More evidence of apostasy in the Church of England

Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. II Timothy 3:5

As reported by Harriet Sherwood of The Guardian, July 29, 2023:

A Cornish church that banned women from applying to be its new vicar – despite once counting Dawn French, star of the TV comedy The Vicar of Dibley, among its flock – has reversed the decision under new management.

A newly elected governing council at St Fimbarrus church in the picturesque port of Fowey in Cornwall has told parishioners that a “new season” has begun.

In a statement, the parochial church council (PCC) said the previous regime’s decision to advertise for a male priest to fill its four-year-old vacancy was “misguided and unrepresentative” of the parish and the town.

The decision had been taken without consultation and many people in the parish expressed a “strong desire for change”.

The new PCC wanted the church “to be accessible to all … The PCC has voted unanimously to rescind the previous PCC’s resolution requiring male leadership … We are keen to recruit the best candidate to meet the needs of Fowey parish church, regardless of gender.”

Merisa MacInnes, a member of the PCC, said: “We are encouraged that numbers in the congregation have doubled in recent weeks and we are confident that the right person to be vicar will come forward in the coming months.”

In March, the previous PCC defended its decision to ban female applicants for the vacancy, insisting it was “not sexist”.

It said: “As an evangelical church we look to the Bible for all matters of faith. The Bible is very clear on equality – all are equal …. There is, however, debate over the roles women play within the church.”

It understood that its desire for a male priest-in-charge “can be difficult to understand looking from the outside into the church, but [we] would robustly defend that this position is not sexist, is widely established in the worldwide church, and accommodates all views in the membership of our church without exclusion”.

Andy Virr, the previous chair of the PCC and a local Conservative councillor, and two other PCC members stood down in May amid objections to the stance.

Under exemptions from the Equality Act, the Church of England permits local churches to reject female lead priests and the oversight of a female bishop.

Martine Oborne, the chair of Women and the Church (Watch), an organisation that campaigns for equality in the C of E, and a vicar in west London, said the Fowey decision was good news.

She added: “I think it’s time for church members to assert themselves and not defer to clergy who seek to limit women’s roles in the church.”

Fowey was not unique, she said. Some churches had taken decisions to reject female priests without proper consultation or transparency.

The fight for equality was not over despite 30 years having passed since women were allowed to become priests in the C of E.

“I think personally it’s time for the C of E to find a generous way to bring the arrangements that allow churches to go on limiting or not recognising women’s ministries to an end,” she said.

Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.
For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:
And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.
And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;
Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,
Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:
Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them. Romans 1:24-32

As reported by Alexandra Topping in The Guardian, August 30, 2023 (links in original):

Most Church of England priests want the C of E to allow same-sex weddings and to drop its opposition to premarital and gay sex, according to a survey.

In a major shift in attitudes over the past decade, a survey of priests in England conducted by the Times found that more than half supported a change in law to allow clergy to conduct the marriage of gay couples, with 53.4% in favour compared with 36.5% against.

The last time Anglican priests in England were asked, in 2014, shortly after the legalisation of same-sex civil marriage, 51% said same-sex marriage was “wrong”, compared with 39% who approved.

Last year a row erupted at the first Lambeth conference (a meeting of Anglican bishops from around the world) in 14 years, with the archbishop of Canterbury faced sharp criticism for affirming a 1998 declaration that gay sex was a sin.

But the new poll found that 64.5% of priests in England backed an end to the teaching that “homosexual practice is incompatible with scripture”. It also found that 27.3% of priests supported an end to any celibacy requirement for gay people, while 37.2% said they were willing to accept sex between gay people in “committed” relationships such as civil partnerships or marriages, and around a third (29.7%) said the teaching should not change.

Andrew Foreshew-Cain, founder of the Campaign for Equal Marriage in the Church of England, said the survey showed there was “no excuse for further delay and equivocation” in welcoming gay people into the church.

“The clergy of the Church of England are kinder, more generous, and more welcoming towards LGBTI people than the current official position allows,” he said. “The C of E, and in particular our bishops, needs to stop wringing its hands over gay people and move forward towards blessings and, in time, to celebrating same-sex marriages in our parishes.”

The survey results were encouraging, said Robbie de Santos, director of communications at Stonewall. “We hope that church leaders reflect on these findings,” he said. “Too often, LGBTQ+ people of faith face discrimination and prejudice simply for being themselves.”

The survey also found that three-quarters of respondents thought Britain could no longer be described as a Christian country. Almost two-thirds (64.2%) said Britain could be called Christian “but only historically, not currently”.

In the 2021 census of England and Wales for the first time fewer than half of the population described themselves as Christian.

The Times poll found that two-thirds of priests in England thought attempts to stop the drop in church attendance would fail, with only 10.1% thinking it would be halted, and 10.5% believing that congregations would grow again. Average attendance for Church of England Sunday services in 2021 was 509,000, down from 1.2m in 1986.

Archbishop of York whines about "oppressively patriarchal" Lord's Prayer

This provides more evidence that you can't be a satirist anymore--assuming that this item wasn't meant as satire. As reported by Harriet Sherwood in The Guardian, July 7, 2023 (links in original):

The archbishop of York has suggested that opening words of the Lord’s Prayer, recited by Christians all over the world for 2,000 years, may be “problematic” because of their patriarchal association.

In his opening address to a meeting of the Church of England’s ruling body, the General Synod, Stephen Cottrell dwelt on the words “Our Father”, the start of the prayer based on Matthew 6:9–13 and Luke 11:2–4 in the New Testament.

“I know the word ‘father’ is problematic for those whose experience of earthly fathers has been destructive and abusive, and for all of us who have laboured rather too much from an oppressively patriarchal grip on life,” he said.

His comment – a brief aside in a speech that focused on the need for unity – will divide members of the C of E, a body whose differences on issues of sexuality, identity and equality have been highly visible for years.

After Cottrell’s speech, Canon Dr Chris Sugden, chair of the conservative Anglican Mainstream group, pointed out that in the Bible Jesus urged people to pray to “our father”.

He said: “Is the archbishop of York saying Jesus was wrong, or that Jesus was not pastorally aware? It seems to be emblematic of the approach of some church leaders to take their cues from culture rather than scripture.”

Rev Christina Rees, who campaigned for female bishops, said Cottrell had “put his finger on an issue that’s a really live issue for Christians and has been for many years”.

She added: “The big question is, do we really believe that God believes that male human beings bear his image more fully and accurately than women? The answer is absolutely not.”

In February, the C of E said it would consider whether to stop referring to God as “he”, after priests asked to be allowed to use gender-neutral terms instead.

It agreed to launch a commission on gendered language, saying “Christians have recognised since ancient times that God is neither male nor female, yet the variety of ways of addressing and describing God found in scripture has not always been reflected in our worship”.

As reported in the Irish Times, February 8, 2023:

The Church of England is considering alternatives to referring to God as “he” after priests asked to be allowed to use gender-neutral terms instead.

The church said it would start a project in the spring to decide whether to propose changes or not.

Any potential alterations, which would mark a departure from traditional Jewish and Christian teachings dating back millennia, would have to be approved by synod, the church’s decision-making body.

Rev Dr Michael Ipgrave, Bishop of Lichfield and vice-chair of the liturgical commission responsible for the matter, said the church had been “exploring the use of gendered language in relation to God for several years”.

Church of Ireland marks 30 years of women priests

As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths. Isaiah 3:12

Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church. I Corinthians 14:34-35

But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. I Timothy 2:12

As reported by Patsy McGarry of the Irish Times, November 30, 2020:

The 30th anniversary of the ordination of women to the priesthood in the Church of Ireland will be marked at its General Synod this week.

The General Synod was originally to have taken place at Croke Park last May but was postponed due to the pandemic. It will now happen online, on December 1st and 2nd.

The ordination of women priests and bishops was approved by General Synod in May 1990 and in the following month two deacons – Rev Irene Templeton and Rev Kathleen Young – became the first female priests in Ireland following their ordination at St Anne’s Cathedral in Belfast by then Bishop of Connor Samuel Poyntz.

Though attended by several hundred people, television cameras were excluded from the actual ceremony on June 24th, 1990. However, Bishop Poyntz’s words of ordination were relayed outside on loudspeakers.

The Church of Ireland’s first woman deacon, Rev Katharine Poulton, was ordained to that role three years previously in June 1987. In 2010 she was the first woman Dean of Ossory and installed that Easter at St Canice’s Cathedral, Kilkenny.

The Church of Ireland’s first woman bishop, Most Rev Pat Storey, was consecrated as Bishop of Meath and Kildare on November 30th, 2013.

Currently about one in five of the Church of Ireland’s 500 serving clergy are women.

This week’s General Synod will be the first presided over by new Primate of All Ireland and Archbishop of Armagh John McDowell, who assumed office last April. His predecessor Archbishop Richard Clarke retired last February.

Dr McDowell will deliver his first General Synod Presidential address on Wednesday morning.

All relevant reports have already been made available online to General Synod attendees. The Representative Church Body, the central trustee body of the church, has reported that its total funds in 2019 increased by 13 per cent, from €179.3 million to € 203 million.

Women in places of leadership in a church is not only a reliable indicator of the extent to which apostasy has already taken place, but of future apostasy and decline. According to Revd Dr William M. Marshall in The Oxford Companion to British History:

Today with two archbishoprics and twelve dioceses, it has a total membership (1990) of 437,000 (340,000 in the North and 97,000 in the Republic).

As reported by the Church of Ireland itself (current as of the time of this post):

The Church of Ireland has around 375,400 members – 249,000 in Northern Ireland and 126,400 in the Republic of Ireland.

The Church of Ireland has lost almost 62,000 members in the 30 years since it began ordaining women to the priesthood. I have no explanation for the increase in the Republic of Ireland; maybe C of I members have been migrating from north to south.

40 years ago: Queen Elizabeth II visits Pope John Paul II

Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith... I Timothy 4:1a

On October 16, 1555, erstwhile Church of England Bishops Hugh Latimer and Nicholas Ridley became two of the most Protestant martyrs of the Reformation in England when they were burned at the stake in Oxford, England as heretics for refusing to accept Roman Catholic doctrine, particularly transubstantiation. As the flames rose around them, Mr. Latimer reportedly said, "Be of good comfort, Master Ridley, and play the man; we shall this day light such a candle by God’s grace in England as shall never be put out." That candle has been put out, evidence of which was an event that occurred the day after the 425th anniversary of the martyrdom of Messrs. Latimer and Ridley.

On October 17, 1980, another step was taken along the road to uniting all denominations under the banner of a false Christianity, as Queen Elizabeth II became the first British monarch to make a state visit to the Vatican, where she and Prince Philip were received by Pope John Paul II. As reported by BBC News, October 17, 1980:

The Queen has made history after becoming the first British monarch to make a state visit to the Vatican.

Pope welcomed Her Majesty and the Duke of Edinburgh, for what was described as a "warm and relaxed" encounter.

The Queen, dressed in a long black taffeta gown in line with Vatican protocol, arrived with the Duke at the Vatican in the rain at 1100 local time and took the lift up to the second floor.

Trumpets sounded and the royal procession moved slowly along the corridor into the Clementine Hall.

The Queen and the Duke were welcomed by John Paul II at the door of his private library.

The Queen then opened her speech with assurances of sincere friendship and good will.

She invited the Pope to her country in two years' time, but made clear this would not be a state visit but one "to the Roman Catholic community in Great Britain where some four million of my people are members of the Roman Catholic Church.

"We support the growing movement of unity between the Christian Churches throughout the world and we pray that your Holiness's visit to Britain may enable us all to see more clearly those truths which both unite and divide us in a new and constructive light."

In reply the Pope welcomed the opportunity of the forthcoming pastoral visit to the UK.

He said: "I render homage to the Christian history of your people, as well as to their cultural achievements.

"The ideals of freedom and democracy, anchored in your past remain challenges for every generation of upright citizens in your land."

They then held private talks and the Pope presented the Queen with a facsimile of the manuscript of Dante's Divine Comedy with its illustration of the Order of the Garter in the time of Edward IV.

In return she offered a book about Windsor Castle by St John Hope and two signed photographs.

After the talks, the Queen and Prince Philip walked out into the Clementine Hall and they went on to meet the Pope's Secretary of State, Cardinal Casaroli, at the home of the British Minister to the Holy See, Mark Heath.

As reported by BBC News:

The Queen's visit was seen as a big step towards forging relations with the Church Of England and the Roman Catholics.

In 1982 John Paul II was welcomed by Her Majesty two years later at Buckingham Palace during a historic visit to Great Britain.

The Queen visited the Vatican again in 2000 to mark the 20th anniversary of their first meeting.

The Pope reinforced their close ties over the years when he said: "Relations between the United Kingdom and the Holy See have not always been untroubled; long years of common inheritance were followed by the sad years of division.

"But in recent years there has emerged between us a cordiality more in keeping with the harmony of earlier times and more genuinely expressive of our common spiritual roots."

The Pope died at 2137 (1937 GMT) on Saturday 2 April 2005 after he failed to recover from a throat operation.

70 years ago: Church of England modernists deny the virgin birth of Christ

But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. II Peter 2:1

On August 28, 1950, the Modern Churchmen's Union challenged the assertion of Archbishop of Canterbury Geoffrey Fisher that the virgin birth of Jesus Christ was "a fact of history." The Modern Churchmen's Union, founded in 1898 as the Churchmen's Union for the Advancement of Liberal Religious Thought, is now known as Modern Church, denying every scriptural truth and supporting every worthless, anti-Christian cause you can imagine. This organization and everyone in it should have been given the left boot of disfellowship from the beginning.

It comes as no surprise to this blogger that the Modern Churchmen's Union, as it was then known, denied the virgin birth of the Lord Jesus Christ, but it is surprising that as late as 1950 there was an Archbishop of Canterbury who believed the biblical account.

The virgin birth of the Lord Jesus Christ is an essential Christian doctrine. I haven't the inclination to go into detail on the subject; I recommend Seven Reasons Why I Believe in the Virgin Birth of Christ by Ian Paisley, available for free download.

Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. Isaiah 7:14

BBC Radio broadcasts Muslim prayers for the first time

I wonder how temporary this will prove to be; as reported by Benedict Spence of Arab News, April 8, 2020:

LONDON: Muslims in the UK can now listen to Friday prayers broadcast on BBC radio for the first time.

Different imams lead the 5:50 a.m. broadcasts every week on 14 BBC local radio stations, reciting verses from the Qur’an or quotes from Prophet Muhammad, before delivering sermons and leading listeners in prayer.

The stations’ audiences are in parts of Britain with large Muslim communities — Leeds, Sheffield, Lancashire, Manchester, the West Midlands, Leicester, Stoke, Derby, Nottingham, Coventry and Warwickshire, the Three Counties, Merseyside, Berkshire and London.

“Local radio is all about connecting communities, and we hope these weekly reflections will go some way to helping Muslims feel a sense of community while they are isolating,” said Chris Burns, the head of BBC Local Radio.

Places of worship throughout Britain have been closed since March 23 in one of the measures introduced to curb the spread of the coronavirus. The BBC already broadcasts Christian services on Sundays on 39 of its local and national stations.

The Friday prayer broadcasts, which began last Friday, will continue for as long as Muslims are unable to attend their local mosques. There are also plans for regular broadcasts for other religious minorities, such as the Hindu and Jewish communities, the BBC said.

In a TV broadcast to the British people on Sunday, Queen Elizabeth praised people of “all faiths” for their combined efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Former U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown calls for "One World Government"

It comes as no surprise to this blogger to see politicians and others who support the agenda of Antichrist using the Covid-19 situation as an opportunity to advance their plans; as longtime U.S. Democratic Party politician Rahm Emmanuel famously said in 2008, "Never let a good crisis go to waste." More evidence for the truth of biblical end-time prophecy, and the increasing closeness of the return of the Lord Jesus Christ, as reported by Larry Elliott of the British newspaper The Guardian, March 26, 2020 (links in original):

Gordon Brown has urged world leaders to create a temporary form of global government to tackle the twin medical and economic crises caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The former Labour prime minister, who was at the centre of the international efforts to tackle the impact of the near-meltdown of the banks in 2008, said there was a need for a taskforce involving world leaders, health experts and the heads of the international organisations that would have executive powers to coordinate the response.

A virtual meeting of the G20 group of developed and developing countries, chaired by Saudi Arabia, will be held on Thursday, but Brown said it would have been preferable to have also included the UN security council.

“This is not something that can be dealt with in one country,” he said. “There has to be a coordinated global response.”

Brown said the current crisis was different to the one he was involved in. “That was an economic problem that had economic causes and had an economic solution.

“This is first and foremost a medical emergency and there has to be joint action to deal with that. But the more you intervene to deal with the medical emergency, the more you put economies at risk.”

During the financial crisis, Brown persuaded other global leaders of the need to bail out the banks and then hosted a meeting of the G20 in London, which came up with a $1.1tn rescue package.

Despite Donald Trump’s “America first” policy, he said it was still possible to get support for an emergency body with executive powers.

Brown said his proposed global taskforce would fight the crisis on two fronts. There would need to be a coordinated effort to find a vaccine, and to organise production, purchasing and prevent profiteering.

Many countries have announced economic packages in the past two weeks but Brown said a taskforce could: make sure the efforts of central banks were coordinated; take steps to prevent the record flight of capital from emerging market economies; and agree a joint approach to the use of government spending to boost growth.

Brown said there had been resistance in 2008 to using the G20 as a vehicle for tackling the financial crisis, but that it should be clear to world leaders that there was no possibility of a go-it-alone approach working.

“We need some sort of working executive,” Brown said. “If I were doing it again, I would make the G20 a broader organisation because in the current circumstances you need to listen to the countries that are most affected, the countries that are making a difference and countries where there is the potential for a massive number of people to be affected - such as those in Africa.”

The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund needed an increase in their financial firepower to cope with the impact of the crisis on low- and middle-income countries, he said.

50 years ago: The death of Bertrand Russell

On February 2, 1970, British philosopher Bertrand Russell died of influenza at the age of 97. Professor Russell was one of the founders of analytic philosophy, and was regarded as one of the 20th century's foremost logicians. His most famous book, written with Alfred North Whitehead, was the three-volume Principia Mathematica (1910-1913). Prof. Russell was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1950 "in recognition of his varied and significant writings in which he champions humanitarian ideals and freedom of thought." Prof. Russell was known for campaigning against nuclear arms, but it was less well-known that for several years in the late 1940s he advocated a pre-emptive nuclear strike by the U.S.A. against the U.S.S.R.

On the subject of religion, Prof. Russell said, in 1947: "Therefore, in regard to the Olympic gods, speaking to a purely philosophical audience, I would say that I am an Agnostic. But speaking popularly, I think that all of us would say in regard to those gods that we were Atheists. In regard to the Christian God, I should, I think, take exactly the same line." He was a member of the Advisory Council of the British Humanist Association and President of Cardiff Humanists until his death.

Rabi Maharaj, in his autobiography Death of a Guru (1977, p. 129) offered the following comment on one of Prof. Russell’s best-known books: "Why I am Not a Christian had turned out to be a disappointment...Russell’s arguments were weak and contrived, and the more I read of why he had not become a Christian, the more convinced I became that I must become one--the evidence demanded it." Malcolm Muggeridge said of Prof. Russell: "He had no heart at all." Paul Johnson included a chapter on Prof. Russell in his book Intellectuals (1988), which I recommend.

Former chaplain to Queen Elizabeth II converts to Roman Catholicism

I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:
Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. Galatians 1:6-7

Yet another one, as reported by Nick Hallett of the Catholic Herald, December 17, 2019:

An outspoken former chaplain to the Queen is to convert to Catholicism on the Fourth Sunday of Advent this year.

Gavin Ashenden resigned his chaplaincy in 2017 after criticising a service at St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral in Glasgow which included a reading from the Koran denying Christ’s divinity. He left the Church of England that same year to become a bishop in the Christian Episcopal Church, a breakaway group of traditionalist Anglicans.

Writing in a forthcoming edition of the Catholic Herald, Ashenden said the Church of England had capitulated “to the increasingly intense and non-negotiable demands of a secular culture.”

“I watched as Anglicanism suffered a collapse of inner integrity as it swallowed wholesale secular society’s descent into a post-Christian culture,” he added.

The former chaplain said he was helped in his conversion by taking up the Rosary and by looking into Eucharistic miracles. “The fact that [the miracles] were unknown amongst those who celebrated the Anglican version of the Eucharist, carries obvious implications,” he wrote.

After failing to find a way to unite orthodox Anglicans into one ecclesial grouping, Ashenden also came to appreciate the Magisterium of the Catholic Church: “I came to realise (too long after both Newman and Chesterton had already explained why) that only the Catholic Church, with the weight of the Magisterium, had the ecclesial integrity, theological maturity and spiritual potency to defend the Faith, renew society and save souls in the fullness of faith.”

Ashenden will be received into the Church by Bishop Mark Davies at Shrewsbury Cathedral. Bishop Davies told the Church Militant website it was “very humbling to be able to receive a bishop of the Anglican tradition into Full Communion in the year of the canonization of Saint John Henry Newman.”

“It has been a special joy to accompany Gavin Ashenden in the final steps of a long journey to be at home in the Catholic Church,” Bishop Davies added.

“I am conscious of the witness which Ashenden has given in the public square to the historic faith and values on which our society has been built. I pray that this witness will continue to be an encouragement to many.”

The Diocese of Shrewsbury said that Ashenden’s Anglican orders will be suspended upon his reception into the Church and he will become a lay Catholic theologian.

See also my posts:

Five Church of England bishops decide to join the Roman Catholic Church (December 6, 2010)

Calgary parish votes to leave the Anglican Church of Canada and join the Roman Catholic Church (December 6, 2010)

More Canadian Anglicans break away to join the Roman Catholic Church (May 16, 2012)

Christian charities in Britain criticize "millionaire's Advent calendar"

As reported by Mason Boycott-Owen in the London Daily Telegraph, November 25, 2019 (link in original):

Christian groups have spoken out against ‘millionaire advent calendars’ which they argue undermine the Christmas message.

Two advent calendars from well-known jewelers will set you back as much as £100,000.

An advent calendar from Beaverbrooks features a platinum diamond ring worth £26,000 behind one of its doors, while Tiffany’s offering has trinkets worth up to £13,000 in its famous blue boxes.

Some Christian charities suggested that the vast sums of money could be better spent on helping those in need, with some charities seeing their donations fall in recent years.

Since 2016, the individual donations to Christian Aid has fallen by almost a quarter from £62.6 million to £49.7 million last year.

Deborah Auty from Christian Aid said: “To put the £100,000 advent calendars in perspective, it’s worth remembering that it takes a very small amount to offer hope to communities living in dire conditions globally.

“For example, the same amount of money could provide safe shelter for over 500 families living in camps in Afghanistan throughout the forthcoming harsh winter.”

Many churches in the UK remain in disrepair as the Christmas season approaches after last year saw a 75% increase in Heritage Crime attacks.

A spokesperson for the National Churches Trust said: “"A gift of £100,000 would be a dream come true for many churches needing urgent repairs as many major building projects cost at least £200,000.

“Each year we receive many more applications than we are able to fund.

“With £100,000 we award 20 small grants of £5,000 to help fund urgent maintenance work to ensure that churches are windproof and watertight and able to serve their local communities at Christmas and throughout the winter season."

And now for something completely different: Church of England vicar bars yoga from his church

At least one clergyman in the Church of England is able to recognize that yoga is a Hindu practice, and has no place in an ostensibly Christian church. As reported by the London Daily Telegraph, November 6, 2019:

A yoga teacher has been barred from using a church hall for her classes after a clergyman claimed the practice was not "compatible" with Christianity.

Atsuko Kato, 54, has run sessions at a range of venues for 25 years, building up a client base across Devon.

But when she looked for new venues to host classes in Barnstaple she was rejected from hiring a church hall in the village of Pilton due to religious reasons.

Reverend Nigel Dilkes said St Mary's Church could not accommodate Ms Kato because the activity was not "compatible with the Christian faith".

Yoga originated in northern India and has connections to both Hinduism and Buddhism. Ms Kato said the reverend's stance was "outdated", and pointed out that a female vicar was among her students.

She said: "They asked me what I wanted to hire it for and I said to teach a yoga class.

"They said they can not tolerate it if it was for yoga and claimed yoga was not suitable for a church.

"They said they weren't allowed to host yoga classes because they were a church and it was not compatible with Christian beliefs. No other explanation, that was it.

"In one of my classes I have a female vicar and they don't seem to have concerns, so I struggle to understand what the problem is.

"I was very surprised by this attitude, yoga is so mainstream now."

Reverend Dilkes said the church hall was solely to be used for activities deemed compatible with the Christian faith, and encouraged pilates to be practiced as an alternative.

He said: "The test of this is whether a belief or world view underpinning the activity acknowledges that there is only one God and that the New Testament person of Jesus Christ is God himself.

"Yoga is one of several activities that claims to confer physical benefits for flexibility and balance but also claims a spiritual connection which doesn't stand this test.

"So we say why not enjoy, for example, pilates instead. We would welcome pilates classes to our church hall."

It's not surprising that a female "vicar" would have no concerns about a Hindu practice. I don't know about pilates, but I've noticed a difference of opinion as to whether it includes New Age teaching. For more information, search Lighthouse Trails Research Project and Kjos Ministries, as well as the book Yoga & the Body of Christ by Dave Hunt (2006).

Reports of witchcraft child abuse in England have risen by one-third in the last two years

As you read the following article, you must, of course keep repeating the mantra, "Diversity is strength." As reported by Gabriella Swerling of the London Daily Telegraph, November 14, 2019:

Witchcraft child abuse cases have risen by a third in two years, as experts blame “cultural sensitivity” and “political correctness” as barriers to protecting children.

Abuse of children based on faith or belief – which includes witchcraft, spirit possession and black magic – increased from 1,460 to 1,950 cases between 2016/17 and 2018/19.

This marks an increase of 34 per cent, with councils dealing with the equivalent of 38 such cases a week.

The figures, published today by the Local Government Association (LGA) also show that the number of children identified by councils through a social work assessment as either having or being at risk of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) has reached a record high – with 1,000 such cases in 2018/19, up 6 per cent on the 940 cases in the previous year.

This comes after a trial at the Old Bailey earlier this year which saw a woman who mutilated her three-year-old daughter become the first person in the UK to be found guilty of FGM.

Responding to the figures, Nimco Ali OBE, co-founder and CEO of The Five Foundation, the global partnership to end FGM said: “this is so depressing”.

She added that while there is increasing awareness in reporting the issue, there is also a cultural sensitivity, political correctness and fear of being accused of racism when it comes to authorities confronting the issues of witchcraft and FGM which occur predominantly among West African communites which have increasingly high birth rates.

“I’m so angered by these figures,” she said. “For so long the political power that black people have has been dismissed… People are scared to tackle FGM and witchcraft as they’re scared of being accused of racism - but it’s racist to ignore it.

“It’s more racist to look away… It really hurts that we still have to tell people that black kids need protecting.”

The National FGM Centre, a joint initiative between the LGA and Barnardo’s, says both sets of figures are hugely worrying, of significant national concern and probably don’t reflect the true prevalence of this “hidden” crime.

The LGA said that council social workers have become better at identifying cases, and that the work of the National FGM Centre – which provides services for children and their families affected by FGM and abuse linked to faith or belief - is vital.

Lisa Oakley, Chair of the National Working Group for child abuse linked to faith or belief/ Associate Professor University of Chester, said that the LGA figures were “concerning” and added that they may be “under-estimations”.

“The figures do demonstrate the need for more effective education, awareness, prevention, intervention and response,” she said.

“To develop these in the area of child abuse linked to faith and belief requires significant financial investment , which is not currently in place.”

The mother of a three-year-old girl has become the first person to be convicted of FGM in the UK, following a failed bid to "shut up" her accusers with witchcraft.

The Ugandan woman, 37, and her Ghanaian partner, 43, both from Walthamstow, east London, were accused of cutting their daughter over the 2017 summer bank holiday.

Forty limes and other fruit were found with pieces of paper with names written on them stuffed inside, including those of police officers and a social worker involved in the investigation.

The spells and curses intended to deter police and social workers from investigating were found at the Ugandan woman's home, the trial heard. Police also found two cow tongues bound in wire with nails and a small blunt knife embedded in them when searching the Ugandan woman’s home.

There was also a jar with a picture of a social worker in pepper found hidden behind the toilet in the bathroom.

Leethen Bartholomew, Head of the National FGM Centre, said: “There are many reasons why a child might be accused of witchcraft or that they are possessed by an evil spirit. When people are experiencing "misfortunes" such as poverty, ill physical health or have mental health needs a child could be blamed for this.

“There are a number of factors as to why local authorities are discovering more cases. The National FGM Centre is providing more training for Local Authorities and communities in England which has lead to an increased awareness around the issue, enabling professionals and communities to better identify cases.”

The LGA said the next government needs to ensure councils have the funding needed to continue to take effective action to keep children safe from harm and abuse.

London's Southwark Cathedral hosts fashion show featuring scantily-clad models

Her priests have violated my law, and have profaned mine holy things: they have put no difference between the holy and profane, neither have they shewed difference between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from my sabbaths, and I am profaned among them...
...And they shall teach my people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean. Ezekiel 22:26, 44:23

If church leaders want their buildings to be filled, I suggest preaching the true gospel of Jesus Christ; if they know what the gospel is. As reported by Jack Hardy and Gabriella Swerling of the London Daily Telegraph, September 17, 2019 (links in original):

Southwark Cathedral has been accused of promoting the “antithesis of the Christian gospel” by allowing its nave to be used as a catwalk to sell clothes.

British designer Julien MacDonald brought his collection to the place of worship on Monday night as part of London Fashion Week, turning the aisle into a parade of scantily dressed models.

It was described by the 48-year-old British designer as a “celebration of women” and attracted celebrity guests including the actor Ed Westwick and socialite Lady Victoria Hervey.

However, a leading Anglican clergyman has questioned whether the cathedral should be “giving a platform” to an event which promotes “a narcissistic self-referential display for the very rich”.

High-profile catwalk shows are big money-spinners for fashion houses which build the reputation of designers and cement their links with wealthy and influential customers.

Last night, Rev Dr Gavin Ashenden, the former chaplain to the Queen, urged the diocese “think twice” about whether its holy buildings were being used in a manner fitting for a faith that renounces materialism.

The grade-listed south London church, which has stood since the 12th century, is available for hire for “special events”, from formal dinners to drama and musical productions.

The cathedral has charged money for the use of its buildings since 2000, using the money to help fund the upkeep of the building and costs of worship, as well as ensuring it stays open to the public free of charge.

It comes at a time when church leaders across the country are attempting to combat shrinking congregations with increasingly inventive methods to stump up cash.

Earlier this year, Norwich Cathedral installed a 55-ft helter skelter, available for just £2 a ride, while Rochester Cathedral opened a crazy golf course in its 11th-century building.

Dr Ashenden, who was ordained at Southwark Cathedral, told The Daily Telegraph: “Southwark Cathedral has made its premises available for fashion in the past and one of the things they try and do is build a bridge between secular society and the Christian church and that's no bad thing.

“The problem comes comes when the ethical content of what they are trying to host is in direct contradiction to Christian values. It's like what happened with Rochester and Norwich - it's the Disneyfication of entertainment.

“The cathedral should ask itself to see if the complaints about the fashion industry - as promoting a narcissistic self referential display for the very rich - is indeed conducive with the values of the Christian gospel.

“I think the fashion industry is the antithesis of the Christian gospel. It's about the exposure of the poverty of our souls and that’s about hiding the state of the soul in an excess of glamour.

“A cathedral ought to think twice before it provides a platform to a cultural venture like this.”

London Fashion Week has previously been embroiled in controversy over the use of churches by some of the shows on its schedule.

In 2017, Turkish designer Dilara Findikoglu prompted outrage by dressing models in satanic costumes for their appearance at an event in St Andrew Holborn church in central London.

Officials at Westminster Abbey were similarly accused of selling their soul “for a pair of trousers” after allowing a Gucci show to take place in 2016.

The British Fashion Council, which organises London Fashion Week, said it did not allocate venues to designers to stage their shows, apart from the main hub on the Strand.

A spokesman for Southwark Cathedral said: “Southwark Cathedral has over many years been used for a variety of different events, including those related to the fashion industry. We were pleased to be invited to work with the British designer Julien MacDonald as part of this year’s London Fashion Week.

“His show brought many people into the Cathedral who might not otherwise have come, and many recognised it as a beautiful and special place. The show was delivered in a professional, respectful and energetic way.

“Fashion and its impact on the environment, how we use clothes as part of daily life and what clothing is appropriate are important issues for Christians and others to engage with as aspects of modern living.”

Representatives of Julien MacDonald did not respond to requests for comment.

Dr. Ashenden is unbiblical in his attempt to "build a bridge between society and the Christian church" and in saying that "that's no bad thing." On the contrary, God's instruction to His people is to build walls of separation, as stated by the apostle Paul:

Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. II Corinthians 6:17

Roman Catholic church in Northern Ireland removes memorial tribute to pedophile priest after protest

As reported by David O'Dornan of the Belfast Telegraph, August 30, 2019:

The parish priest for a Co Down Catholic Church which recognised the anniversary of paedophile priest Brendan Smyth has said he has no idea how the tribute found its way into a memorial book and pledged it would be removed immediately.

The daily listings at Our Lady of the Assumption Church in Newcastle included 'Fr Brendan Smyth 1997' for August 22 - the same date the evil cleric died in prison.

When the Belfast Telegraph alerted Fr Jim Crudden yesterday, he said: "I don't know how that's got into there so I'll just check that now and take it out."

He said that after removing it, he would look into how it found its way there.

He added: "I just didn't see that in there, I don't check that book. That shouldn't have happened."

Campaigner Jon McCourt from Survivors North West called it a "knife in the heart" for victims of Smyth and other abusers.

He said: "I think it's disgusting. I mean, good God, how insensitive do they have to get? It's the best way I can put it, insensitive is like a very mild word.

"He (Smyth) should have been defrocked, his title should have been taken away from him. They actual buried him with 'Father' on his gravestone and they covered it with concrete to make sure nobody could get at it.

"That guy should have been literally written out altogether and to think that they are memorialising him in that way in the Church - look, okay, lost souls deserve prayers, but I think there's a special exemption that should be given to people like Brendan Smyth.

"I knew some of his victims and the lives that have been destroyed as a result of what he was involved in. They'll never be repaired. This is not a slap in the face, this is a punch in the mouth and a knife in the heart of surviving victims and survivors...

...Smyth, a serial child abuser, is widely viewed as one of the most heinous examples of a paedophile priest.

The infamous image of him leering into a camera lens as he prepared to face justice for his crimes compounded his notoriety and public contempt for his evil deeds.

Belfast-born Smyth was eventually convicted of dozens of offences against children over a 40-year period, and the scandal of his sickening acts rocked the Catholic Church across the island of Ireland.

Despite allegations being previously investigated by Church officials, including former Irish primate Sean Brady, as far back as 1975, it was almost 20 years before he was jailed.

Cardinal Brady found himself under pressure in 2010 after confirming he was at meetings when two alleged victims of a paedophile priest signed an oath of silence. Instead of taking action against Smyth, a member of the Norbertine order, the Church moved him between parishes, dioceses and even countries where he preyed on victims who were as young as eight.

As a priest in the Falls Road area of Belfast, he targeted four children from the same family. It was their courage in reporting the abuse to the police that led to his first conviction.

In 1991 he was arrested and released on bail, before spending the next three years out of the reach of police in Northern Ireland by hiding out at his order's Kilnacrott Abbey in Co Cavan in the Republic.

His case led to the collapse of the Republic's Labour/Fianna Fail coalition government when it emerged there had been serious delays in his extradition to Northern Ireland in 1994.

When the priest finally appeared before a Belfast court, he was convicted of 43 charges of sexually assaulting children in Northern Ireland and was sentenced to four years in prison.

He was later found guilty of another 26 charges and given a three-year sentence to run concurrently. Upon his release from prison, Smyth was immediately arrested and extradited to the Republic.

In 1997, the convicted paedophile again appeared before a judge - this time in Dublin - where he admitted to 74 charges of child sexual abuse over a 35-year period. He had assaulted children in a hotel, a cinema, a convent and other venues across nine different counties.

Smyth - born John Gerard before changing his name to Brendan - died of a heart attack in prison in August 1997, just a month into his 12-year prison sentence.

Britain's largest funeral provider reports 80% decline in religious funerals since 2011

There is no fear of God before their eyes. Romans 3:18

The figures quoted in the following article don't surprise me, but this blogger is surprised by the fact that the decline has occurred in such a short time; eight years is not a long time. The collapse of societies once nominally regarded as Christian is accelerating; as reported by Gabriella Swerling of the London Daily Telegraph, August 29, 2019 (link in original):

An all-black dress code, pallbearers marching in unison, and a steady stream of tears are not often associated with golf courses, zoos and Chinese takeaways.

Yet according to the most extensive ever report on UK funeral trends which, the religious funeral is dying a death.

Instead of services in crematoriums, churches and cemeteries, Britons are instead opting for increasingly quirky ways to mourn their loved ones.

The Co-op, the UK’s largest national funeral provider which conducts more than 100,000 every year, has today published a report revealing that since 2011 there has been a 80 per cent decline in religious funerals.

Eight-years-ago 67 per cent of people requested traditional religious services and just 12 per cent were non-religious. However by 2018, just 13 per cent wanted a religious funeral.

Undertakers have reported a “staggering shift” towards unique, secular ceremonies. Among the more niche requests, there have been milk floats, canal boats, converted steam trains and quad bikes being turned into hearses.

The location of funerals has also provided opportunities for the more imaginative mourners. Zoos, buses, a cattle auction house, next to the 18th hole on a golf course - and even a McDonald’s Drive Thru - have hosted processions for the deceased. A total of 77 per cent of Co-op’s employees have had requests for funerals to be held outside of traditional religious settings.

Among the 4,000 people surveyed for the report, researchers have found that tributes to loved ones have even extended to creative ways of immortalising or memorialising their ashes; some mourners opt to place them inside the furnace of a steam train, create a tattoo or scatter them during a skydive, while others choose to keep them inside a rucksack so they can take them everywhere they go.

Funeral directors also reported that 22 per cent of people have already decided what they want inside their coffins. Among the more unusual requests are Chinese takeaways, a false leg, a moble phone, a Wizard of Oz costume, a broomstick and an Argos catalogue.

The report, entitled Burying Traditions: The Changing Face of UK Funerals, revealed that experts noted that this “shift” towards more unique funerals was because “people feel more able to act on their loved ones’ personal wishes than they would have previously” as the nation becomes increasingly secular.

In July The Telegraph reported that atheism was on the rise in the UK as Christianity is suffering a “dramatic decline”.

According to the National Centre for Social Research, the number of people who define themselves as "confident atheists", rose from 10 per cent in 1998 to 18 per cent in 2008 and hit its record high of 26 per cent in 2018.

Teddy Prout, director of community services at the charity, Humanists UK, said that the trend for bespoke, personalised funerals “is reflective of the huge societal shift of more people identifying as non-religious than ever before and with that, perhaps, comes more open attitudes towards death”.

In the last five years, the report found that requests for traditional pallbearers to carry coffins has dropped from 91 per cent in 2014 to 20 per cent in 2019. Furthermore, requests to arrange obituaries have declined by over a third (37%) and asks for traditional limousines have declined by a sixth (16%).

Samantha Tyrer, managing director of Co-op Funeralcare, said: "The funeral sector is rapidly changing. Whilst 16.5 million of us still feel uncomfortable talking about death, we're clear on what we want and, in the majority of cases, it's no longer a traditional funeral service.

"Our funerals represent the unique life an individual has lived. More so now than ever before, we're seeing requests for wonderfully personalised ceremonies, whether that be on the 18th hole of a golf club, or having a pet dog present on the day. The choices are endless."

Amusement park ride at Norwich Cathedral draws criticism

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. Matthew 23:27

This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.
For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; II Timothy 3:1-4

If the following item seems familiar, it's probably because it's an excellent companion piece to my recent post Rochester Cathedral provides more evidence that the Church of England is beyond the possibility of satire (August 3, 2019). As reported by BBC News, August 9, 2019 (link, video in original):

The clergy at a cathedral has been accused of being unprofessional and "poisoning the medicine" a church offers by installing a fairground ride.

A full-size helter skelter has been put in the nave of Norwich Cathedral to give people a different view of the inside of the building.

The Right Reverend Dr Gavin Ashenden, former chaplain to the Queen, said the cathedral had made a "mistake".

The cathedral said it was a creative way to share the story of the Bible.

It took four people two days to build the 55ft (16.7m) fairground ride in the Norman cathedral.

The cathedral said it allowed people to stand close to its medieval roof, believed to be the largest display of its kind in the world.

Dr Ashenden, Missionary Bishop for the Christian Episcopal Church, said the clergy at Norwich Cathedral had been "unprofessional" and were "making a mistake about what a cathedral is good for".

He said there was no evidence that tourists become Christians and "just to put in entertainment is naff".

"For such a place, steeped in mystery and marvel to buy in to sensory pleasure and distraction, is to poison the very medicine it offers the human soul," he said.

The Reverend Canon Andy Bryant, from Norwich Cathedral, said he could see why people would be surprised to see the helter skelter.

But in addition to showcasing the roof, he said it was "part of the cathedral's mission to share the story of the Bible" and was a "creative and innovative way to do that".

Norwich Cathedral is not the only place of worship to use unconventional methods to attract members of the public.

The central aisle of Rochester Cathedral has also been converted into a crazy golf course.

The apostle Paul, writing under divine inspiration, didn't tell Timothy to find a "creative and innovative" way to "share
the story of the Bible." He said, merely, "Preach the word..." (II Timothy 4:2). The Church of England and its clergy don't seem to believe in the truth of Hebrews 4:12:

For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Secular humanists win legal battle to help shape religious education curriculum in Britain

As reported by Gabriella Swerling of the London Daily Telegraph, August 2, 2019:

Humanists are set to help shape religious education curriculum after winning a legal battle to sit on a council’s education board.

Humanists UK, the national charity working on behalf of non-religious people which campaigns for a secular state, has won a proposed legal challenge against a London council that rejected its application to join its religious education body.

The organisation said that the decision is “likely to pave the way for more humanists to sit on such bodies across England”.

Rachel Taggart-Ryan applied for full membership to Greenwich Council’s Standing Advisory Council on RE (SACRE), the body that oversees the religious education curriculum in the local area and which has members from varying religious groups.

However its sitting members voted against giving her full membership and voting rights because she is a humanist, with the Council backing this decision on the grounds that humanism is not a religion.

Their decision came in spite of an identical 2017 legal challenge in Wales which saw that Council back down and decide to admit another humanist, Kathy Riddick, as a full member.

It then prompted the Welsh Government to issue guidance clarifying that human rights law means humanists have the right to be full members, and subsequently decide to change the underlying education law to explicitly reflect the need to treat humanists and humanism equally in religious education. The law in Wales is identical to England.

After being refused by Greenwich Council, Rachel sent a letter before action to them, arguing that she had been discriminated against because she was a humanist. The Council again refused to admit her as a member.

As a result, Humanists UK then instructed solicitors, who notified the Council of their intention to apply to the High Court to take a case. Only then did the Council decided to acknowledge that there is a legal basis on which humanists can be full members of SACREs. Ms Taggart-Ryan, who is the charity’s campaigns officer, has now been admitted as a full member of Greenwich Council’s SACRE.

She said: “I applied to my local SACRE because I believe it’s important that children have the opportunity to learn about a broad range of beliefs in RE including humanism.

“The key way to get involved in this is to join the local SACRE, but I was completely dismayed when the panel rejected my application solely because I am a humanist. This issue is a matter of fairness and equality so I am glad that I now have the right to participate and vote in my SACRE.”

Councillor Jackie Smith, Cabinet Member for Children's Services and Community Safety said: “The Royal Borough of Greenwich has admitted Rachel Taggart-Ryan as a member of its Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education and welcomes her contributions in helping shape the local curriculum for our diverse population”.

British mainstream media finally discovers Hillsong

The following article doesn't mention things such as Carl Lentz's church having a sodomite couple in the music ministry, nor does it state that Frank Houston was the actual founder of Hillsong, but it does mention the accusations of child molestation against him. The perceptive reader will note the mention of the notorious Holy Trinity Brompton, responsible for such dubious achievements as introducing "holy laughter" to the United Kingdom.

As reported by Joe Shute of the London Daily Telegraph, July 26, 2019 (links in original):

This week, thousands of teenagers and twentysomethings mustered excitedly about London’s O2 Arena eagerly anticipating the evening’s entertainment. Sporting tattoos and scantily dressed in the summer heat, they might have been queuing for any pop concert. Instead, it was to meet an evangelical church pastor.

Inside the arena, a packed audience, nearly 15,000-strong, cheered breakdancers, rap artists and rock guitarists all espousing the worship of God. And then, at the moment of maximum rhapsody, out strode Hillsong’s lead pastor and founder Brian Houston, wearing a red checkered blazer and declaring: “Jesus, what a beautiful sight…”

As the 65-year-old Australian preached, those in the exultant crowd closed their eyes and raised their arms to the lights. One teenage boy in a tracksuit opposite me wiped a tear away from his cheek.

Chances are you may not have heard of Hillsong, an evangelical movement founded by Brian and his wife, Bobbie Houston, in Sydney in 1983. Now spanning more than 15 countries, its mega-churches are the centre of the fastest-growing religious movement in the world: Pentecostalism, which boasts more than 500m adherents.

The movement emphasises the power of the Holy Spirit and direct experience with God through messages and miracles. As Brian Houston told the London crowd, at Hillsong’s annual conference in Australia earlier this month (attended by the country’s prime minister Scott Morrison), “verifiable miracles” occurred.

The US singer Selena Gomez is an avowed Hillsong worshipper, so too, the Kardashians. Much of this popularity is due to its clever repackaging of the Bible to a modern, younger audience. Hillsong’s social media channels and in-house musicians are as stylised and curated as those of any chart-topping band. Its pastors boast tattoos and ice-white trainers.

Hillsong’s New York church leader Carl Lentz is referred to as “the rock-star pastor” and reportedly baptised the pop singer Justin Bieber in a US basketball player’s bathtub.

Back in London, Dan Blythe is Lentz’s equivalent. The 33-year-old 'creative pastor' meets me backstage during its three-day annual conference in a baggy white T-shirt revealing ecclesiastical tattoos all over his heavy-set arms. The first was inked on his bicep: a scripture from Ephesians 2:8. “It basically says we’re saved by grace,” he explains.

According to Blythe, various British celebrities also worship at the church, which hires out the Dominion Theatre in central London for its Sunday services attracting up to 2,000 people. He won’t name names, but suffice to say they span singers, television presenters and professional footballers. “The nice thing is it’s very chilled,” he says. “Nobody runs up for a selfie.”

Blythe first became a Christian on his gap year to Australia, and in nine years of being a member of Hillsong in London has baptised new followers all over the city – including in a nightclub’s swimming pool in Shoreditch. “It wasn’t our greatest experience of baptism,” he says. “It was a little bit dirty.” A baptism tank has also temporarily been installed at the O2 to douse any of the 3,000 volunteers involved who so wished at the end of the conference – too many risk assessments were required to haul it out into the crowd.

Despite Hillsong’s undeniable popularity, the church has also been dogged by controversy. Brian Houston’s father, Frank Houston (now deceased), has been accused of sexually abusing children while the influential leader of the Pentecostal denomination, Assemblies of God in the Sixties and Seventies. Although Houston sacked his father as a pastor when he discovered his crimes in 1999, an Australian Royal Commission in 2015 found he had failed to report him to the police – something he has been criticised for by his victims.

A Hillsong statement in response to the Royal Commission’s findings said: “We are confident that the actions of Pastor Brian, from the moment he discovered the news about his father, were done with the best intentions towards the victim. The findings of the Royal Commission confirmed that his actions resulted in the perpetrator being immediately removed from ministry.”

The amount of largely tax-exempt money the church brings in has also raised eyebrows (its latest annual report for its Australian operations reveals revenues of more than 100m Australian dollars). By the exits of the O2 arena, giving envelopes were distributed alongside Bibles, although the church emphasises the money goes back into community work.

In London, its leader Gary Clarke resides in a luxury apartment owned by the church currently estimated to be worth £2.5m. “The church bought it as an investment,” the 59-year-old says. “We call that smart because we can sell it to put into a building project. It’s no different from any Church of England manse in central London, but when you’re new on the block and people perceive you as different, it leaves you open to people criticising.”

Hillsong also adopts a strict stance on homosexuality. In a 2015 blog post, Brian Houston stressed that while the church welcomes all people, “clearly, we do not affirm a gay lifestyle, and because of this, we do not knowingly have actively gay people in positions of leadership, either paid or unpaid”.

Yet those queuing outside the O2 seemed untroubled by such sentiments. “I explain it like a modern church but with traditional values,” says Mirjan Kleimann, a 25-year-old from Hamburg who has travelled with two friends to attend the conference. “They are sermons that preach about the topics relevant today, which we talk about together as friends.”

Jesse Hewitt, a 29-year-old in a baseball cap and white socks, who works in a coffee roasters in London and has been a member of the Hillsong congregation for three years, agrees. “It’s the same faith, same beliefs, but just really relevant,” he says.

The popularity of the likes of Hillsong among a younger generation is prompting the Church of England to take note. Trinity Church in Nottingham is one of a number of so-called “plant churches” where a group is sent up to form a new church.

It was established on the request of the Bishop of Nottingham by Holy Trinity Brompton (HTB), the evangelical west London church that wields increasing clout within the Church of England and has initiated dozens of plants, including Birmingham’s Gas Street Church, which opened in a renovated warehouse in 2016. One notable former graduate of HTB is the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby.

Everything about Nottingham’s newest church, situated in a former auction house, is perfectly on-trend: house plants, refurbished parquet flooring, specialist coffee from a local roastery, artisan pastries, not to mention its leaders who are all 20 and 30-somethings sporting sculpted beards and trendy jeans.

Indeed, on first impressions, there is little inside the entrance hall at Holy Trinity to distinguish it as a church whatsoever – save the guest wifi password: “Revelation”.

In December 2017, the Diocese of London received £3.9 million to train 15 “planting curates”, who, at the invitation of diocesan bishops, will be deployed to 15 “strategic cities” between 2020 and 2022. According to the Church Times, at least ten are being trained at HTB.

The Holy Trinity leadership team, many of whom hail from London, arrived in Nottingham in September 2016 and moved into the former auction yard site, which had been acquired by the Diocese of Southwell and Nottingham, in Easter 2017.

As with many of the other church plants instigated by HTB, sermons are intended to be a lively affair, with a church band called The Worship Team performing each week on a raised stage backed by a giant wooden cross. Joanne Arton, a 24-year-old Glaswegian, is the worship leader. She describes the music as a mix of reflective songs and ones where “people wave their hands in worship and receive”.

She says she grew up in a Christian household and, despite losing her father at the age of four, has held on to her faith. “My generation are definitely looking for love and connection and structure in their lives,” she says. “Church offers that.”

More and better information on the Hillsong movement can be found in some of the blogs on my blogroll. Hillsong Church Watch hasn't been updated recently, but is an indispensable source of useful information.

Rochester Cathedral provides more evidence that the Church of England is beyond the possibility of satire

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. Matthew 23:27

This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.
For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; II Timothy 3:1-4

Another piece of evidence for why Mad magazine will soon cease publication of new material--there's nothing left to satirize.

As reported by Rochester Cathedral, June 24, 2019 (bold in original):

Adventure Golf at the Cathedral
July 01, 2019

A bridge-themed adventure golf course in the Nave of Rochester Cathedral this August
Kent’s most unusual adventure golf course will be at Rochester Cathedral this summer. Created in partnership with the Rochester Bridge Trust, the Medieval Nave will be filled with a bridge-themed adventure golf course. The course has been designed to encourage young people to learn more about the engineering behind bridges.

The Revd. Rachel Phillips, Canon for Mission and Growth at Rochester Cathedral, said: “For over 1,400 years, Rochester Cathedral has been a centre of learning for the community. By temporarily installing an educational adventure golf course we aim to continue that mission, giving people the opportunity to learn while they take part in a fun activity, in what for many might be a previously un-visited building.

“The course forms the centrepiece of a ‘Building Bridges’ theme running through the summer. As well as the physical bridge which has stood over the River Medway since Roman times, the invisible but equally historic links between the Cathedral and the surrounding community are also bridges of a kind; we hope that, while playing adventure golf, visitors will reflect on the bridges that need to be built in their own lives and in our world today.”

The course – which is designed and paid for by Rochester Bridge Trust and constructed by HM Adventure Golf – is made up of nine holes, each accompanied by a model of a different type of bridge. It includes the original Roman bridge at Rochester, and the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge at Dartford, all of which is accompanied by information for further learning.

Andrew Freeman, Operations Manager at the Rochester Bridge Trust, added: “We are always looking for new ways to engage with young people and inspire them to take an interest in bridges and civil engineering. Joining forces with the Cathedral to set up this educational activity within such a stunning setting is the ideal opportunity to reach out to the community and get families and young people thinking about bridges while they have fun.

“Learning through play is at the heart of many of our educational initiatives, as we introduce new concepts and ideas to young people away from the classroom environment.”

Adventure Golf runs from 1st August – 1st September. Previews will run from the 27th July – 31st July. Daytime sessions will be free of charge. More details will be released soon.

As reported by Bobby Hristova of the Canadian newspaper National Post, July 29, 2019:

Church officials at England’s second oldest cathedral have provoked outrage after installing a nine-hole mini-putt golf course in the medieval nave.

Officials said the idea was to attract more visitors to Rochester Cathedral, founded in 604 AD.

“We hope that when people come in, they will know that they’re welcome and they will have an enjoyable experience,” Rachel Phillips, canon for “mission and growth” at the cathedral, told Premier, a Christian radio station.

“So while people are here, having fun and playing crazy golf, they will take the opportunity to reflect on that wider theme of building bridges, that they might find that they would like to pray, light a candle. Maybe talk to somebody.”

But the golf course has met with anger and dismay.

Damian Thompson, former editor-in-chief of the Catholic Herald, tweeted, “St John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester, went to his death rather than watch his cathedral fall into the hands of greedy iconoclasts. I suspect he would rather see it lie in ruins than experience this fate.”

Fisher was beheaded in 1535 after being found guilty of treason by not recognizing Henry VIII as Supreme Head of the Church of England.

Army Chaplain Sebastian Hyatt tweeted, “Rochester cathedral’s idea of mission. So devoid of theology, and intent on making money they have forgotten ‘This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven’. Shame on you.”

Bishop Gavin Ashenden, who served as the Queen’s chaplain, told the Church Militant news website, “The sequestration of the great Roman Catholic cathedrals of our country by what became the Church of England was always fraught with conceptual and moral difficulty. It was achieved by political force and at the cost of Catholic martyrdom.

“The Church of England, suffering a reductio ad absurdum has turned its Catholic cathedrals into entertainment centres. Having lost contact with transcendence, majesty and holiness, the CofE has become a branch of the leisure and entertainment industry. Since they no longer know what a cathedral is, or what it is for, it is indeed time for them to return them to the Church that conceived, built and knows how to honour and use them.”

Catholic writer Deacon Nick Donnelly also told Church Militant, “English Catholics care for our ancient cathedrals, even if they are in the possession of the usurping Church of England. We are very aware that the Mass was celebrated at the altars of these cathedrals. What is happening at Rochester Cathedral is sacrilege against God.”

Journalist Tim Stanley, writing in The Daily Telegraph, said, “Cathedrals were designed precisely to remind you of your place in this celestial order, to make you feel small, to awe you into belief. When you stick a mini golf course in a cathedral, it doesn’t bring the community closer so much as it strips the building of its original intent and pushes God further away. It is an act of desecration.”

A Saxon cathedral was first built at Rochester on land donated by King Ethelbert, England’s first Catholic king. Justus, first Bishop of Rochester, was consecrated there by St Augustine. The present building dates back to the work of the French monk, Gundulf, in 1080.

The cathedral defended the joint stating the activity was a free and educational way to reel in younger crowds and families.

It also said the golf course did not affect services with at least three services daily.

“The adventure golf is only taking place in the Nave of the Cathedral, with other spaces available for prayer and quiet as usual,” read a tweet from cathedral officials.

The cathedral’s website states the course is not permanent, running until Sept. 1, when the cathedral will display the Knife Angel statue — a sculpture made up of 100,000 confiscated knives and dedicated to crime victims.

Meanwhile, two hours north of Rochester, Norwich Cathedral plans to set up a 17-metre high “helter skelter” tower in its place of worship for two weeks in August. The tower will sit in the nave of the cathedral, allowing people a chance to climb up for a closer look at its architecture, say officials.

“Wherever you are, or are not, on your faith journey, the space invites you just to be, to explore and encounter the space in your own way, to let it speak to both heart and soul,” reads an article on the cathedral’s website.

And Lichfield Cathedral, in the heart of England, has transformed its magnificent tiled floor into a “lunar landscape” to commemorate the moon landings 50 years ago.

Here's Rochester Cathedral's announcement about their next event (bold, link in original):

Knife Angel

Monday, September 2, 2019 09:00
Sunday, September 29, 2019 17:00

The Knife Angel will be on display in Cathedral’s gardens from the 2nd September until the 29th September.

The Knife Angel is recognised as the National Monument against violence and aggression. It will be the focal point for 28 days of education, reflection, remembrance and prayer in Medway, as it provides a powerful visual symbol of the dangers of carrying a knife.

A collaboration between the Home Office, all 43 UK police constabularies, families of victims and the British IronWork Centre, this awe-inspiring piece is created from over 100,000 blunted and seized blades.

Dean Phillip Hesketh says: “We are fortunate to have the Knife Angel coming to Rochester Cathedral in September. It has already visited many other cathedrals and has provided a valuable opportunity to raise awareness of the devastating effects of knife crime. We hope that it will bring people together in Medway to address what is becoming a national crisis.”

We will be running special sessions for any Medway school who wishes to visit it. For more information click here.

If this isn't enough, this will be coming in November (bold in original):

Beatle Mania

Friday, November 1, 2019
18:30- 22:00

Last years Queen Tribute SOLD OUT and it was so much fun we’ve decided to come back for another year, this time with Beatles classics performed by Rockit Choir and Counterfeit Beatles! Come along and join in...

“There's nothing you can do that can't be done, Nothing you can sing that can't be sung, Nothing you can say, but you can learn how to play the game, It's easy, All you need is LOVE".

TICKETS
Bronze Ticket - £12.50

Silver Ticket - £17.50

Gold Ticket - £22.50

U.K. Parliament votes in favour of forcing pervert "marriage" and abortion on Northern Ireland

The forces of ungodliness are as militant and intolerant now as they were in the days of Genesis 19; as reported by William James of Reuters, July 9, 2019:

LONDON - Britain’s parliament voted on Tuesday in favor of a plan that would compel the government to legalize same-sex marriage and extend abortion rights in Northern Ireland, if the province is unable to re-establish its own devolved government.

The changes passed with a large majority in parliament in London on Tuesday and turned a routine, technical piece of legislation into a vehicle that could enact major social reforms in Northern Ireland.

The province is the only part of the United Kingdom where same-sex marriage is not allowed, and laws there forbid abortion except where a mother’s life is at risk.

To the south, once staunchly conservative Ireland legalized same-sex marriage in 2015 and liberalized its abortion laws in a separate referendum last year.

The legislation has several stages to pass before it creates a legal duty on the British government to amend Northern Ireland’s laws. That duty only comes into effect if the Northern Irish assembly, which collapsed in 2017, has not been re-established by Oct. 21.

Earlier this year, thousands of people marched through Belfast to demand the recognition of same-sex marriage.

Previous attempts to legislate for same-sex marriage have been blocked by the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), a key ally of British Prime Minister Theresa May, despite opinion polls in recent years showing most in the region are in favor.

Advocacy groups have called on the government to bypass the frozen local assembly and introduce legislation in the British parliament in Westminster.

Last year, Britain’s Supreme Court found Northern Ireland’s strict abortion law was incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights but said it did not have the powers to make a formal declaration that the law should be changed.

Northern Ireland has been without a devolved executive for 2-1/2 years since Irish nationalists Sinn Fein withdrew from the compulsory power-sharing government with the pro-British DUP.

On-off talks to restore the executive resumed in May after a hiatus of more than a year but have made no obvious progress. Ireland’s government said last week key differences remained.

Sinn Fein, which has consistently raised the DUP’s stance on same-sex marriage as a major stumbling block in the political talks, said the issue should be addressed by the local assembly but that it was inevitable that the British government’s failure to defend “basic rights available everywhere else on the islands would be confronted”, as it was by parliament on Tuesday.