In the last few days there have been terrorist attacks in Maiduguri, Ankara, Istanbul, Brussels.
People from all around the world and all traditions stand in solidarity with those places under attack.
Eternal God
hear the cries of your people
as we stand in solidarity
with those under attack.
Protect the innocent,
comfort the needy,
confound the wicked.
Give strength to the rescuers,
determination to peacemakers,
courage to law-enforcers,
strength to the weary.
Amen.
My children just don’t understand it. Nor do they understand why I stay.
I suspect that the children of very many Christians in the UK these days don’t understand and don’t stay. We can see that laid out for us in page after page of diocesan and provincial statistics.
And still we are expected to cheer on Archbishops who propose amendements which would institutionalise treating women as having less authority than men and also Bishops who tell us that banning gay people from leadership roles is good.
In both these cases we are supposed to believe that these actions keep the church together. Meanwhile the children leave bewildered.
Hear what the Spirit says to the children.
What surprises me is that it’s the same term “evangelical” that went from connoting “student-ish” in the 90s to “happy” (reserving outright clappy for those of charismatic designation) to “evangelicals come in Open form too!” now to “traditionalist” in matters of Backwards Beyond Belief(TM).
Now I’m used to the arguments being “our tradition, restated more-so and louder” versus “put the Bible in context” – at least one party talking theologically.
For a fresh thought, is the CoE (in particular, but also the AC in general) a bit preoccupied with not losing any *one* bum-on-its-3-legged-seat? There is a tension in the dynamic that could be resolved well by a large-scale rotation in membership – redefine the denominational lines by issues not history – that leads to a slimy weasely position of “I sort of want to go but don’t have the honesty to get on with it so I’ll sit around being a thorn in the canonical flesh and blame the church for trying to push me out”.
Social evolution is too slow; that is where injustice lies.
I often ask me why I stay, and I’m in my late fifties. In the end, it is because I feel cheated without other people to worship with, and, well, to be a kind of thorn in the canonical flesh for the conservatives!!
The scene is the till in John Lewis Department Store, Glasgow. Household Department. Mr Johnny Loulou: Good morning, Sir. How can I help you today? Self:Â Ah. Well, I wonder if it would be possible to give me a refund on something. Mr Loulou: Yes sir, what is it that you are returning? Self:Â Well,…
HM the Q was at Lambeth Palace visiting the AB of C the other day and had quite a lot to say about the church. I must admit that I found some of it quite surprising and not perhaps terribly well advised. Here at Lambeth Palace we should remind ourselves of the significant position of…
I do like the fact that we have an angel with rainbow wings perched above the High Altar in St Mary’s. Just saying.
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