Saturday, 23 October 2010
Friday, 22 October 2010
MADPRIEST'S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
The only way that religion can destroy the world
is by utilising something invented by scientists.
Scientists don't need anybody's help.
is by utilising something invented by scientists.
Scientists don't need anybody's help.
PRAYER REQUEST
Posted by Sam at ELIZAPHANIAN:
Ollie has a lump on his left jaw (you can just about see it on the photo above, taken this afternoon - 21st. October). He has to have an operation tomorrow (today) to remove it (general anaesthetic!!), and have it biopsied. It might just be blocked glands; it might be something a lot worse :( If it's the sort of thing you do, please say a prayer or two.
Ollie has a lump on his left jaw (you can just about see it on the photo above, taken this afternoon - 21st. October). He has to have an operation tomorrow (today) to remove it (general anaesthetic!!), and have it biopsied. It might just be blocked glands; it might be something a lot worse :( If it's the sort of thing you do, please say a prayer or two.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Paul has posted an excellent article on the No Anglican Covenant campaign in England and how it doesn't stand a chance of influencing the vote at General Synod next month due to the Machiavellian devices employed by the Curia's spinners and business managers. Go read it at NOT THE SAME STREAM.
OVER AT ST. LAIKA'S
It's just bog standard Daily Prayer over at ST. LAIKA'S today. But there are a couple of good tunes to sing along with (well, I like them, anyway).
Meanwhile, at THE ANCHORHOLD, Ellie is stripping.
Meanwhile, at THE ANCHORHOLD, Ellie is stripping.
A STAR IS BORN
From MANGALOREAN.COM:
As Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the head of the worldwide Anglican Communion entered the confines of the Bishop Cotton Boys’ School in the City on Thursday evening, hundreds of faithful Christians greeted him with prayers that reverberated throughout the atmosphere. The audience were more than awed by his persona. Every time, his name was read out, it evoked a huge round of applause. Predictably, he received the most passionate ovation when he was called to address the gathering. Although he spoke briefly, the Archbishop of Canterbury sought to delve on a crucial aspect of our civilisation - human rights.
“Human dignity ought to be protected at any cost. It’s important that the critical issue of human rights is viewed in terms of its relation with the right to self-respect,” he said.
And when the programme was wound up, people jostled to get his autographs and pleaded to be photographed with him.
COMMENT:
Rowan Wiliams Superstar,
Do you think you're what they say you are?
As Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the head of the worldwide Anglican Communion entered the confines of the Bishop Cotton Boys’ School in the City on Thursday evening, hundreds of faithful Christians greeted him with prayers that reverberated throughout the atmosphere. The audience were more than awed by his persona. Every time, his name was read out, it evoked a huge round of applause. Predictably, he received the most passionate ovation when he was called to address the gathering. Although he spoke briefly, the Archbishop of Canterbury sought to delve on a crucial aspect of our civilisation - human rights.
“Human dignity ought to be protected at any cost. It’s important that the critical issue of human rights is viewed in terms of its relation with the right to self-respect,” he said.
And when the programme was wound up, people jostled to get his autographs and pleaded to be photographed with him.
COMMENT:
Rowan Wiliams Superstar,
Do you think you're what they say you are?
Thursday, 21 October 2010
OVER AT ST. LAIKA'S
Something different at ST. LAIKA'S today as I was busy this morning. An order of compline and it's rather beautiful. Those of you who like olde worlde language, olde worlde music and olde worlde bells should really get a kick out of it.
WHERE DOES HE FIND THEM?
Yes, it's back!
And it's a real killer today.
2000 days off Purgatory if you get all the way through it
without cheating. Unfortunately, the downside of that is
that listening to it all will feel like 3000 days of purgatory.
And it's a real killer today.
2000 days off Purgatory if you get all the way through it
without cheating. Unfortunately, the downside of that is
that listening to it all will feel like 3000 days of purgatory.
APPEARANCE IS EVERYTHING
From THE PROVINCE:
Barack Obama has reportedly abandoned plans to visit Amritsar's Golden Temple during his visit to India next month over fears that photographs of him with his head covered would revive false claims that he is a Muslim.
Members of Mr Obama's White House team reportedly visited India last month and told Indian officials of their concerns.
COMMENT: Poor Barack - having to choose between offending his hosts or confusing Americans. Obviously he has decided that it's easier to confuse the American electorate than it is to offend Muslims. Wow!
Barack Obama has reportedly abandoned plans to visit Amritsar's Golden Temple during his visit to India next month over fears that photographs of him with his head covered would revive false claims that he is a Muslim.
Members of Mr Obama's White House team reportedly visited India last month and told Indian officials of their concerns.
COMMENT: Poor Barack - having to choose between offending his hosts or confusing Americans. Obviously he has decided that it's easier to confuse the American electorate than it is to offend Muslims. Wow!
FASCIST OF THE DAY
And today the award goes to a Jewish rabbi.
From HAARETZ.COM:
In a sermon given on Saturday on laws concerning what non-Jews are permitted to do on Shabbat, Shas spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef said: "Goyim [non-Jews] were born only to serve us. Without that, they have no place in the world – only to serve the People of Israel. Why are gentiles needed? They will work, they will plow, they will reap. We will sit like an effendi and eat."
According to Yosef, death has "no dominion" over non-Jews in Israel.
"With gentiles, it will be like any person - they need to die, but [God] will give them longevity. Why? Imagine that one’s donkey would die, they’d lose their money. This is his servant... That’s why he gets a long life, to work well for this Jew.”
Altogether now . . .
Oh, Yosef, Yosef, Yosef.
Oh, Yosef, Yosef, Yosef.
Oh, Yosef, Yosef, Yosef.
Knees bent, arms stretched,
RAH! RAH! RAH!
From HAARETZ.COM:
According to Yosef, death has "no dominion" over non-Jews in Israel.
"With gentiles, it will be like any person - they need to die, but [God] will give them longevity. Why? Imagine that one’s donkey would die, they’d lose their money. This is his servant... That’s why he gets a long life, to work well for this Jew.”
Altogether now . . .
Oh, Yosef, Yosef, Yosef.
Oh, Yosef, Yosef, Yosef.
Oh, Yosef, Yosef, Yosef.
Knees bent, arms stretched,
RAH! RAH! RAH!
SAM HARRIS DISCOVERS TEACHINGS
OF JESUS AND CASHES IN ON THEM
From THE NEW SCIENTIST:
However, the question is not "Can you have morality without religion?" The question is "Why bother to have morality without religion?"
I know most of you lot don't like the idea of a "stick and carrot" God, but as someone who could quite happily throttle most of the hierarchy of the Diocese of Newcastle, I find it not only useful, but downright necessary for the continued existence of most of the hierarchy of the Diocese of Newcastle.
Most people say that science can tell us facts about the world but not about moral values. Do you disagree?
Questions of right and wrong, good and evil, are questions about human and animal well-being. The moment we admit this we see that science can, in principle, answer such questions - because the experience of conscious creatures depends on the way the universe is. In our case, the difference between the worst possible suffering and the greatest flourishing depends on everything that can influence states of the human brain, ranging from changes in our genome to changes in the global economy. The relevant details of genetics, neurobiology, psychology, sociology, economics and so on are fantastically complicated, but there is no question that these are domains in which there are truths to be discovered and they fall squarely within the purview of science.
So what is "right" is whatever maximises the well-being of conscious creatures? How is that different from utilitarianism?
People often criticise utilitarianism because any narrow concern for utility, pleasure or short-term happiness fails to capture everything that is important to us in life. We are also concerned about things like truth, justice, fairness, intellectual pleasure, courage, creativity and having a clear conscience. I believe, however, that the notion of well-being can capture all of these things.
In my book I argue that we can view all possible experience on a kind of landscape, where peaks correspond to the heights of well-being and the valleys correspond to the lowest depths of suffering. The first thing to notice is that there may be many equivalent peaks on this landscape - there may be many different ways for people to thrive. But there will be many more ways not to thrive.
COMMENT: You know, I'm sure I've read something very similar to that in the past somewhere.However, the question is not "Can you have morality without religion?" The question is "Why bother to have morality without religion?"
I know most of you lot don't like the idea of a "stick and carrot" God, but as someone who could quite happily throttle most of the hierarchy of the Diocese of Newcastle, I find it not only useful, but downright necessary for the continued existence of most of the hierarchy of the Diocese of Newcastle.
BURKE AND HARE REDUX
From THE LOCAL (Germany):
Gunther von Hagens, the man behind the controversial anatomical Body Worlds exhibitions, announced this week he would be opening an online store selling his human and animal plastinations. An entire plastinated human body will run €69,615, a torso €56,644, and a head €22,015, the paper reported. But church leaders in Germany are outraged.
In a group statement, Archbishop Robert Zollitsch and others called on politicians to stop von Hagens from committing what they called “breaking a taboo.”
“This is not about new discoveries for science and research, but about picking at bones and spectacle under the guise of medical enlightenment,” Zollitsch said in the statement, adding that the sale of body parts was disrespectful to the dead.
COMMENT: And dragging a bit of a dead saint around the world for people to gawp at isn't?
Actually, I would buy one of von Hagens' pieces. But I can't afford it. They cost an arm and a leg.
Gunther von Hagens, the man behind the controversial anatomical Body Worlds exhibitions, announced this week he would be opening an online store selling his human and animal plastinations. An entire plastinated human body will run €69,615, a torso €56,644, and a head €22,015, the paper reported. But church leaders in Germany are outraged.
In a group statement, Archbishop Robert Zollitsch and others called on politicians to stop von Hagens from committing what they called “breaking a taboo.”
“This is not about new discoveries for science and research, but about picking at bones and spectacle under the guise of medical enlightenment,” Zollitsch said in the statement, adding that the sale of body parts was disrespectful to the dead.
COMMENT: And dragging a bit of a dead saint around the world for people to gawp at isn't?
Actually, I would buy one of von Hagens' pieces. But I can't afford it. They cost an arm and a leg.
KILLING BEAUTY
From THE LOCAL (Germany):
Officials in the western German state of Rhineland-Palatinate on Wednesday gave hunters permission to shoot an escaped panther that has been on the loose near the Belgian border for almost a year. Both the Koblenz regional environmental protection office and city licence agency (SGD) have approved hunters’ rights to kill the big cat, they said.
Tranquilising the animal is not a good enough option, officials said, because it could flee in the seven minutes it takes for the drugs to take hold.
Officials in the western German state of Rhineland-Palatinate on Wednesday gave hunters permission to shoot an escaped panther that has been on the loose near the Belgian border for almost a year. Both the Koblenz regional environmental protection office and city licence agency (SGD) have approved hunters’ rights to kill the big cat, they said.
Tranquilising the animal is not a good enough option, officials said, because it could flee in the seven minutes it takes for the drugs to take hold.
MINNI BISHOP KEEPS THE WORLD
LAUGHING AT HIS COMIC INVENTION
From USA TODAY:
John Nienstedt, the Italian Catholic archbishop for the Twin Cities defended his right Monday to speak to fellow Catholics on social issues, and said a shrinking Roman Catholic church is no reason to consider a more liberal stance. He said he believes spiritual leaders have a duty to talk to their flock about issues they see as important — even if some of those views might be unpopular with prospective churchgoers.
"We're part and parcel of the culture, so it's important for us to be involved with those discussions and have our say," Nienstedt said. He said Jesus Christ directed his followers to "either be hot or cold, but if you're lukewarm, I don't want that. So we want people who live their faith. I believe that it's important that if you're going to be Catholic, that you have to be 100% Catholic. That you stand by the church, you believe what the church believes and you pass that on to your sons and daughters and your grandsons and granddaughters."
The Rev. Earl Simonson, priest at St. Clement, in Minneapolis (about to be closed by Nienstedt) said, "We just wait for the great archbishop to tell us what we're doing," Simonson said. "We're mere flunkies."
COMPETITION TIME
Separated at birth? Both comedians. Both adept at playing to the audience. Both good at making stuff up as they go along and saying the first thing that comes into their heads, no matter how daft. But can you tell which one is also a homophobic despot out to undermine the sovereignty of the US legislature?
John Nienstedt, the Italian Catholic archbishop for the Twin Cities defended his right Monday to speak to fellow Catholics on social issues, and said a shrinking Roman Catholic church is no reason to consider a more liberal stance. He said he believes spiritual leaders have a duty to talk to their flock about issues they see as important — even if some of those views might be unpopular with prospective churchgoers.
"We're part and parcel of the culture, so it's important for us to be involved with those discussions and have our say," Nienstedt said. He said Jesus Christ directed his followers to "either be hot or cold, but if you're lukewarm, I don't want that. So we want people who live their faith. I believe that it's important that if you're going to be Catholic, that you have to be 100% Catholic. That you stand by the church, you believe what the church believes and you pass that on to your sons and daughters and your grandsons and granddaughters."
The Rev. Earl Simonson, priest at St. Clement, in Minneapolis (about to be closed by Nienstedt) said, "We just wait for the great archbishop to tell us what we're doing," Simonson said. "We're mere flunkies."
COMPETITION TIME
Separated at birth? Both comedians. Both adept at playing to the audience. Both good at making stuff up as they go along and saying the first thing that comes into their heads, no matter how daft. But can you tell which one is also a homophobic despot out to undermine the sovereignty of the US legislature?
TWO PRAYER REQUESTS AND
A "WELL DONE, I'M IMPRESSED"
Posted by Kirstin at BAREFOOT AND LAUGHING:
Next steps, as far as I understand them:
I have a PET scan November 7. (Yes, all of mine have been on Sundays.) If the scan basically matches the last one, chemo’s done all it can do and we stop. I'll be transferred back to my oncologist in Sac for monitoring. If the tumors are smaller, we keep at the biochemo. If the tumors are progressing, we switch me to high-dose IL-2. That carries a risk of neurological damage; I really don’t want to go there. But it also can, if you're cosmically lucky, knock the disease out of your body forever.
It’s amazing what you can get used to. I freaked out in the hospital my first round, because I couldn’t cope with the idea of having a chest wall full of time bombs. Now? As long as they’re not growing, they’re not threatening me. I know all I need to know about living in the moment.
Today is for resting and rehydrating. Thank God for good nausea drugs.
***
Posted by Paul at BYZIGENOUS BUDDHAPALIAN:
I ask your prayers for Marsha's brother Scott.
"His heart procedure (cardial ablation where dr. freezes one chamber of his heart to hopefully get it back into rhythm) is tomorrow in Salt Lake. It is about a 5 hour procedure and, as you might imagine, not without risk, plus he has been in arrhythmia intermittently for 5+ years so he is not going into this in the best of health. Our father died of this condition at age 57 so Scott is understandably anxious about it, as are all of us."
***
Posted by Graham at DIGGING A LOT:
I have been married for 21 years today. So has my wife. I am not old enough to have been married for that long. When I got married, Mrs Thatcher was still the queen and computer screens were black and green and no one I knew had them in their homes.
Well done, old chap. And a shout out to the good and faithful wife, as well.
Next steps, as far as I understand them:
I have a PET scan November 7. (Yes, all of mine have been on Sundays.) If the scan basically matches the last one, chemo’s done all it can do and we stop. I'll be transferred back to my oncologist in Sac for monitoring. If the tumors are smaller, we keep at the biochemo. If the tumors are progressing, we switch me to high-dose IL-2. That carries a risk of neurological damage; I really don’t want to go there. But it also can, if you're cosmically lucky, knock the disease out of your body forever.
It’s amazing what you can get used to. I freaked out in the hospital my first round, because I couldn’t cope with the idea of having a chest wall full of time bombs. Now? As long as they’re not growing, they’re not threatening me. I know all I need to know about living in the moment.
Today is for resting and rehydrating. Thank God for good nausea drugs.
***
Posted by Paul at BYZIGENOUS BUDDHAPALIAN:
I ask your prayers for Marsha's brother Scott.
"His heart procedure (cardial ablation where dr. freezes one chamber of his heart to hopefully get it back into rhythm) is tomorrow in Salt Lake. It is about a 5 hour procedure and, as you might imagine, not without risk, plus he has been in arrhythmia intermittently for 5+ years so he is not going into this in the best of health. Our father died of this condition at age 57 so Scott is understandably anxious about it, as are all of us."
***
Posted by Graham at DIGGING A LOT:
I have been married for 21 years today. So has my wife. I am not old enough to have been married for that long. When I got married, Mrs Thatcher was still the queen and computer screens were black and green and no one I knew had them in their homes.
Well done, old chap. And a shout out to the good and faithful wife, as well.
DISCUSSION STARTER
ON COMMUNION OVER THE NET:
God is not dependant on his creation. Therefore, God does not need our worship. Therefore, God gave us worship for our own benefit, to help us be aware of God’s presence.
If something we do brings us closer to God and not away from God it is of God. You know, Satan rebelling against himself and all that jazz.
However, discernment, as always, is needed, and I believe we have been part of such a process regarding the blessing of the elements of the eucharist for at least 40 years. Hopefully, in my opinion, we will reach a situation where those who need to be in the locality of the eucharistic prayer and those who do not need such a fixed reminder of God’s presence with us will respect each other’s faith and will understand that God does what God does for us not vice versa.
God is not dependant on his creation. Therefore, God does not need our worship. Therefore, God gave us worship for our own benefit, to help us be aware of God’s presence.
If something we do brings us closer to God and not away from God it is of God. You know, Satan rebelling against himself and all that jazz.
However, discernment, as always, is needed, and I believe we have been part of such a process regarding the blessing of the elements of the eucharist for at least 40 years. Hopefully, in my opinion, we will reach a situation where those who need to be in the locality of the eucharistic prayer and those who do not need such a fixed reminder of God’s presence with us will respect each other’s faith and will understand that God does what God does for us not vice versa.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
"I think everybody who comes into the office sooner or later does find this is the heart of it: can you hold people together in relationship? It's the job of every bishop. It's the job of an Archbishop of Canterbury in a special way – and there's continuity there. Holding together diversity, not in order to have an easy life or a quiet life, but because of this conviction that we need each other. And when somebody walks away from the table, everyone is the poorer." (Grand Tufti - THE HINDU - 20th. October 2010)
COMMENT: Actually, Archbishop, I think you will find that recently, in stead of people walking away from the table, there has been rather a lot of people finding that their chairs at the table have been removed. Holding together diversity is, of course, a lot easier if you demonise the diverse and eject their friends.
Altogether now . . .
Oh, Rowan, Rowan, Rowan.
Oh, Rowan, Rowan, Rowan.
Oh, Rowan, Rowan, Rowan.
Knees bent, arms stretched,
RAH! RAH! RAH!
COMMENT: Actually, Archbishop, I think you will find that recently, in stead of people walking away from the table, there has been rather a lot of people finding that their chairs at the table have been removed. Holding together diversity is, of course, a lot easier if you demonise the diverse and eject their friends.
Altogether now . . .
Oh, Rowan, Rowan, Rowan.
Oh, Rowan, Rowan, Rowan.
Oh, Rowan, Rowan, Rowan.
Knees bent, arms stretched,
RAH! RAH! RAH!
Wednesday, 20 October 2010
THE SOPPY SAILOR SELECTION
From THE GUARDIAN:
Things were looking grim when Bostie the budgie, presumably an escaped pet, found himself flying too far from land off the Devon coast. But he had a stroke of luck when he found a perch on the Royal Navy frigate HMS Westminster and dined in style in an officer's cabin.
The arrival of the yellow and green bird caused amusement on board the frigate as it took part in a training exercise off Plymouth. The animal landed on top of one of the sailors, was named Bostie – after a type of cross-bred terrier – and given a meal of bread, nuts and water.
But when a routine alarm sounded the budgerigar appeared to suffer a heart attack. Attempts to revive him failed and the crew gave their feathered friend a burial at sea.
Lieutenant Commander Nick Wood had spotted the tame budgie sitting on top of a communications box onboard. He said: "I'll miss Bostie. He was only in our lives for a brief time, but he made our day."
COMMENT: There, you see, the haters were right. Already the greatest fighting force the universe has ever known (even better than the Klingons) is deteriorating into total soppiness. The next thing you know we'll have Royal Navy captains walking around the poop deck with a persian cat in their arms asking their able seamen if they want a stroke.
Thanks to the original Soppy Sheila for sending this sad, but somehow uplifting, story into MadPriest Towers.
Things were looking grim when Bostie the budgie, presumably an escaped pet, found himself flying too far from land off the Devon coast. But he had a stroke of luck when he found a perch on the Royal Navy frigate HMS Westminster and dined in style in an officer's cabin.
The arrival of the yellow and green bird caused amusement on board the frigate as it took part in a training exercise off Plymouth. The animal landed on top of one of the sailors, was named Bostie – after a type of cross-bred terrier – and given a meal of bread, nuts and water.
But when a routine alarm sounded the budgerigar appeared to suffer a heart attack. Attempts to revive him failed and the crew gave their feathered friend a burial at sea.
Lieutenant Commander Nick Wood had spotted the tame budgie sitting on top of a communications box onboard. He said: "I'll miss Bostie. He was only in our lives for a brief time, but he made our day."
COMMENT: There, you see, the haters were right. Already the greatest fighting force the universe has ever known (even better than the Klingons) is deteriorating into total soppiness. The next thing you know we'll have Royal Navy captains walking around the poop deck with a persian cat in their arms asking their able seamen if they want a stroke.
Thanks to the original Soppy Sheila for sending this sad, but somehow uplifting, story into MadPriest Towers.
RAYMOND BURKE IS OUR
GUEST ARPO OF THE DAY
Yes, I know this is a difficult one. I had to have the differences pointed out to me. But, give it your best shot. The first prize* is
a romantic weekend with Helga at either Colditz or The Vatican
(the choice will be up to the winner).
You put your right boot in, you take your right boot out,
you do a lot of shouting and you shake your fists about.
You light a little smokie and you burn down ze town,
zat's vot it's all about.
Ah, Himmler, Himmler, Himmler...
(Heir Flick . . . but if the cap fits . . .)
In case you are the one person in the world who doesn't know
yet, Heir Ratzinger has promoted Heir Burke to cardinal.
Altogether now . . . "Ah, Burkey, Burkey, Burkey!"
* What is the first prize of Mad Club?
There are no first prizes in Mad Club.
a romantic weekend with Helga at either Colditz or The Vatican
(the choice will be up to the winner).
You put your right boot in, you take your right boot out,
you do a lot of shouting and you shake your fists about.
You light a little smokie and you burn down ze town,
zat's vot it's all about.
Ah, Himmler, Himmler, Himmler...
(Heir Flick . . . but if the cap fits . . .)
In case you are the one person in the world who doesn't know
yet, Heir Ratzinger has promoted Heir Burke to cardinal.
Altogether now . . . "Ah, Burkey, Burkey, Burkey!"
* What is the first prize of Mad Club?
There are no first prizes in Mad Club.
MEANWHILE IN NEVER NEVER LAND
From THE ANGLICAN COMMUNION NEWS SERVICE:
The mutual life of the Anglican Communion is “quite strong and perhaps getting stronger” according to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams. In an interview with THE HINDU newspaper, Dr Williams indicated that the state of the Communion was not as black as some have painted it. He called it “a very mixed picture.”
“I think that after the Lambeth Conference of 2008 many people felt that we found ways of talking to one another, and perhaps exercising some restraint and tact towards one another,” he said, "and it was very significant that at the next meeting of the Anglican primates, which was in the early part of 2009, all major Churches of the Communion were represented.
“Unfortunately, the situation does not remain there. The decision of the American Church to go forward, as it has, with the ordination of a lesbian bishop has, I think, set us back. At the moment I'm not certain how we will approach the next primates' meeting, but regrettably some of the progress that I believe we had made has not remained steady.
“Alongside that, and I think this is important, while the institutions of the Communion struggle, in many ways the mutual life of the Communion, the life of exchange and co-operation between different parts of our Anglican family, is quite strong and perhaps getting stronger. It's a paradox.
“We are working more closely together on issues of development than we did before. We have the emergence of an Anglican health network across the globe, bringing together various health care institutions. We have also had quite a successful programme on the standards and criteria for theological education across the Communion. So, a very mixed picture.”
In the interview, given in the last days of his two-week visit to India, the Archbishop also addresses questions on relations with the Catholic church, Anglican-Hindu dialogue and the 'war on terror'.
The mutual life of the Anglican Communion is “quite strong and perhaps getting stronger” according to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams. In an interview with THE HINDU newspaper, Dr Williams indicated that the state of the Communion was not as black as some have painted it. He called it “a very mixed picture.”
“I think that after the Lambeth Conference of 2008 many people felt that we found ways of talking to one another, and perhaps exercising some restraint and tact towards one another,” he said, "and it was very significant that at the next meeting of the Anglican primates, which was in the early part of 2009, all major Churches of the Communion were represented.
“Unfortunately, the situation does not remain there. The decision of the American Church to go forward, as it has, with the ordination of a lesbian bishop has, I think, set us back. At the moment I'm not certain how we will approach the next primates' meeting, but regrettably some of the progress that I believe we had made has not remained steady.
“Alongside that, and I think this is important, while the institutions of the Communion struggle, in many ways the mutual life of the Communion, the life of exchange and co-operation between different parts of our Anglican family, is quite strong and perhaps getting stronger. It's a paradox.
“We are working more closely together on issues of development than we did before. We have the emergence of an Anglican health network across the globe, bringing together various health care institutions. We have also had quite a successful programme on the standards and criteria for theological education across the Communion. So, a very mixed picture.”
In the interview, given in the last days of his two-week visit to India, the Archbishop also addresses questions on relations with the Catholic church, Anglican-Hindu dialogue and the 'war on terror'.
OVER AT ST. LAIKA'S
The theme of our daily prayer
at ST. LAIKA'S today is
"Relying on God's protection."
You also get to sing along with Maddy Prior
and listen to some rousing music by Handel.
There's even some rather good poetry
at the beginning of the service.
at ST. LAIKA'S today is
"Relying on God's protection."
You also get to sing along with Maddy Prior
and listen to some rousing music by Handel.
There's even some rather good poetry
at the beginning of the service.
Tuesday, 19 October 2010
WELL, HE GETS MY VOTE
We have crazy independent candidates standing for elections in England. But they are just crazy. In the US they have crazy people standing at elections whose policies make a damn sight more sense than the policies espoused by any of the "sensible" candidates. And, fuck it all, the rent is too DAMN high.
PRIVATES ON PARADE
This is a real gem.
Perhaps I've been mislead by having a refined readership, but when someone says "gay man" to me I immediately think of KJ, Counterlight, Dennis and the soppy, Andrew Lloyd Weber loving Mexican. And the thought of any of them coercing a baby rabbit, let alone a parade ground full of squaddies, doesn't quite ring true with me.
From ONE NEWS NOW:
The head of a law firm that defends and promotes Christian heritage and moral values thinks there would be dire consequences for heterosexual service members if President Obama, with the help of an activist judge, "homosexualizes" the military.
The Defense Department announced Thursday it would comply with California Judge Virginia Phillips's order to stop enforcing the ban on homosexuals serving in the military. That same day, President Obama voiced his view that the military's current ban is unjust and discriminatory. However, he also pointed out that he wants it lifted "in an orderly fashion."
But Richard Thompson, president and chief counsel of the Thomas More Law Center (TMLC), does not think the president cares about how unjust and discriminatory it will be for heterosexual service members when the military is taken over by radical homosexuals.
"If you try to have a sergeant drilling and overseeing a bunch of young men, and that sergeant happens to be homosexual, you can just imagine what kind of coercion there is going to be," he warns. "If this ever happens, you're going to see a lot of violence; you're going to see a lot of young men leaving the military, and you're going to have unintended consequences that can only be imagined today."
Thompson suggests there would be zero tolerance for anyone opposed to homosexuality, so he thinks lifting the ban would ultimately destroy the most effective fighting force in the history of the world.
COMMENT: The most effective fighting force in the history of the world?
That would be the Romans then. Just as I thought teh gay were responsible for the Fall of Rome.
Perhaps I've been mislead by having a refined readership, but when someone says "gay man" to me I immediately think of KJ, Counterlight, Dennis and the soppy, Andrew Lloyd Weber loving Mexican. And the thought of any of them coercing a baby rabbit, let alone a parade ground full of squaddies, doesn't quite ring true with me.
From ONE NEWS NOW:
The head of a law firm that defends and promotes Christian heritage and moral values thinks there would be dire consequences for heterosexual service members if President Obama, with the help of an activist judge, "homosexualizes" the military.
The Defense Department announced Thursday it would comply with California Judge Virginia Phillips's order to stop enforcing the ban on homosexuals serving in the military. That same day, President Obama voiced his view that the military's current ban is unjust and discriminatory. However, he also pointed out that he wants it lifted "in an orderly fashion."
But Richard Thompson, president and chief counsel of the Thomas More Law Center (TMLC), does not think the president cares about how unjust and discriminatory it will be for heterosexual service members when the military is taken over by radical homosexuals.
"If you try to have a sergeant drilling and overseeing a bunch of young men, and that sergeant happens to be homosexual, you can just imagine what kind of coercion there is going to be," he warns. "If this ever happens, you're going to see a lot of violence; you're going to see a lot of young men leaving the military, and you're going to have unintended consequences that can only be imagined today."
Thompson suggests there would be zero tolerance for anyone opposed to homosexuality, so he thinks lifting the ban would ultimately destroy the most effective fighting force in the history of the world.
COMMENT: The most effective fighting force in the history of the world?
That would be the Romans then. Just as I thought teh gay were responsible for the Fall of Rome.
SOUNDS LIKE A WASTE OF MONEY TO ME
Unless, the tourist is Bill Gates and even then he's going to have to buy an awful lot of postcards and tacky souvenirs for Poland to recover its outlay on the statue. And have they researched this properly? Is Bill Gates going to be lured all the way to Poland for a glimpse of a 33 metre Jesus? I'm not so sure.
From BIG NEWS NETWORK:
From BIG NEWS NETWORK:
BURKLEY HUNT
From CNS NEWS:
Catholic politicians who publicly support abortion or homosexual marriage and then seek to turn away from such “gravely sinful acts” must perform “public” actions of “repentance,” said Raymond Burke, the archbishop emeritus of St. Louis and the current head of the highest court at the Vatican, the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura.
"Sounds a bit kinky," says MadPriest, truck driver emeritus of Newcastle and supreme head of his own stationary cupboard, but not much else.
"Sounds a bit kinky," says MadPriest, truck driver emeritus of Newcastle and supreme head of his own stationary cupboard, but not much else.
IN WHICH MADPRIEST ANNOUNCES THAT HE IS
TO PUBLICALLY BURN THE BOOK OF MORMON
From PHILLY.COM:
SOUTH BRUNSWICK, N.J. - Car dealer Brad Benson made the pitch to Florida pastor Terry Jones in one of his quirky radio ads: If you don't burn a Quran, I'll give you a new car. He was surprised, though, when a representative for Jones called to collect the 2011 Hyundai Accent, retailing for $14,200.
"They said unless I was doing false advertising, they would like to arrange to pick up the car," Benson recalled. At first he thought it was a hoax, so Benson asked Jones to send in a copy of his driver's license. He did.
Jones, of Gainesville, Fla., told The Associated Press that the free car wasn't the reason he called off the burning , and that he didn't even hear about the offer until a few weeks after Sept. 11, when he had threatened to set the Muslim holy book on fire.
He said he plans to donate the car to an organization that helps abused Muslim women.
COMMENT: I'm not 100% certain if it is his, but that organisation certainly sounds like one of JCF's dubious projects.
SOUTH BRUNSWICK, N.J. - Car dealer Brad Benson made the pitch to Florida pastor Terry Jones in one of his quirky radio ads: If you don't burn a Quran, I'll give you a new car. He was surprised, though, when a representative for Jones called to collect the 2011 Hyundai Accent, retailing for $14,200.
"They said unless I was doing false advertising, they would like to arrange to pick up the car," Benson recalled. At first he thought it was a hoax, so Benson asked Jones to send in a copy of his driver's license. He did.
Jones, of Gainesville, Fla., told The Associated Press that the free car wasn't the reason he called off the burning , and that he didn't even hear about the offer until a few weeks after Sept. 11, when he had threatened to set the Muslim holy book on fire.
He said he plans to donate the car to an organization that helps abused Muslim women.
COMMENT: I'm not 100% certain if it is his, but that organisation certainly sounds like one of JCF's dubious projects.
HOMER SIMPSON CROSSES THE TIBER
From THE TELEGRAPH:
L'Osservatore Romano, the Vatican's daily broadsheet, acknowledges that Homer Simpson snores through the sermons of the Reverend Lovejoy and inflicts "never-ending humiliation" on his evangelical neighbour, Ned Flanders. But in an article headlined "Homer and Bart are Catholics", the newspaper said: "The Simpsons are among the few TV programmes for children in which Christian faith, religion, and questions about God are recurrent themes."
It quotes an analysis by a Jesuit priest, Father Francesco Occhetta, of a 2005 episode of The Simpsons, The Father, the Son and the Holy Guest Star, which revolved around Catholicism and was aired a few weeks after the death of Pope John Paul II. The episode starts with Bart being expelled from Springfield Elementary School and being enrolled in a Catholic school where he meets a sympathetic priest, voiced by the actor Liam Neeson, who draws him into Catholicism with his kindness. Homer then decides to convert to Catholicism, to the horror of his wife Marge, the Rev Lovejoy and Ned Flanders. The episode touches on issues such as religious conflict, interfaith dialogue, homosexuality and stem cell research.
"Few people know it, and he does everything he can to hide it, but it is true: Homer J Simpson is a Catholic," insists L'Osservatore Romano.
L'Osservatore Romano, the Vatican's daily broadsheet, acknowledges that Homer Simpson snores through the sermons of the Reverend Lovejoy and inflicts "never-ending humiliation" on his evangelical neighbour, Ned Flanders. But in an article headlined "Homer and Bart are Catholics", the newspaper said: "The Simpsons are among the few TV programmes for children in which Christian faith, religion, and questions about God are recurrent themes."
It quotes an analysis by a Jesuit priest, Father Francesco Occhetta, of a 2005 episode of The Simpsons, The Father, the Son and the Holy Guest Star, which revolved around Catholicism and was aired a few weeks after the death of Pope John Paul II. The episode starts with Bart being expelled from Springfield Elementary School and being enrolled in a Catholic school where he meets a sympathetic priest, voiced by the actor Liam Neeson, who draws him into Catholicism with his kindness. Homer then decides to convert to Catholicism, to the horror of his wife Marge, the Rev Lovejoy and Ned Flanders. The episode touches on issues such as religious conflict, interfaith dialogue, homosexuality and stem cell research.
"Few people know it, and he does everything he can to hide it, but it is true: Homer J Simpson is a Catholic," insists L'Osservatore Romano.
NEVER ON A SATURDAY
From USA TODAY:
The National Museum of American Jewish History set to open next month in Philadelphia has adopted a unique compromise on an issue that pits religious teaching against economics — whether to open on the Sabbath. Officials had to decide whether to open on Saturdays, even though Jewish law forbids work and commercial transactions on the Sabbath. The alternative was closing on the day and turning away thousands of visitors — as well as up to a quarter of the anticipated admission revenue.
The museum will be open Saturdays, but tickets for Saturdays will not be sold on the museum's premises that day; they can be bought online or in advance, or outside the museum at locations to be determined. The gift shop will also be open Saturdays but will handle no cash that day; any credit card transactions will be processed after sundown.
COMMENT: I suppose the alternative would be to make no charge on a Saturday and just place a donation box near the door. That way the poor could learn all about Jewish people, as well.
As for the gift shop idea . . .*
(* At this point MadPriest was dragged away from his computer by various friends who were worried that he was about to embroil himself in another of those awkward situations.)
The museum will be open Saturdays, but tickets for Saturdays will not be sold on the museum's premises that day; they can be bought online or in advance, or outside the museum at locations to be determined. The gift shop will also be open Saturdays but will handle no cash that day; any credit card transactions will be processed after sundown.
COMMENT: I suppose the alternative would be to make no charge on a Saturday and just place a donation box near the door. That way the poor could learn all about Jewish people, as well.
As for the gift shop idea . . .*
(* At this point MadPriest was dragged away from his computer by various friends who were worried that he was about to embroil himself in another of those awkward situations.)
NEWS FROM THE EAST
On October 5, 2010, pastor Nurk was defrocked by the EELC. The reasons given were that he has been found guilty of an indecent act and of teaching heresy. Apparently Nurk himself hasn't been heard during this process, which strikes me as odd.
Please go and read the rest of this article posted by our friend Karl at KARL'S COMMENTS (he has posted this report in English). We can too easily fall into the trap of just concentrate on the persecution that exists in English speaking countries. Bloggers like Karl remind us that homophobia is a pandemic.
OVER AT ST. LAIKA'S
It's just bog standard daily prayer over at ST. LAIKA'S today. However, as with yesterday's eucharist, I have cranked up the production. So you get a nice hymn, a taizé chant behind the prayers and a song after the office that makes a credal statement I think we can all sign up to. It takes me quite a while to cobble together such complicated services as their construction involves arithmetic, not a subject I particularly shone at when young. So please, if it's only to fast forward to the musical bits, pop over and make my work worthwhile.
But for real wisdom and meat (actually vegetables as I don't think meat passes the lips of our resident religious) you must go read Ellie's posts at THE ANCHORHOLD. A daily visit to her new site will give you a good dose of real Christianity to get you through your day. It's also a place where you can discuss spirituality and all that jazz with each other and Ellie in the comment boxes below the posts.
But for real wisdom and meat (actually vegetables as I don't think meat passes the lips of our resident religious) you must go read Ellie's posts at THE ANCHORHOLD. A daily visit to her new site will give you a good dose of real Christianity to get you through your day. It's also a place where you can discuss spirituality and all that jazz with each other and Ellie in the comment boxes below the posts.
DON'T BLAME MADPRIEST, BLAME THAT
WICKED PARISH PRIEST FROM SUFFOLK
Two old guys, one 80 and one 87, were sitting on their usual park bench one morning..
The 87 year old had just finished his morning jog and wasn't even short of breath.
The 80 year old was amazed at his friend's stamina and asked him what he did to have so much energy.
The 87 year old said, "Well, I eat rye bread every day. It keeps your energy levels high and you'll have great stamina with the ladies."
So, on the way home, the 80 year old stops at a bakery. As he was looking around, the lady asked if he needed any help.
He said "Do you have any Rye bread?"
She said, "Yes, there's a whole shelf of it. Would you like some?"
"Yes please," He said, "I want 5 loaves."
She said, "My goodness, 5 loaves ... By the time you get to the 3rd loaf, it'll be hard!"
He replied, "I can't believe it, everybody knows about this but me!"
The 87 year old had just finished his morning jog and wasn't even short of breath.
The 80 year old was amazed at his friend's stamina and asked him what he did to have so much energy.
The 87 year old said, "Well, I eat rye bread every day. It keeps your energy levels high and you'll have great stamina with the ladies."
So, on the way home, the 80 year old stops at a bakery. As he was looking around, the lady asked if he needed any help.
He said "Do you have any Rye bread?"
She said, "Yes, there's a whole shelf of it. Would you like some?"
"Yes please," He said, "I want 5 loaves."
She said, "My goodness, 5 loaves ... By the time you get to the 3rd loaf, it'll be hard!"
He replied, "I can't believe it, everybody knows about this but me!"
SNARK OF THE DAY
I see Zeta Schori has added her name to "Clergy Aganist Bullying Call for Action."
What she fails to mention is that her commitment to the anti-bullying cause does not apply when one of her friends is involved - especially if that friend just happened to go to college with her.
What she fails to mention is that her commitment to the anti-bullying cause does not apply when one of her friends is involved - especially if that friend just happened to go to college with her.
Monday, 18 October 2010
PRAYER REQUEST
From Father Craig:
Our beloved beagle, Briggs, whom we rescued from the shelter a year and a half ago, has come down with an aggressive cancer in his lymph nodes. We cannot afford $3000 for an uncertain course of chemotherapy and I am honestly uneasy about spending that much money on a pet when so many human children are starving. So as I wipe away the tears, I ask for your prayers for us and for Briggs. I have never had such a sweetie for a pet and thank God for bringing him into our lives. I know we'll see him again one day, but it hurts to lose him now. The vet says maybe 6 more months...
This was my reply to our friend:
Father Craig
The dilemma about the money is irrelevant. Our dogs are all fully insured and I would never ever put them through chemotherapy. Humans can get through chemo because they know the possible outcomes. A dog does not, so every moment of suffering is just suffering.
The real dilemma you face is when to say goodbye. Briggs will tell you.
There is a God and there is eternal life.
Father Jonathan
Our beloved beagle, Briggs, whom we rescued from the shelter a year and a half ago, has come down with an aggressive cancer in his lymph nodes. We cannot afford $3000 for an uncertain course of chemotherapy and I am honestly uneasy about spending that much money on a pet when so many human children are starving. So as I wipe away the tears, I ask for your prayers for us and for Briggs. I have never had such a sweetie for a pet and thank God for bringing him into our lives. I know we'll see him again one day, but it hurts to lose him now. The vet says maybe 6 more months...
This was my reply to our friend:
Father Craig
The dilemma about the money is irrelevant. Our dogs are all fully insured and I would never ever put them through chemotherapy. Humans can get through chemo because they know the possible outcomes. A dog does not, so every moment of suffering is just suffering.
The real dilemma you face is when to say goodbye. Briggs will tell you.
There is a God and there is eternal life.
Father Jonathan
"IT GETS BETTER" A HIT WITH INSOMNIACS
I see Our Gene has posted his own two cents' worth
to the IT GETS BETTER video campaign.
Of course, this a very timely, worthy and, in many cases, incredibly courageous attempt to halt the violence against gay youth and the horrible self-harming that too many of these young people are being driven to. However, let's face it, it is also a little tame.
I suggest that our very own JCF cobbles one together. Now that would have some edge.
Of course, the problem would be that those it would be aimed at would probably, under national censorship laws, be banned from viewing it.
For more Bishop Robinson wonderfulness check out "How Religion Is Killing Our Most Vulnerable Youth" at THE HUFFINGTON POST (and thanks to Mike for sending in the link).
to the IT GETS BETTER video campaign.
Of course, this a very timely, worthy and, in many cases, incredibly courageous attempt to halt the violence against gay youth and the horrible self-harming that too many of these young people are being driven to. However, let's face it, it is also a little tame.
I suggest that our very own JCF cobbles one together. Now that would have some edge.
Of course, the problem would be that those it would be aimed at would probably, under national censorship laws, be banned from viewing it.
For more Bishop Robinson wonderfulness check out "How Religion Is Killing Our Most Vulnerable Youth" at THE HUFFINGTON POST (and thanks to Mike for sending in the link).
A LITTLE LOWER THAN THE DEMONS
From NBC PHILADELPHIA:
A family was horrified when their beloved pet, a cat named “Peter,” returned to his Buena Vista Township home on Thursday with a 6-inch arrow sticking out of his head.
“I was so worried that he would lose his eye and with a hair’s breath, he could have been paralyzed,” said his owner Barbara Ciric.
But a veterinarian carefully removed the arrow and the family hopes the New Jersey State Police will be able to find fingerprints on it.
Peter is not paralyzed and although temporarily blind in the wounded eye, he’s expected to regain his vision within a week.
The cat is a companion to Ciric’s 11-year old son, Scott, who has cerebral palsy.
Thanks to Whiteycat for sending
in the link to this story.
A family was horrified when their beloved pet, a cat named “Peter,” returned to his Buena Vista Township home on Thursday with a 6-inch arrow sticking out of his head.
“I was so worried that he would lose his eye and with a hair’s breath, he could have been paralyzed,” said his owner Barbara Ciric.
But a veterinarian carefully removed the arrow and the family hopes the New Jersey State Police will be able to find fingerprints on it.
Peter is not paralyzed and although temporarily blind in the wounded eye, he’s expected to regain his vision within a week.
The cat is a companion to Ciric’s 11-year old son, Scott, who has cerebral palsy.
Thanks to Whiteycat for sending
in the link to this story.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Check out the mentally ill
soft toys at PEN AND PAPER.
What disappoints me is that
there isn't one in a dog collar.
I know exactly how this one feels.
RANT OF THE DAY
You just know that a post entitled "PURPLESHIRTED PEOPLE EATERS: NO to Bullies, Bigots and Thieves at the Global South/Gafcon Cannibalism Cult of The Anglican Communion" is going to be a belter. And when it's by our good friend, Leonardo Ricardo, you know it's going to be a belter par excellence. You simply must pop over to ERUPTIONS AT THE FOOT OF THE VOLCANO and check it out.
It is you who attempts to pray, pray away your foul odorus way of your own making
in the temple where you worship selfrighteousness, ignorance and greed...it is you who remain in the dark while disrespecting others when there is plenty of light that you squander by hiding decency, truth and common sense...you fight for personal recognition while simultaneously making gory grabs at other peoples humanity and right ¨to be¨ alive .
It is you who attempts to pray, pray away your foul odorus way of your own making
in the temple where you worship selfrighteousness, ignorance and greed...it is you who remain in the dark while disrespecting others when there is plenty of light that you squander by hiding decency, truth and common sense...you fight for personal recognition while simultaneously making gory grabs at other peoples humanity and right ¨to be¨ alive .
YOUR PRAYERS FOR A FRIEND, PLEASE
Those of you who know Sharecropper, from
this blog or elsewhere, should check out
THIS POST at 23 Acres Of Black Dirt.
this blog or elsewhere, should check out
THIS POST at 23 Acres Of Black Dirt.
BISHOP NARROWMIND BLITZES GODWIN'S LAW
From THE MAIL:
The Bishop of Fulham, the Rt Rev John Broadhurst, attacked the Church as he explained his decision to defect to Rome following his resignation on Friday. As a "traditionalist," he has accused the Church of breaking its promises to those opposed to women's ordination and warned that the Pope's invitation to disaffected Anglicans to join the Catholic Church would gather momentum with those dismayed by their treatment. Many now feel that their concerns are being ignored and that they are being marginalised by the Church.
Meanwhile, a parish in the Archbishop of Canterbury's diocese has caused a stir with its announcement that it will be also be defecting to Rome. St Peter's Church in Folkestone, Kent, is to join the Ordinariate, as system designed by the Vatican that allows Anglicans to convert while retaining some of their heritage. Bishop Broadhurst predicted it will be the start of a wave of conversions away from the Church of England.
He said: "I think the Ordinariate will cause a huge shock. People have underestimated the impact it will have.
"I don't feel I have a choice but to leave the Church and take up the Pope's offer.
"The General Synod has become vindictive and vicious. It has been fascist in its behaviour, marginalising those who have been opposed to women's ordination."
Meanwhile, a parish in the Archbishop of Canterbury's diocese has caused a stir with its announcement that it will be also be defecting to Rome. St Peter's Church in Folkestone, Kent, is to join the Ordinariate, as system designed by the Vatican that allows Anglicans to convert while retaining some of their heritage. Bishop Broadhurst predicted it will be the start of a wave of conversions away from the Church of England.
"I don't feel I have a choice but to leave the Church and take up the Pope's offer.
"The General Synod has become vindictive and vicious. It has been fascist in its behaviour, marginalising those who have been opposed to women's ordination."
OVER AT ST. LAIKA'S
I've posted a "Euch for St Luke" at ST. LAIKA'S today.
I've cranked up the production quite a bit. There's lots more going on. It is still a bit clumsy. I expect it will take a while before it is seamless. However, please let me know whether or not you think I'm going in the right direction.
I've cranked up the production quite a bit. There's lots more going on. It is still a bit clumsy. I expect it will take a while before it is seamless. However, please let me know whether or not you think I'm going in the right direction.
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