About Elizaphanian

Back in the dark days of 1995 (for more detail see here) I started to attend a church on Sunday in a serious fashion – for the first time. I had attended a few times mid-week, when I could be safely unknown and anonymous, but attending on Sunday had that combination of desire and fear that all wallflowers are familiar with.

Anyhow, first Sunday there – attended the service – wander through to the teas’n’coffees – take up traditional wallflower position. And one man came across to say hello. Very warm, very open, very affirming. I’ve often thought that if that one man hadn’t been so good to me I wouldn’t have continued to attend the church, I wouldn’t have continued to explore my vocation in such a positive and enthusiastic way. He was a real man of God for me and a great help. Of course I got to know him a bit better while I was at the church, though I haven’t spoken to him for rather a long time. He’s a busy man, you see (the church is on display in the lower picture there).

Now – why am I telling you all this? Because some of the nutters are now having a real go at him. Which tells me all I need to know.

TBTM20071130

Posted on November 30, 2007 by Elizaphanian

A dog in front of the camera.
And a dog’s dinner behind.
At least, that’s what I feel like right now 😛

Philip Pullman is an idiot

Posted on November 29, 2007 by Elizaphanian

Not because he’s an atheist, but because he completely misreads Tolkien: “No-one is in any doubt about what’s good or bad; everyone knows where the good is, and what to do about the bad. Enormous as it is, TLOTR is consequently trivial.”

Lots of really interesting stuff in the interview, which is on one of my favourite blogsites.

And for the record, I really enjoyed ‘His Dark Materials’, I’d be quite happy for my children to read them in due course, and I have a quotation from Pullman stuck on the side of my computer box so that I can ponder it every day. I just think he’s got rather a significant blind spot.

+John Chelmsford on Bishops

Posted on November 29, 2007 by Elizaphanian

“The Bishop, within the bounds of what is properly lawful, sets the conditions for ordination and for the pastoral oversight of clergy and all who hold his licence. No one, under their oath of obligation, can turn round and say that they are not willing to accept the rule the Bishop makes and expect, nevertheless, to proceed to ordination.”

(via Chelmsford Anglican Mainstream)

For background on why +John is saying this, go here. In essence, an ordinand refused to share communion with Bishop John, and so Bishop John is not prepared for him to be ordained in his Diocese. Which seems fair enough to me.