Are people who have concerns about illegal immigration into Britain welcome in the Church of England? The question is raised by a statement from the bishops who lead the Diocese of Southwark, which covers most of south London.
The Acting Bishop of Southwark, Rosemarie Mallett, the Bishop of Kingston, Martin Gainsborough, and the Bishop of Woolwich, Alastair Cutting, have issued a proclamation complaining that
Some members of the ‘Patriot Platform’ movement have been attending worship at one of the churches in our diocese. Concerns have been raised with us about the language and actions of this group and how they are proclaiming the Christian faith in association with anti-migrant rhetoric.
This whinge comes from leaders of a church denomination that is in numerical meltdown. In 2003, the average weekly attendance across the CofE was 1,126,000. By 2024 that had fallen to around 700,000.
When I was a CofE vicar in a South Yorkshire commuter village with a small congregation and hardly any men under the age of 40, I would have been delighted if a group of younger males had started turning up to church. If I had heard any racialist rhetoric I would have challenged it. I would have tried to explain from the Bible that each and every one of us, irrespective of our racial, cultural or financial background, is a sinner in need of the salvation that comes through Christ.
I did not see it as my business to censor or complain about lawful conversations on current affairs over coffee in the Parish Centre or anywhere else. If I had seen anyone engaging in unlawful behaviour on the church premises or elsewhere, I would have reported the matter to the police and told the diocesan authorities that I had done so.
Judging by the bishops’ statement, all these men appear to have done so far is turn up to church.
And in fact, it turns out that the vicar of the church in question doesn’t agree with the bishops who issued their statement after reading in a Left-wing magazine that members of Patriot Platform were going to his church.
The Church Times reports:
The incumbent of a church in south London which is attended by members of the far-Right group Patriot Platform has spoken of his commitment to keeping its doors “open to everyone — full stop”.
The Team Rector of Morden Team Parish, in the diocese of Southwark, the Revd David Heath-Whyte, who has served there since 2014, said on Tuesday: “Welcoming people through our doors does not mean condoning their actions or agreeing with all their views. But we do believe in the transforming power of the gospel to change and to heal us, and we continue to preach the gospel to that end.”
He spoke after the magazine Searchlight — which says that it “investigates and opposes fascism, antisemitism and racism in Britain and abroad” — ran an article last month drawing attention to social media posts by the leader of Patriot Platform, Daniel Thomas, commonly known as ‘Danny Tommo’. It mentioned his attendance at St Lawrence’s, Morden, and was headlined ‘The Christian church with an open door for the far Right’.
Heath-Whyte, who turns out to be something of an evangelical hero, went on to say: “As pastors, our responsibility is to nurture those who are new to the faith. Our conversion is a lifelong journey, as we work out our salvation.”
Asked what he would say to somebody who suggested that the church should not be open to members of Patriot Platform, he said: “If a church were to ban one particular kind of person because of their sin, where would we stop? We are all guilty of sin — as the Church of England liturgy says.”
Would the Southwark bishops have issued their sanctimonious statement if they had found out that members of Antifa were turning up to a church in the diocese?
Julian Mann, a former Church of England vicar, is an evangelical journalist based in Lancashire.
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According to the left, Christ was an anarchist.
I stopped going to church after leaving the Scouts (Sunday service obligatory), but there was a C of E vicar at the youth club I attended. He ran a debating group which was very lively with us taking opposing views on a variety of subjects. It taught me what I now know as critical thinking, and especially the importance of seeing others views.
In this particular case, maybe the rook restoration fund will be repurposed from rebuilding the spire into the a minaret and speaker system!
Jesus was criticised for spending time with “tax collectors and sinners”. God meets us where we are, He doesn’t wait for us to be perfect before He’ll dare speak to us.
Not only that, but he apparently condoned people taking action to protect their house against those who wanted to break in and steal (Luke 12:39). As far as I’m concerned, there’s little difference between a burglar – entering a property uninvited and taking things that don’t belong to them – and an illegal migrant – entering a country uninvited and claiming benefits that others have paid in for.
What is the “particular type of sin” of the Patriot people?
I would guess it’s a wish to see our borders properly controlled. But as that’s now considered a ‘far right’ view, that would automatically make them ‘far right’.
Meanwhile the far left, in the guise of Antifa, Hope Not Hate, Just Stop Oil, BLM and just about any NGO associated with illegal immigration – all self-identifying as part of a ‘be kind’ movement yet all hell-bent on the destruction of the UK – will be welcome through church doors.
The recent Kings motion (Gay marriage)
The vote highlighted deep internal divisions because it actually passed in two out of the three houses of the Synod but was vetoed by the third:
House of Clergy: Approved (93 in favor, 79 against)
House of Laity: Approved (101 in favor, 83 against)
House of Bishops:Defeated (11 in favor, 14 against, 4 abstentions)
Because a motion requires a majority in all three houses to pass, the rejection by the bishops meant the motion failed.
Its hard to see the C of E surviving if we rely only on the House of Bishops vetoing the motion The impending retirements of the Bishops and the tilt towards Satan will make us the laughing stock in religious matters.
All this is deeply funny.
The Bishop of Dover has declared the Channel migrants to be ‘our brothers, sisters, and mothers’. Scripture has been used in sermons to stymie any latent opposition to mass immigration and in books by Christian authors to justify multiculturalism.
These are all policies of the British state in the 21st century and have absolutely no connection with anyone who lived in the 1st century or their religion.
You can find – and I have heard – black pastors claiming that Jesus of Nazareth was a person of colour. As if that was the reason God chose Him to be his Son.
The Church of England could have had gay marriage 35 years ago if the opinions of the congregation I was part of in London at that time. The current priestess of this church goes to hand out leaflets that oppose ‘far-Right narratives’ at the demos organised by Yaxley-Lennon.
It has to be asked if any of these clergy and congregations actually read the scriptures they claim to believe in. The Apostle Paul rhetorically asked his converts who they were to judge another’s servant. In other words, it’s no business of some vicar, whether she… Read more »
I’m sure at the same time as wanting to see reparations she believes that Christianity brought numerous benefits to African populations – for example, education (my wife’s great aunt was a missionary teacher who taught at the school attended at that time by Robert Mugabe, so maybe not a rip-roaring success education-wise 😖).
The impact of this pulpit pronouncement by the Bishop is to make a target of this church for lefties and islamists. Wouldn’t surprise me if it wasn’t on purpose. The Cof E are more commies than Christian.
…and judging by that photo of her fawning over the woman entirely shrouded in black apart from a couple of tiny eyeholes – a sympathiser of Islamo-Marxism.
Yep. The poor woman was dressed up like Darth Vader or a witch in a Korean horror film and the AoC was Rosie The Riveter. None so blind as.those who will not see.
I hate to generalise but the picture says it all.
Black woman, short hair. Likely a total racist.
Examples:
Shola Mos
Imarn Ayrton
I’m hardly an expert but I see the C of R as a milquetoast english version of the catholic church. Even the liturgy is basically the same, translated.
The whole point surely of Luther’s protestant revolution was to bypass the weighty and corrupt structure of the church by reading and knowing the bible, and praying in private or in family groups .
Which is why Tyndale was burned alive – for making the bible accessible to non-latin readers by publishing a translation into English theteb weakening the hold of the establishment over the plebs.
As I understand it much of the KJ bible is basically his text and by god it’s beautiful.
Whilst the C of E had nailed its colours to the hideous modern “relevant” translations which are basically unreadable shit.
Good man! If my local vicar were like David Heath-Whyte I might start going to church again.
Also, haven’t these idiot bishops read the gospels? They should know about the sort of person Jesus associated with. And it wasn’t the pharisees.
No surprise as bishops are simply career climbing middle managers in a large corporate enterprise. There’s absolutely nothing spiritual about them. The same applies to those above them in the hierarchy who are nothing but a corporate board.
I have to question how many of these bishops are actually Christians. I don’t see any evidence that suggests that they are. This is the reason that I stopped attending church in my twenties, thanks to the curate being a liar, and constantly being judged. I had initially gone to church wishing to find a family, because my own was toxic. I was bitterly disappointed by my experiences.
One of our local parish churches has a big sign on the noticeboard outside saying “No-one is more welcome here than you”. I guess that doesn’t apply to anyone with concerns about immigration.
Does that also mean that no one is less welcome than you? Logic can be applied to these statements if you understand what it is.
Indeed. Logically it means everyone is equally welcome. Perhaps our local church actually means it – I’ve never been so I can’t say. But I doubt it applies in all churches. From what I’ve read, lockdown sceptics were not welcome in many churches during “Covid”.
If the CofE ever wonders why people like me want nothing to do with it, they need look no further than what the E stands for and how English people are not wanted in the Church.
I lost any faith I ever had 50 years ago, but regaining it with the current leadership would be impossible.
I very much doubt if they ever bother to look inwards. If I ever return to churchgoing, it won’t be to the church into which I was baptised and confirmed – the Church of England.
Why is opposing invasion and abuse of loopholes (that shouldn’t exist) by foreigners even right wing?
The problem isn’t the people crossing the channel.
The problem is those within our own country who encourage and/or enable it.
The UK Government is the biggest people smuggler, abetted and aided by Lefty-minded people who can’t see or refuse to see the harm mass immigration is doing to is country and their own people.
Traitors, the lot of them, and it goes back a long way.
“I came not to call the just, but sinners”.