State of the nation

Posted on 11 May 2010 by Peter

I find myself wondering, in the light of the recent election in the UK, what the result of this changing of the guard will be. I remember well the vote in 1997, when we were all enthused with the idea of voting out the old Tory government and bringing in New Labour. In retrospect, I suppose there were many shades of the promises of ‘change’ that brought Obama to power. In the UK we also got change, but to the better? I think not.

Any that read this blog will know I have followed the increasing chilling of Christian expression in the UK. The pressure of course has come from our enlightened, tolerant, inclusive and progressive masters. However, as I said back in 2007,

It appears that the inclusivity that we have been asked to sign up to is one simply of the current zeitgeist – the spirit of this age. The spirit, however, is jealous for its space, and will not long tolerate opposing forces. Those who do not bow the knee will soon find that the much vaunted inclusivity does not stretch to include them.

More recently, we have seen this chilling and marginalisation increase, for instance:

Another UK Street Preacher Arrested, Charged, for Views on Homosexuality

Clergy could be sued if they refuse to carry out ‘gay marriages’, traditionalists fear

Lest it seem that these concerns are taken out of context and overblown, these issues are gathering some significant attention:

The religious rights of Christians are treated with disrespect


Britain is persecuting Christians, say bishops

Church leaders head for showdown with top judges over bias against Christians

In what might be the most damning aspect, this progressive persecution of Christian expression in the UK has taken place during the tenure of two Prime Ministers – Blair and Brown – who lay claim to the faith. Of course they did not have control over every aspect of the country, but for better or worse, they were our leaders and as such were responsible for setting a course. The port of infamy to which they have sailed us is their legacy and their shame.

What will happen now, I cannot say, though I don’t have any great enthusiasm for the new masters. A line from Yeats poem, the Second Coming, may be appropriate:

The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.

Perhaps there will be a situation similar to that here in Canada where, ‘lacking all conviction’, the demolition of society is at least put on hold for a while.

Lest this be all doom and gloom, I pass on to you the same verse that I gave at the beginning of the year.

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16 v33 NIV.

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Institutionalism

Posted on 14 April 2010 by Peter

With recent news, my thoughts turned to the dangers of institutionalism, particularly in the Church.

First, let me define my terms. I am using institutionalism to describe an unhealthy attachment to an institution, not to argue per-se against institutions. Whenever a group of people get together to do something, they will become organised and lead, and an institution of one type or another will be formed. Institutions are, in my view, inevitable. But they bring an associated risk, one that has to be continually fought, of a selective blindness towards that institution – of valuing adherence more than valuing truth, righteousness and justice.

We have seen that over the years in the Catholic Church, and the fruit of that is being brought to light by the coarse brush of the press. I have no illusions as to the press’s motives, however it is God’s good pleasure to use a scourer when other methods have proven fruitless. There is a judgment in that, but a judgment hopefully to repentance and restoration.

I would wish to see that form of judgement also in the Anglican Communion, where institutionalism has lead to duplicity and deceit. There is no glory to God in such practices, indeed Churches that operate in such manner may soon find themselves severed from the vine by their own actions.

In either case, there is a salutary lesson here, one which those dedicated to the renewal in Anglicanism should bear in mind. No institution, on whatever ‘side’, should command more loyalty than God, lest we replace one blind organisation with another.

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Christian Orphanage forcibly shut down in Morocco

Posted on 9 March 2010 by Peter

By request, below is the official statement. Click on the link to see the full thing, with pictures.

Village of Hope Official Statement
11 March 2010

This is the first official statement from the parents of the Village of Hope. It is written with the full endorsement of all the parents who are currently in exile after deportation. Previous statements and comments to be found on the worldwide web and other publications have not been endorsed by the parents.

For the past 10 years the Village of Hope has offered an outstanding level of care and love to Moroccan Children. The unique model of care offered by VOH means that children have been raised in family units with a Mum and Dad rather than the more traditional dormitory style orphanage set up. VOH has always operated with the full knowledge and agreement of the Moroccan authorities with the overt understanding that the overseas workers are Christian. It has also always been understood that the children would be raised in a Muslim/Christian environment but would also be fully immersed in their Moroccan culture in terms of love for their country, language, education and knowledge of Islam.

On Monday 8th March, all 16 overseas workers, including 10 parents, and 13 natural-born dependents, were told they were to be evicted from the site and country. The reason given was that the parents had been proselytizing, with no explanation of who, when, where or how this was alleged to have occurred. No charges concerning the welfare and care of the children have ever been raised as a concern by the Moroccan authorities in the 10 year history of VOH.

The Moroccan authorities have not produced any evidence of the alleged offence and they gave only a few hours for the parents to pack up belongings and explain to their children that they might never see them again.

This action against VOH was part of a nationwide crackdown against Christians living in Morocco. VOH fully understands that the Moroccan law prohibits people from promoting a faith other than Islam and has always sought to abide by this law and recognises the right of the authorities to enforce this law. All parents, volunteers and visitors to VOH were required to sign a declaration stating that they will abide by the Moroccan law prohibiting evangelism. A copy of this declaration is appended below. VOH strongly refutes the allegation made against its staff and confirms that the authorities have always been aware of its Christian ethos and that throughout the 10 years the authorities have placed children into the care of VOH. It is also a grave concern that no appeal process has been offered to challenge this decision and the action taken.

The eviction process was the most painful situation imaginable. The Moroccan authorities gathered the children together in the school and told them what was happening in the absence of the parents. After that, parents had to further explain to the devastated children what was about to happen. Some of the children have been with their parents for 10 years and the trauma caused was beyond description. VOH would like to make it very clear that during the eviction process, no member of the Moroccan authorities ill treated any of the staff or children and that the Moroccan authorities had a team of carers, albeit strangers to the children, ready to come in and offer temporary care. However, parents have no idea what is to happen to their children or how they are coping and have no point of contact with the Moroccan authorities.

VOH understands the action of the authorities in relation to any “missionaries” if there is real evidence against them of preaching the gospel. However, they feel the action against them was without foundation and completely unjust. VOH is not a missionary organisation and only exists to offer love, care and education to Moroccan children. There is a sense that VOH has been included in a nationwide action, but there is absolutely no legal merit to the action taken against VOH.

The parents of VOH want to clearly state their love for the Kingdom and people of Morocco and fear this act by the authorities will cause long term damage to the excellent reputation of Morocco. Morocco is viewed by the West as a moderate and safe Islamic state with an ever improving response to social issues. The King has been a driving force behind so much positive reform and he is to be honoured for all he has done for the betterment of his people. However, actions like this are only likely to tarnish Morocco’s image and have a detrimental effect on inward investment, foreign aid and tourism. If a perception grows that non-Islamic guests in Morocco and foreign led organisations are being targeted then we fear for the damage that could be caused. Key relationships with the EU and other trading partners and supporters of Morocco could be affected unless a negotiated settlement can be seen to take place. VOH, through its international investors, have pumped Millions of Moroccan dirham into infrastructure, care of children, employment of Moroccans and the local economy only to have it taken away in a matter of hours. What signal does this send to others looking to support the development of Morocco either through trade, aid or simply as a tourist.

The parents only want to be reunited with their children. Every single set of parents would return to Morocco to continue with the care of the children and continue to live under the law and authority of the State. Equally, the parents would be willing to negotiate for the release of the children into their care to the parent’s country of origin. As parents, we plead with the Moroccan authorities to open a dialogue with us as to the future well being and care of our children.

We openly and unashamedly appeal directly to the King, as a Father himself, to act with mercy and help us reach a point of compromise and reunite the 33 children with the only parents they know.

We also appeal to our supporters around the World to not react to this situation and use the internet or any other means to say anything that might be viewed as detrimental about the Moroccan authorities. We the parents are the only people who carry the authority to speak into this situation on behalf of our children and we are raising up a team of people whom we trust with our message to speak on our behalves. If you have posted “unauthorised” comments or started campaigns, we would plead with you to stop and remove information you have put into the public domain.

For offers of help and especially if you have access to the people of influence and power, please contact the following people:

USA
Allen Wolf
Tel: 310-314-3960
allen@morningstarpictures.com

UK
Mark Johnston
Pioneer People Wirral
Tel: 0798 654 0930
mcwirral@yahoo.co.uk
To make a donation:
http://www.justgiving.co.uk/pioneerpeople

Holland
Information coming

South Africa
Errol Muller
venita5045@swissmail.org

France
Michael Paita
La Gerbe
Tél : 01 34 75 56 15
michael.paita@lagerbe.org

As parents, we can’t walk away from this situation. We need to work hard to make sure our children are safe and ultimately given back to us. We appeal for international support to help us campaign against this unjust decision. We urgently need finances to provide living costs for displaced families, provision of support for sacked Moroccan workers, legal representation, travel costs for staff to and from home countries and funding to fight this issue for as long as it takes. Again, please contact the above people to provide your financial support.

We conclude with just one story to make everyone understand the impact of what is happening.

Simo came to VoH as a very sick newborn baby boy. He had been born to a single teenage mother with mental health problems, who abandoned him at VoH on the day of his birth, and in a very unwell state. Within hours of his arrival, he developed breathing problems, and was rushed to hospital, where he stopped breathing and was revived by our Dutch nurse. Simo remained in hospital for eight weeks, and was then returned to VoH care and custody by the Moroccan authorities. He returned malnourished, and extremely unwell. He was unable to feed except through a tube, and then only in very small amounts. He weighed only 2.79kg, less than his original birth weight. Simo required, and received, one-on-one nursing care from our qualified Dutch and British nursing staff 24-7 for several months. Once Simo began putting on weight and his health improved, he was placed permanently with one of the VoH parents, who have provided him with love and all the other essential needs of a little baby. He has remained with his new parents and 9 siblings for the past year, up until the day that they were evicted. Simo was later diagnosed with severe cerebral palsy, and had a number of ongoing related complications. However, with a strict medication and care regime from his parents and our nursing staff, he became a happy, healthy little boy with a future and a hope.

Without VoH’s immediate intervention and action, Simo would have died. But at the time of the parent’s eviction from VoH, he was a happy and very healthy little boy who, whilst very handicapped, was well provided for and continues to be loved as a son and brother by his parents and siblings. We have been informed that Simo had a very bad night after his parents departed, and that within 15 hours of his mum and dad being torn from him, he was taken to a hospital to be cared for, as the temporary Moroccan staff were unable to cope with his needs. We reiterate that Simo was not unwell when his parents were taken away. But he requires a particular regime of medication and special care to ensure that he remains healthy and comfortable. We hope that he continues to receive the special care that he requires, that people will be permitted to visit and hold him, to talk to him and let him know that he is still loved. Ultimately, we want to see Simo back in the arms of his loving parents and siblings, restored to the love and hope that he so deserves.

We have another 32 stories to tell and will keep telling the stories until a just decision is made. This is not an issue of Islam vs Christianity, this is a issue of families torn apart, bewildered and devastated children and heartbroken parents. We call for Justice.

God bless and thank you for the uncountable acts and words of kindness and prayer already received. Please continue to stand with us.

From the Parents in exile and separated from their beautiful Children.

To help out at this time, please consider a donation to VoH.

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Persecution

Posted on 5 March 2010 by Peter

A vision today, on persecution.

There really are two kinds of persecution. It is as if we are standing on a Rock – Jesus Christ, while around us swirl the waters of the world. In the bay next to us the waves crash and roar, the persecution both physical and intense.

For us it is different, more insidious. An undertow that constantly tries to pull us off, away, out to sea and our destruction. The waters appear calm, but it is deceptive. No crashing waves. Nevertheless the persecution is oh so real, just that we do not perceive it for what it is because it is less visible.

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The volcano

Posted on 22 February 2010 by Peter

Back in November last year I received a vision of a picturesque bay of water, with a town nestling by the waters edge and securely protected by a headland. Water gently lapping in the bay, blue sky overhead.

But in the bay, most incongruously, a smoking, lava-spewing hill – perhaps a volcano. Not erupting, but restless and with the ominous potential to do so. The volcano did not fit – simply not part of the idyllic scene.

A deeper understanding of the vision did not come to me until January this year. I had left off in November with the sense that the volcano was wrong for the picture – it did not fit or feel right. But in January I began to see this volcano as the mountain of God – his judgment. I had read of a similar vision, and then Rev 8 v8 came to mind:

The second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turned into blood.

Truth is, the mountain does not belong, and more than our sin belongs, but there it is. I wonder if we can grasp just how much sin and the resulting judgment is as far from God’s desire as the East is from the West? We consider God to be an angry and often judgmental God, and if we are honest we often secretly delight in His judgment, as long as it happens to someone else. But both the sin and the mountain are a mar on the original purposes of His creation, neither are His wish. Hence the ‘wrongness’ of His judgment – the wrongness that comes from our spewing of toxins into what He called good.

We need to come to understand the seriousness of sin, the seriousness of judgment, and the overwhelming goodness, holiness, mercy and justice of God.

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Declaration of war

Posted on 15 February 2010 by Peter

To my mind, the article below is indicative of where all parts of Western society will go, devoid of the restraining power of God. The coercive power of the state, brought to bear in the attempt to enforce a new morality.

The real failure here is of the Church – the Church that is called to be salt and light in the world, but failing to be either. The judgment falls on the Church first, as it dwindles into irrelevance. Then upon society as it receives the ultimate judgement – freedom to do as it wishes.

MONTREAL, Quebec, February 3, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) – A professor at McGill University has published a strong condemnation of the Quebec government’s “policy against homophobia,” which was released in December. Warning that this policy represents a “declaration of war” against any who oppose the homosexualist agenda, Dr. Douglas Farrow, Professor of Christian Thought, calls on his fellow citizens to take a stand against it.

When the Quebec Ministry of Justice released the policy before Christmas, it was held up as the first of its kind from a North American jurisdiction. The Ministry asserted that, with homosexuality having achieved full normalization in Quebec law, the present policy aims to normalize homosexuality on the social level.

Dr. Farrow’s article, entitled “The Government of Québec Declares War: on a ‘homophobic’ and ‘heterosexist’ populace,” was published on the Catholic Civil Rights League website.

The Quebec policy, writes Dr. Farrow, “diagrams a full-scale assault, to be coordinated by an inter-departmental committee, against ‘homophobic attitudes and behaviour patterns’ and ‘sets out the government’s goal of removing all the obstacles’ to full recognition of LGBT interests and modes of life.”

“What is thus promulgated is no ordinary policy document,” he continues, “for it aims at the conversion, not merely of this or that piece of public infrastructure, but of the psychological and moral and sexual infrastructure of a generation.”

He emphasizes that the initiative represents an unprecedented interference of government into private affairs, and that it thus threatens basic freedoms. “Herewith the Ministry of Justice moves boldly and decisively into territory once reserved for the voluntary organs of civil society,” he explains. “Not only is homophobia to be eradicated ‘at all levels of society,’ it is to be eradicated as a matter of government policy and by means of government action.”

The policy is “an official endorsement of – indeed, the assumption of full responsibility for – the activist agenda of so-called LGBT groups,” he says. “As such, it is also a declaration of war by the Charest government on all groups and citizens who oppose that agenda.”

“Can the government win such a war?” he asks. “Perhaps not. But a government so lacking in constitutional modesty, in moral judgment, and in political sense as to wage it, is a government that can and will wreak havoc in Quebec society.”

Farrow undercuts the ideological assumptions driving the government’s plan, dissecting, for example, a statement on it from Premier Jean Charest. “Our society has everything to gain from accepting sexual diversity and fighting intolerance,” Charest proclaimed.

While such a claim is commonly accepted at face value, Farrow raises some of the numerous questions underlying Charest’s assertion. “Refusing to accept sexual diversity as a public desideratum may indeed be a form of intolerance, but is it a bad form of intolerance or a good form?” he asks, for example.

The document focuses on combating “homophobia,” but Farrow says that “we cannot get the measure of this document” without a grasp of what he says the government sees as homophobia’s ‘twin evil’: “heterosexism.” “Heterosexism,” according to the policy, is “affirmation of heterosexuality as a social norm or the highest form of sexual orientation.”

Farrow points out the fact that, in rejecting “heterosexism,” “the Government of Quebec has rejected heterosexuality as a social norm!” and he says that it is there where “the full scope of this absurd war begin[s] to appear.” He relates the obvious fact that Quebec society, as all others, was built on ancestors “who all took heterosexuality as the social norm.”

“The Government of Quebec, giving a mind-boggling twist to the doctrine of original sin, has
declared all the implicit and explicit ‘heterosexism’ that is built into these undeniable
facts an enemy of the state,” he says. “In its breathtaking stupidity it has declared war, not only on its own citizenry, but on nature itself.”

“Institutions, public and private, will be pressed into partnership,” Farrow warns. “The cooperation of every citizen is already expected, and will soon be demanded. A supportive school curriculum, mandatory in nature, will be forthcoming – indeed, the Ethics and Religious Culture program has already laid the foundations.”

Farrow connects what he calls the government’s ‘impaired judgment’ with the formerly Catholic province’s denial of its faith during the Quiet Revolution. “[The government’s] thinking has become futile because it no longer acknowledges what every human being should acknowledge about the Author of morality or about the fundamentals of morality,” he says. “In other words, because it has carried an earlier revolution, the Quiet Revolution, much too far, and got it all mixed up with the sexual revolution that began about the same time.”

Heterosexuals are equally to blame as homosexuals, he says, for “what John Paul II dubbed ‘the contraceptive mentality’ helped to produce our moral blindness and corresponding intellectual futility.”

Farrow concludes by urging his fellow citizens to stand up against the government’s attack. “War has been declared, and war there will be,” he states. “Let those who intend to fight, fight now. Let them fight with the weapons of St Benedict, yes, but with the weapons of Martin Luther King, Jr, too. Let them meet and consult, and determine to act publicly and in concert, laying aside their customary deference, which has no place in a time of war.”

Fight we must, though I suspect it may be a guerilla war.

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11:11

Posted on 17 January 2010 by Peter

I recently came across a post that shed some light on something puzzling that has occured to me and also to friends from time to time:

FOR some time now, I have spoken with the occasional reader who is befuddled as to why they are suddenly seeing the number 11:11 or 1:11, or 3:33, 4:44, etc. Whether glancing at a clock, a cellphone, television, page number, etc. they are suddenly seeing this number “everywhere.” For instance, they won’t look at the clock all day, but suddenly feel the urge to look up, and there it is again.

Is it just coincidence? Is there a “sign” involved? My first reaction was that it is just coincidence, that it is what it is, and that there is a even a danger to attempt to read something into numbers (ie. numerology). But then… I started to see this everywhere myself, sometimes 3-4 times a day. And so recently, I asked the Lord if this has any meaning. Immediately the “scales of justice” came into my mind’s eye with the understanding that 11:11 shows a balance, so to speak, of mercy vs. justice, but 1:11 shows a “tipping” of the scale, as does any triple number such as 3:33.

Tipping in what direction…?

Having had this happen to me from time to time, and being unable to discern any particular significance, I simply filed it in the ‘unknown’ basket. Having googled it and read a few less-than-helpful sites, I was well aware of the danger of numerology. At the same time, I was also aware of the ‘red car’ syndrome, by which I mean that should you take ownership of a red car, it becomes amazing as to how many red cars there are on the road.

I still don’t know for sure what to make of it. However, I did resonate with Mark’s post above, in particular with the description of the scales balancing mercy and justice. I received the impression of the world being actively weighed on God’s scales.

The other thing that came to mind was Amos’s plubline:

This is what he showed me: behold, the Lord was standing beside a wall built with a plumb line, with a plumb line in his hand. 8 And the Lord said to me, “Amos, what do you see?” And I said, “A plumb line.” Then the Lord said, “Behold, I am setting a plumb line in the midst of my people Israel; I will never again pass by them;” Amos 9 v7-8 ESV

From Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary

7:1-9 God bears long, but he will not bear always with a provoking people. The remembrance of the mercies we formerly received, like the produce of the earth of the former growth, should make us submissive to the will of God, when we meet with disappointments in the latter growth. The Lord has many ways of humbling a sinful nation. Whatever trouble we are under, we should be most earnest with God for the forgiveness of sin. Sin will soon make a great people small. What will become of Israel, if the hand that should raise him be stretched out against him? See the power of prayer. See what a blessing praying people are to a land. See how ready, how swift God is to show mercy; how he waits to be gracious. Israel was a wall, a strong wall, which God himself reared as a defence to his sanctuary. The Lord now seems to stand upon this wall. He measures it; it appears to be a bowing, bulging wall. Thus God would bring the people of Israel to the trial, would discover their wickedness; and the time will come, when those who have been spared often, shall be spared no longer. But the Lord still calls Israel his people. The repeated prayer and success of the prophet should lead us to seek the Saviour.

It shouldn’t be any surprise that we are – as individuals, communities, and nations, being actively weighed in the balance. In a sense, it has always been thus, but this may be a particular Kairos moment.

Kyrie Eleison, Christi Eleison.

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Overcoming the world

Posted on 1 January 2010 by Peter

As we enter into 2010, a word from my sponsor:

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16 v33 NIV.

I believe we will come to know the reality of these words as we are faced with the choice of either throwing our lot in with the world, or with the overcomer of the world. The middle ground will become thin indeed.

Increasingly we are faced with stories such as this, folks forced to choose between their faith and their job, or their kids, or their family, or whatever pressure point can be brought to bear to ensure compromise and compliance.

Is this an overreaction to a few isolated cases, or is it indicative of a deeper trend? I would argue for the latter. Things never start with a final solution, there are always first steps. New laws and policies are gradually introduced that marginalise and chill, touch those who are public facing, put pressure on them to compromise. It is a smiling evil, always presenting a sunny face with teeth bared.

But why should we care, it doesn’t affect us, we’re OK? Until you have an new “tolerance and equality” workplace ethics rule that you are required to sign. Or something similar. What then? Compromise is probably the easiest path, it always is. After all, greatest good for the greatest number. Why should you lose your job and the support for your family over signing a bit of paper that will never really mean anything anyway? What are you, an extremist? Just get along.

Surely society – most decent, law abiding people – won’t abide such injustices? Truth be told, they will. At the end of the day, most people simply won’t care enough to raise a finger, either tacitly approving or not concerned enough to do anything about it. Neutered sympathy at best, perhaps.

Don’t believe it? See Exhibit A from an Equalities minister, the very department generating the persecution legislation. Legal action taken against Churches is all the rage nowadays, and we know how that’s going to work out. Still , as the minister says, “if the church’s argument is good enough – which I believe it is – then the church should win through” – very comforting indeed. George Pitcher gets it – the whole point of Equality legislation is that some groups are more equal than others. You don’t need a degree to decode this, it’s really quite simple:

Tolerance, meaning intolerance.
Diversity, meaning conformity.
Equality, meaning inequality.

Returning to the first article I linked to – I note the courts opinion, and using principles above, put the quote in plainer language:

What the court said:

The Court of Appeal’s Lord Neuberger said, “It appears to me that, however much sympathy one may have with someone such as Ms. Ladele, who is faced with choosing between giving up a post she plainly appreciates or officiating at events which she considers to be contrary to her religious beliefs, the legislature has decided that the requirements of a modern liberal democracy, such as the United Kingdom, include outlawing discrimination in the provision of goods, facilities and services on grounds of sexual orientation, subject only to very limited exceptions.”

What the court meant:

The Court of Appeal’s Lord Neuberger said, “It appears to me that, however little sympathy one may have with someone such as Ms. Ladele, who is faced with choosing between giving up a post she plainly appreciates or officiating at events which she considers to be contrary to her religious beliefs (note the use of language to personalise and inject doubt as to validity), the legislature has decided that the requirements of a modern liberal democracy, such as the United Kingdom, include enshrining discrimination against the exercise of traditional religion, subject only to very limited exceptions (which will be removed in due course).”

But this is just the UK, yes? Surely it could not happen wherever you live, should you live somewhere different? It’s happening to somebody else, somewhere else. Apathy is bliss, until it lands on your doorstep one day. Then you will know the truth of Jesus’s words – the world really does hate you, and who you represent. Then you will have to decide which master to serve. The world will offer you temporal comfort and cheer – nirvana for a season. Jesus offers no such thing – but does offer the gift of following in His footsteps and overcoming the world – “that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe” (Phil 2 v15).

UPDATE – Related links below:

We need a shared story to underpin our national life.

Amendments To Equality Bill
We wish to alert you to amendments to the Equality Bill which are to be voted on in the House of Lords on 14th January. These amendments have the potential to remove the right of every citizen to live according to her or his conscience and faith tradition, especially with regard to employment and the operation and ethos of their places of worship. The Equality Bill will strike out all exemptions on the basis of religion (with two modest exceptions) which will mean that all will be forced to conform to secularist values and ideology even in their churches, synagogues, mosques, temples and gurdwaras.

Archbishop of York Would Not Qualify as Clergy under Labour’s Equality Bill

British Christian Teacher Sacked after Offering to Pray for Ill Student

Posted in Christian, Prophecy | 5 Comments

Happy Christmas

Posted on 25 December 2009 by Peter

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Winter storm

Posted on 6 December 2009 by Peter

Some pics from the winter storm we had last Friday, it was quite something! Gale force northerly, snow and blowing snow, temps dropping to -10c, etc. Now sitting at a frigid -20c…..

Posted in Pictures, Weather | 4 Comments