Jolly June's Iceland gender jolly

Jolly June with Iceland bishop Agnes Sigurdardottir                             Source: Twitter @BishopJuno 

I see from the Llandaff diocese web site that as we approach the season of Advent 'jolly' June's preparation for Christmas is another jolly, this time in Iceland from where she grandly tweeted:

"Such a pleasure to meet Bishop Agnes Sigurdardottir, the first woman bishop of the Church of Iceland and Porvoo colleague whilst at the Global Women Leaders’ Forum @ChurchinWales #PowerTogether @LlandaffCath".

I can understand June's affinity with the first woman bishop of the Church of Iceland since both their churches are in a downward spiral. More importantly, like jolly June, Agnes Sigurdardottir is a firm advocate of same sex marriage in church.

It was reported back in October 2015 that "the Bishop of Iceland has categorically stated that there is no possible way of interpreting Icelandic law to enable Church of Iceland priests to refuse to marry couples on the grounds of their sexuality." As bishop she would "never put forward any proposal which has the effect of enabling discrimination of this type."

No wonder it was such a pleasure for jolly June to meet fellow hard liner Agnes.

In an earlier tweet June wrote: "The Global Women Leaders’ Forum in Reykjavik begins with welcomes from extraordinary Icelandic women, the first ever elected woman President and the current Prime Minister. Thank you Iceland for your welcome and example of gender equality."

Such sentiments imply that these women occupy their posts not on merit but as a result of positive discrimination.

 In her latest tweet jolly June rails against presumed gender inequality:

"This figure for the G7 nations is shocking. For the UK 52% of men and 62% of women say they’d be ‘comfortable with having a woman head of government’.  That’s a problem for all of us and not just women who aspire to public service @ChurchinWales.

If jolly June aspires to public service she should look beyond parity towards suitability, something currently lacking in the appointment of bishops in the Church in Wales regardless of gender.

Along with bishop Agnes, June and the rest of the bench ignore conscience, dismissing Anglicans in their flock who have not fallen for the spirit of the age but who adhere to the historic faith of the Apostles as received.

Acting more like a politician than a bishop, jolly June's message is not about salvation. It is about queering the Church and gender equality, a euphemism for sexual discrimination in favour of women. It is naked misandry as demonstrated by the bishop of St Davids in her attempt to rid her diocese of retired elderly male clergy.

Her latest prodigy is following her bishop's example. In yet another article, Church in Wales' newest vicar on the church and being transgender, the Rev Sarah Jones the new vicar at St John the Baptist church in Cardiff talks of 'diversity in the church' with emphasis on transgenderism.

Disregarding the Great Commission Jones does not believe in "bashing people with the bible" or telling them what they should believe. Instead her ministry is built around transgenderism making it clear why jolly June appointed her over more suitably qualified clergy.

Given the parlous state of the Church in Wales one would have thought that June had more pressing work in her diocese and beyond to counter declining attendances but that does not have the same cachet as somewhat incongruously attending the Global Women Leaders’ Forum to promote gender politics.

Postscript [30/11/2018]

A tweet from the Church in Wales about the Global Women Leaders’ Forum informs readers that there were "400 leaders from 80 countries and the Bishop of Llandaff was one of them".

In June's linked blog "Stepping over the gender gap" the bishop of Llandaff puts her cards on the table with this revealing statement: "Faith is in the business of challenging entrenched attitudes and changing perceptions." Changing attitudes!

It not only sums up her ministry but the direction of the bench.

Changing faith

“Pride is the beginning of sin" said Augustine of Hippo. 

Not a sentiment shared in the rudderless diocese of Monmouth where the Vicar of St Augustine, Rumney has tweeted "proud to be hosting Changing Attitudes DC Conference here in Rumney in February."

The tweet has links to the usual camp followers but oddly not to St Davids diocese where the bishop of St Davids is in the forefront when it comes to matters LGBT. Instead a newspaper link is included: @ImpactCardiff @EsgobaethBangor @LlandaffDio @MonmouthDCO @Swanbrec @StAsaphDiocese @ChurchinWales @XtiansAtPride @OzanneFoundn @1Body1Faith @CymruMae @TheGatheringCdf @PoblDewi.

Apparently the whole parish of St Augustine is proud to be an inclusive church where "all God's rainbow people" are "welcomed, affirmed and included", something one might reasonably expect from any Christian church. The difference is that young, old and even pets are used to distort the gospel.

Preceding the quoted text is "So He said to the Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, you are truly My disciples (John 6:31). 

Taken out of context the quotation is misleading, aiding the cause of the bench of bishops in their promotion of same sex marriage in church.

The Church in Wales is not alone in redefining faith. Jules Gomes in his Rebel Priest blog highlights how, in the last couple of years, Church of England cathedrals have "shocked Christians and the secular world by hosting events that are in conflict with scripture and church tradition."

His latest example highlights Derby cathedral where "graphic sex scenes, full female nudity, a pagan sacrifice and a satirical depiction of Jesus Christ" have been screened but has "banned a prominent conservative clergyman" from preaching at a student carol service during Advent.

Church involvement in gay pride parades has become commonplace but the church has gone far beyond flying the rainbow flag. It has been draped over the Holy Table while celebrating 'inclusive' LGBT Eucharistic services and over an Icon of Christ Crucified.

Muslims have been allowed to use Cathedrals to recite the call to prayer: "Allah is the greatest; I bear witness that there is no other god but Allah; I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah" when Islam denies the divinity of Christ, and that He died on the cross to bring salvation to the world.

The Blackburn Cathedral event is acknowledged to be an error of judgement but elsewhere mistaken clergy continue to encourage the spread of Islam in the guise of interfaith dialogue which is one way channel to the acceptance of Islam as a faith equivalent to Christianity despite its many contradictory beliefs.

Tragically, the more commonplace these events become the more normal they appear, not changing attitude but changing faith.

"Pride goes before destruction,

    a haughty spirit before a fall."

- Proverbs 16:18

Caption corner 24 November 2018

Source: Twitter @gavinashenden 

As usual publishable captions will appear under Comments.

Mother god

The dream,

 Speaking at St Martin-in-the-Fields in London on Monday evening Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury said that God is not a father in the same way that a human would be – and that descriptions of God are always “to some degree metaphorical”.

The trap was sprung. The media pounced. Mail Online put it thus:

 'God is not male… OR female’: Archbishop of Canterbury says ‘the Father’ cannot be defined by human gender.

Newsnight kicked off [@28.20] in the context of gender fluidity with 'When the Archbishop of Canterbury suggests that God is not male, what should we think?'

The Rev Dr Margaret Joachim suggested that we should not pray to Our Father because the simple word father has an appalling connotation for people who have had unfortunate relationships with their fathers!

          

the reality

Are there no unfortunate relationships with mothers in Dr Joachim's book?

It is an odd notion that it is sexist to pray to the father but not if we pray Our Mother as women bishops are suggesting. 

Unlike pagan fertility godesses and Mother Earth Christianity is not about fertility, sex and gender.

The simple truth is that when asked how we should pray Christ said to pray 'Father, hallowed be your name'.

Metaphorical images of a female God in the Bible speak of motherhood. A mother's selfless care and nurture of her children, something feminists in the church fail to recognise.

They have marginalised many devout mothers of conscience who for millennia have been happy to pray Our Father as Christ taught us. I know who I would rather listen to.

A bird in the hand...

The knives were out before the Prime Minister outlined the negotiated Brexit deal to the House of Commons. 

Remainers have used every ploy to halt the process and remain in the EU despite a clear majority vote to leave in one of the highest turnouts of the electorate while the purists among leavers want only what they want as if their demands would be accepted if they shouted loud enough,

Mrs May presented a negotiated 'divorce' settlement which satisfies the main objective of many who voted leave which was to put an end to uncontrolled migration from Europe. It also guards against the 'cliff-edge' warnings about jobs, trade and medicine shortages while protecting the N. Ireland border.

Cometh the hour, cometh the woman. 

Mrs May's mastery of her brief has impressed friends and foes alike. Many readers will not agree with some of her liberal policies but on this occasion she has delivered what she set out to do and deserves credit for that.

Grapevine

The above figures taken from the Diocesan Conference 2018 Edition of 'Monmouth Grapevine' illustrate the shift from the traditional parish priest to lay ministry. Rounding up the '.5' to 48 Stipends plus 20 House for Duty priests produces a figure of 68 priests for 175 churches averaging two or three churches per priest aided by 31 NSMs.

Consequently the laity are taking on more responsibility but not for the better. Anglican priestly ministry is being diluted in Wales.

Communion by Extension, "that is, where the sacrament is taken to a church from another church within the benefice, where the Holy Eucharist has previously been celebrated" is becoming commonplace. The sick and the housebound are more likely to be visited by a lay person than by a priest and funerals are conducted by LMEs (Readers).

In a postscript to a previous entry, Local Mission Areas mask decline of 24 October 2017 I wrote:

"The bishop of  Monmouth has proclaimed that 'A third archdeaconry is to be created in Monmouth Diocese following overwhelming support for the move at this year’s Diocesan Conference (21 October)'. He said, 'As Bishop I am charged with the leadership of this Diocese. Faced with such a challenge I could ignore it and almost certainly let the Anglican presence in the Valleys fade away. Or I could do – what any organisation would do – let alone the church – invest in the area and try and turn it around'."

Since her arrival the third archdeacon has been over the diocese like a rash, unlike the bishop. The 'Anglican presence in the Valleys' he referred to has not faded away but the bishop who is 'charged with the leadership of his Diocese' has. His prolonged unexplained absence has left his clergy in the dark and the diocese in limbo.

Peppered throughout the 2017 Conference Edition of Grapevine there is no mention of the bishop in the 2018 edition or elsewhere giving rise to rumours ranging from nervous exhaustion to all manner of other possibilities.

That is not to suggest anything irregular or to add to his difficulties but the current situation reveals a weakness in the governance of the Church in Wales when paralysis can exist with no apparent remedy.

In the event of an Archbishop’s incapacity or absence from the British Isles "the senior Diocesan Bishop willing to act and capable of acting and not then absent from the British Isles, as long as the Archbishop remains incapacitated or absent from the British Isles, shall be the guardian of the spiritualities of any vacant see, and shall have and exercise all the other rights of the Archbishop".

What of the spiritualities of a non-vacant see when the system breaks down?

On the broader front, under its Disciplinary Policy and Procedure of The Clergy provisions, disciplinary proceedings may be instituted on the grounds of "teaching, preaching, publishing or professing, doctrine or belief incompatible with that of the Church in Wales" (3)(b)(a) but while the bishops are of one  mind on matters incompatible with the official position of the Church in Wales, as on Holy Matrimony, they will not hold themselves to account.

There is a spiritual vacuum in the Church in Wales because the bench lacks godly men to teach the faith as received. The decline continues.

Caption corner 16 November 2018

Source: Pobl Dewi

As usual publishable captions will appear under Comments.