What is in Kelvin's Head?

Predictions 2022 – How did I do?

31/12/2022

Time to see how I did with my predictions at the start of the year.

Boris Johnson will be replaced with a Prime Minister who is more competent, more right wing and more difficult to beat.

Well, if we skip lightly over the horror of Liz Truss’s premiership, I’m going to claim this one as fulfilled. Left and right designations in politics mean less as the years go on. Prediction fulfilled.

A good year for Michael Gove (who is almost invisible at the moment).

I’m claiming this one too. He’s back in government and less invisible. If you don’t agree, you probably don’t read the Daily Telegraph. Prediction fulfilled.

Church of Scotland General Assembly votes to allow same-sex couples to be married in church. More significantly, almost no-one leaves in a huff.

Exactly what happened. Prediction Fulfilled.

No progress for those seeking marriage equality in the Church of England.

Sadly. Prediction Fulfilled

US Republican Party do well at the November midterms.

Gloriously, prediction unfulfilled.

Midnight Mass will happen at St Mary’s Cathedral, Glasgow – some people will still be wearing masks but it won’t be mandatory.

Yes, I did see a few mask wearers but we were getting back to prepandemic levels of attendence and Midnight Mass was a blast. Prediction fulfilled.

Lots of people discover that cryptocurrency is not the sure thing that they thought. (Losses will disproportionately affect young people).

Oh my, yes. What a mess some people have got themselves into. Prediction fulfilled.

Nicola Sturgeon will be forced to announce a proposed date for an Independence Referendum against her better judgement.

She announed on 23 June 2022 that it would be held on 19 October 2023. (Spoiler alert – it won’t happen on 19 October 2023). Prediction fulfilled.

Lambeth Conference will take place but some people forced to participate virtually due to continued pandemic in developing world. (No new sanctions against pro-gay provinces).

Well it took place but I’m not sure whether or not there were virtual participants. However, there were no new sanctions against pro-gay provinces. Prediction largely fulfilled.

Working from home/hybrid working becomes normalised for big companies. Consequent increase in ransomware demands.

Working from home is certainly still going on and there are many big companies that are planning for it continuing in some form. (Here’s a government report about it). And yes, ransomware has increased. (Here’s a paper on it from the Chartered Institute of IT).

I’m guessing that one or two people might want to argue about whether I got this all as right as I think I did – particularly the first two, but not a bad year overall.

7 responses to “The Bishops’ Instruction on Fasting and Abstinence”

Rosemary Hannah

09/02/2016

I think it is helpful – but in our time, abstaining from meat is easy – not particularly a hardship. So much really good veggie food around.

What also needs said, sadly, is that any practice which makes living a good useful life or showing love to others, or damages your own health is a no no.

But fasting on Christmas Eve? Far too far out of step with today’s cultural norms.

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Eamonn

09/02/2016

The Lenten regulations of the (RC) Archdiocese of Dublin used to include the immortal phrase, ‘custom sanctions the use of an egg’.

More seriously, though, I see little point in imposing rules about the kind of frugal, focussed living that should be characteristic of Christians all the year round.

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1. Rosemary Hannah
  
  09/02/2016
  
  The thing is – ‘we do it all, all the time’ soon becomes ‘we hit a kind of median’. People should rejoice, feast, fast, mourn. We are most helped, I think, when we do these things of different occasions. There is a time to remember we are dust with limited responsibilities and abilities. There is a time to remember the suffering we bring to the world. Another time to remember the utter joy of rebirth. Trying to get them all into one day is beyond our abilities.
  
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Mary Wallace

09/02/2016

Its a very good reminder of what we should or could do, however, perhaps we should concentrate on the doing rather than the not doing, at Holy Trinity Haddington we are trying something different by following the booklet “Love Life Live Lent” – “Be the change”, with a different small task every day in the hope that after 40 days those things will become a habit and our community a better place for it.

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Tod

09/02/2016

I’m a U.S. Episcopalian. And I belong (vestryman, even!) at the second oldest black Episcopal church in the U.S. –I hear from old members and those that were raised in the Caribbean that none of these edicts are followed or even explained anymore-in our church or the wider church. I’m 49 and I lament the same thing.

There is no Benediction service at our parish any longer. It was done away with when they were short of staff in the 90’s–although they had an awful lot of staff. People I guess weren’t attending the evening service so it was excised. I’m sorry but showing up on a Sunday for a 1.5 hour service is not enough. And doing ‘good works’ in the world is not either. Where is the discipline? Where is the deep teaching and appreciation for our faith?

Thanks for posting this, culturally I am very liberal and theologically but liturgically there must be some refusal to stop GUTTING the essence of Christianity. I don’t think most people at our parish understand why the choir genuflects at the St. Elizabeth chapel when they recess out of the church! It’s because the HOST is there. Christ in that little box. Show some respect!

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Thomas Rees

11/02/2016

Ah – Benediction! I used to drive 30 miles to serve as an acolyte on Thursday afternoons, put on a cassock and surplice, and take charge of the thurible. There were rules (rubrics?) about how many times to swing it, but I forget – that was 40 years ago! It was about honouring what Donald Trump calls “the little cracker” and we call the Presence of Our Lord Jesus Christ. And when the Bishop of Los Angeles showed up…

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1. Tod
  
  11/02/2016
  
  Love this story!
  
  Reply