The Church of Englishness
Upon reading Archbishop Stephen Cotterell’s remarks on English identity in the Telegraph, I was reminded of the time I was reading the Law Society Gazette whilst waiting for a court…
Elites
A ‘Church for England’, but whose understanding of Englishness?
Much has been written about the Archbishop of York's article in the Telegraph, in which he set out his vision for England woven with his preferred themes of Englishness, calling for the Church of England to be a church for…
Christ Church vs Martyn Percy: a conspiracy of lawyers, divine PR, and the purgatory of CofE Safeguarding
The story of injustice being inflicted by the Church of England upon Prof Martyn Percy, Dean of Christ Church, Oxford, has been grinding on now for over three months, and…
Nobody knows Nobody’s Friends
People of a certain age might remember that the motorcycle patrolmen of the Automobile Association was once a common sight on British roads. Members sported badges on the fronts of…
Before peace, reconciliation and healing, there must come reckoning
Donald Trump is not a modest man. He is not polished, well read, stylish, university educated, 'sophisticated', or a paragon of moral virtue. But he is the duly elected President…
Bercow, Brexit, conspiracy and coup: the inescapable feeling of betrayal
The most difficult controversies are those in which both sides have a point. Two well known historic examples come to mind. The English Civil War was contended on multiple controversies,…
Happy Brexit Year: control the language, control the argument
"An ennui hangs over British politics and the prime minister is depending on it", wrote Matthew Parris in the Times a few days ago. "Like a thin, wearisome fog it…
‘Light in the Darkness’ – Rev’d Jonathan Aitken preaches Christmas sermon to the Foreign Office
Here is the sermon preached by the Rev'd Jonathan Aitken at the Foreign Office Carol Service, Grand Locarno Room, King Charles St, Westminster, on Tuesday 18th December 2018: It is a…
The EU is an anti-European force: it must become a ‘community of spirit’
The Red Cell is new research project set up to "inform, challenge and trigger" in order to deliver and manage Brexit. "It's a small unit, a break out team. its…
Italy is now a post-democratic colony of the EU: the ballot box no longer works
So, the 'elite' President of Italy has vetoed the appointment of a 'populist' finance minister, citing "uncertainty" about Italy's membership of the euro, which is apparently inviolable. "I asked for...…
Happy Inauguration Anniversary, Mr President. And thanks for getting back to the separation of powers
One year ago, our friends in the USA exchanged one thin-skinned narcissistic president for another, and immediately a fresh chapter of their ongoing culture wars began. Less inhibited than their…
‘Shithole countries’ tittle-tattle only served to mask the Uranium One fallout: the real scandal is yet to surface
Last Friday, President Trump was reported to have used the most crass terms when discussing admitting migrants from countries like Haiti into the United States of America. He denies the…
Archbishop of Canterbury urges Brexit Christmas truce
"We go back 103 years, we find at Christmas 1914 there was a ceasefire," the Archbishop of Canterbury reminded us in a BBC interview from Lambeth Palace. "It would be…
Welby: Brexit offers ‘a wide and liberal future’; Remainers are ‘depressed’ and ‘paranoid’
When it transpired that the reason Chris Heaton-Harris MP had written to all university vice-chancellors asking for the names of academics lecturing on Brexit was simply because he was writing…
Forget Brexit academics – how many of them are Conservatives?
Government Whip Chris Heaton-Harris has sent a letter to all university vice chancellors asking for the names of academics lecturing on European affairs, with particular reference to Brexit. He also…
If only the Trump Twitter feed had more soft words and gentle answers
There is a time to keep silence, and a time to speak, observes Qoheleth, the voice of the Book of Ecclesiastes (3:7). Proverbs talks about the wise man using words with…
Welby wants a Christian Brexit, led by “someone that is trusted”
Justin Welby has been in Africa, but no one really cared much about that. He went to inaugurate the new autonomous Anglican province of Sudan and to highlight the plight…
Bishop “ashamed” that the UK voted to leave the EU
Bishop David Gillett was the Bishop of Bolton for nine years, and before that he was Principal of Trinity Theological College in Bristol for 11 years. He is now an…
You cannot “draw the poison from Brexit” without extracting deception from the human heart
'Where there is no vision, the people perish', the Archbishop of Canterbury writes in the Mail on Sunday, reminding is that the Authorised Version still resonates down the ages, and…
Félicitations, President Macron – Vive la Faux Révolution!
As the victorious President-elect Emmanuel Macron appeared in front of Le Louvre to address the Fifth Republic, it was conspicuously to the strains of Beethoven's 'Ode to Joy' – the…