Nonconformists and the 'Uniting' church for survival, see more examples here, here, here and here.
The first Ministry Area in the diocese of Monmouth was formally inaugurated in April 2015, consisting of nine parishes in and around Usk. Three years later the "Job of the week" announced on Twitter is for Director of Mission and Archdeacon of the Gwent Valleys. Details here.
Remuneration & Benefits package
• Archdeacon’s stipend of £37,115 p.a.
• Final salary pension scheme
• 4-bedroom detached house in Abercarn village, with easy
access to the Archdeaconry and Newport (the administrative
centre of the Diocese)
• Expenses for all travel from home
The path to nonconformity is becoming expensive. Clearly there is little to shout about. If the Ministry Area scheme were a success I would have expected to find some positive signs but 'Googling' reveals nothing of substance.
Celtic Bishops visit the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. Source: Twitter
When in Rome, do as the Romans do, unless you are among the "Celtic Bishops" visiting the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. Then you continue doing your own thing regardless.
Not just one representative but the entire bench of bishops of the Church in Wales is in Rome for another Week of Prayer for Christian Unity which began in 1908 as the Octave of Christian Unity and takes place from 18 to 25 January.
Celtic spirituality has long since given way to secularism in the hierarchies of the "Celtic" churches where bishops masquerade as bishops of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church despite going their own way in defiance of the wishes of the Roman Catholic and Holy Orthodox churches who warned of the consequences for unity when women were admitted to the priesthood.
The Celtic bishops would have done better getting on their knees in the cathedrals of their ailing churches, begging for forgiveness for what they have done.
Postscript [19.01.2018]
The bishop of Llandaff has tweeted: "Celtic bishops finish our time in Rome with Anglican Evensong at St Paul without the Walls for the Week of Prayer for. Christian Unity ‘That all may be free’ "
What are the aims of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity?
+ To pray as Christ prayed ‘That they may be one’.
+ To pray for the unity of all Christian people as we share in Christ’s ministry.
From The Irish News: "THE annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity starts today, heralding a period of prayer and reflection on the theme 'that all may be free'." - To do as they please?
Pray that the bishops do not get stuck in Rome as a consequence of Italian airport workers going on strike. Oh I don't know though! Better if they stayed there and re-learnt the faith.
Dental extraction has become the cheaper option for many UK citizens unable to obtain NHS treatment despite paying their NHS contributions.
Private treatment including root fillings and crowns quickly adds up to bills for many hundreds of pounds. It is hardly surprising that extraction, often not the preferred option, is necessitated by cost.
A report last year claimed that patients were having to pull out their own teeth because NHS dental practices are refusing to register new patients. The figures have prompted concerns of an “emerging crisis” in dental care in England, with the British Dental Association (BDA) accusing the Government of commissioning only enough dentistry to treat about half the adult population.
News broke in 2008 that the Government's contract with NHS dentists, introduced in 2006, had been such a failure that nearly a million fewer patients were visiting the dentist, and the number of crowns, bridges and dentures being fitted had fallen by more than half, while the number of extractions had risen. An estimated 7.4 million people cannot find an NHS dentist to do elementary dental work such as fillings.
Recent findings show that "Tooth decay is the number one reason for child hospital admissions, but communities across England have been "left hamstrung without resources or leadership". There have been calls for a crackdown on unhealthy foods and soft drinks to combat "spiralling cases of tooth decay" with an "urgent need" to introduce measures to curb our sugar addiction which is causing children's teeth to rot.
The food and drinks industry is of course motivated by profit. That sounds familiar. In many areas it is not difficult to find a dentist but it is very difficult if you want NHS treatment.
A debate on children's dental examinations and treatment is due to take place in the House of Lords on January 18. It shouldn't be too difficult for their Lordships to come to a conclusion.
Funding social care was the subject of Key Issues for the New Parliament 2010. It read:
In 1997 Tony Blair told the Labour Party conference “I don’t want [our children] brought up in a country where the only way pensioners can get long-term care is by selling their home.” Local authorities have been able to require people to sell their homes to pay for residential care since 1948. Thirteen years after Tony Blair’s speech, local authorities continue to do so.
The system was seen as inherently unfair, penalising those who have saved for their old age, whilst those who have been less prudent are eligible for state-funded care.
The Money Advice Service web page includes a table: Local authority funding for care costs – do you qualify?
Source: money Advice Service
Age UK has a useful explanation of the means test when paying for care. The NHS also has a guide to care and support. Health and social services in Wales are explained here and here.
No comfort there for the frugal. Anyone who has saved for their old-age hoping to pass on their property to their children, especially now that it is so difficult to get onto the property ladder, is likely to regret the fact when the profligate are rewarded.
The Commission on the Future of Health and Social Care in England (also known as the Barker Commission) was asked whether the post-war settlement, which established separate systems for health and social care, remains fit for purpose. Three problems were identified:
Problem 1: the system is unfair Most health care (major and minor) is free at the point of use. Social care is heavily rationed and means tested. This leads to situations where people with dementia have to pay for their own care while people with cancer don’t. Both cases involve significant care needs but they get very different levels of assistance from the state. There is not equal treatment of equal needs.
Problem 2: the funding is separate The NHS budget is ring-fenced, comes mostly from national taxation and must be spent on health. Publicly funded social care is paid for by local authorities through a mixture of central government grant, council tax and user charges. Levels of spending vary across the country. Deciding who pays for what is a constant source of friction which can impact on people who are caught between the two systems.
Problem 3: the system is not co-ordinated The organisations that commission health and social care - 211 clinical commissioning groups for hospital care, emergency care, community care and mental health; 152 local authorities for social care; and NHS England for primary and specialist care - are not aligned. This creates inefficiencies with financial and human costs. For example, 3,000 beds a day are occupied by people who are fit to leave but are stuck in hospital while funding or assessment is resolved.
The current system is unfair, unjust and unsustainable. Bed-blocking up by 52 per cent in three years, NHS figures show. For example, Patients in England experienced some 177,000 days-worth of delays paffecting more than 5,900 beds a day in April 2027. "The problem was projected to cost the NHS £169m directly for the 2016-17 financial year, but the National Audit Office believes the overall related cost may reach some £820m annually, according to David Hare, the chief executive of NHS Partners Network."
Last January, YouGov research showed 53 per cent of people supported the idea of a 1p-in-the-pound rise in National Insurance, from 12 to 13 per cent, if it was used to fund healthcare, while 26 per cent opposed it—down from 37 per cent in 2014.
The Illustrated summary of the Barker Commission's final report posed the question 'How can we afford it?' giving examples of how almost £6 billion could be saved and suggesting a review of taxes on wealth and consider reforms to inheritance tax, wealth transfer tax, capital gains, property tax, etc.
They conclude, "Overall, the government should assume that public spending on health and social care will increase from 9.6% to 11–12% by 2025. The commission believes that in the long run this is affordable and sustainable" pointing out that it "sounds like a lot of extra money but it’s still less than other similar countries spend on health care alone."
Source: King's Fund
A report in the Telegraph shows that "the growing NHS crisis has been fuelled by the closure of almost 1,000 care homes housing more than 30,000 pensioners."
It comes as NHS figures show the worst Accident & Emergency crisis on record, amid a 37 per cent rise in the numbers stuck in hospital for want of social care, since 2010. Experts said hospitals were being overwhelmed by the spread of flu because they had almost no spare capacity to cope with surges in demand.
The report by industry analysts shows that in the last decade, 929 care homes housing 31,201 pensioners have closed, at a time when the population is ageing rapidly. The research from LaingBuisson show care homes going out of business at an ever increasing rate, with 224 care homes closed between March 2016 and March 2017, amounting to more than 2,000 beds."
For far too long Local Authorities have regarded care providers as charities resulting in business closures or demeaning 15 Min home care visits.
It is over twenty years since Tony Blair told the Labour Party conference in 1997 “I don’t want [our children] brought up in a country where the only way pensioners can get long-term care is by selling their home".
We can't wait another twenty years. Action to integrate health and social care is needed urgently, free at the point of delivery, raising revenue as necessary to assure equity. It could even be a vote winner.
Nine leading international experts, chaired by the former chief medical officer for Wales Dr Ruth Hussey, have been looking at ways to try to put the health and social care system on a stronger footing. Ministers say a new plan will take into account the review's recommendations.
Without "significantly accelerated" change, services which are already not fit for the future, will further decline, the expert panel warns.
The NHS and social care will be expected to work "seamlessly" together to respond to a person's needs and to deliver care closer to home.
