Time for a round of Episcopal anagrams. Its been coming on for a while.
Rev Mitre Sods Joins is an anagram of Most Rev Idris Jones. [Far from the truth]
Bi Rev Rants Mirth is an anagram of Rt Rev Brian Smith. [Goodness]
Wild Highland Victor is an anagram of David Chillingworth. [In his dreams]
Oblige Libs is an anagram of Bob Gillies. [In our dreams]
Sex In A Warm Heartland is an anagram of Alexander Martin Shaw (as is Wet, lax randier shaman) [Let us not even go there]
And Strange Mark is an anagram of Mark Strange.
Can anyone do any better?
“Who vends OK thrill”
“Threshold vow kiln”
two of a well known Provost and Rector
Maybe I am getting old and crotchety (or older and crotchietier, you may say) but I find the increasing level of such public (quasi-humorous?) disparagement of our Bishops (whether from pulpits as recently or blogs) unacceptable.
I can see why you might think the anagrams go too far, Anne, but I don’t think they are meant disparagingly.
Rather, a simple act of faith that bishops can laugh at silly word games?
(though Kelvin, this is probably a red flag against any on-line limerick competitions, no?)
I wonder why Anne feels like this – her comment here, which I take very seriously, could be a good and helpful starter for an illuminating discussion thread about a sense of humour failure in the church? Is it a sign of propriety, defensiveness, honouring the episcopal office – or what is the cause of it?
Perhaps my humour failure stems from a peculiarly diaconal understanding of the gravity of Order – try the first 13 verses of 1 Timothy 3 for starters. And in justice terms, I am concerned that the borderline between humour and hurt is being seriously tested and in places where those talked about do not have an easy right of reply.
Rev’s kilt won hold — an anagram of Kelvin Holdsworth. (and yes, the second H is offered in Hebrew)
Please let us not turn a silly game into more than it is.
perhaps lowering the tone further, pepsi cola is an anagram of episcopal.
Its perhaps worth noting the genesis of this post before any further analysis of its character. When out and about doing good things in the last couple of weeks, I chanced upon someone I’d not seen for a while who told me that he liked reading the blog, and went on to discuss several other Episcopal bloggers.
On refecting on this conversation sometime later (reflecting being something we’ve all been taught to do), I remembered a sermon or perhaps it was an after dinner speech given by the person I’d met. The nub of the matter is that it had contained several funny anagrams relating to the then College of Bishops. (We are speaking of some time ago). I can’t now remember the anagrams.
Now was this person a bishop or not and does it matter?
The church is affected by the death of deference as much as any other institution and that makes for new ways of feeling discomforted by one another (and the loss of some of the old ways). Even with that knowledge, I wouldn’t turn the clock back.
The death of ‘deference’ opens up the whole question of the person and the office. The two are rarely distinguished these days, and so when the person holding an office is laughed ‘at’ in that role, the office is disparaged. If one wishes to disparage the office of a bishop, one should do so openly and in a reasoned way.
On the other hand, laughing ‘with’ the person – was it a bishop? – is entirely good for their soul.
Brilliant Kelvin! I’m lost for ideas right now.
I read the comments about this post before the post in my Google Feed reader, and so when I read the actual post, I wondered why it caused so much discussion, I took it to be a mere jest, nothing should be taken from your suggestions, afterall you were only rearranging letters
Also, +John Mantle isn’t mentioned. I’m all out of suggestions for him
Kelvin,
The late Irish comedian, Dave Allen, once had an anagram which read, Vile IRA Pansy. Transpires it was Rev Ian Paisley.
What a pity Anne T doesn’t have a sense of humour.
Following Frances’ comment above, I think it was the late George MacLeod who pointed out that while ‘Episcopal’ become ‘pepsi cola’, ‘Presbyterian’ becomes ‘best in prayer.’
Presbyterian is also an anagram of Nearby Priest