Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Because Not Quite Every Vestige of Christianity Has Yet Been Stamped Out in Britain

This has to go in the "either laugh or cry file." St. Francis is considered too offensive for the local library bulletin board in London. Ruth Gledhill reports:
"St Francis is a saint normally associated with peaceful, eremetic living
and an overwhelming empathy for the animal kingdom. He is invoked in matters to
do with stewardship, climate change and all things green. But an innocuous St
Francis weekend organised by a London Catholic church has turned into an
interfaith battle over what is and is not deemed to be politically
correct.

As we report, Camden council is reconsidering whether to allow
its libraries and social centres to display a poster advertising a weekend of
climate change events organised by the local Roman Catholic parish church, Our
Lady Help of Christians. However, the council did ban the poster. The council
does not advertise anything of a religious nature, for fear of offending
religious sensibilities. The St Francis poster was deemed to be in breach of
these rules, even though the Muslims who own the corner shop frequented by one
of the organisers have happily put the posters up there."

What makes it hilarious is that the poster is advertising a Roman Catholic Church weekend on the most trendy, politically correct subject imaginable - climate change (what they used to call global warming before the earth's temperature stopped going up). And, of course, the Muslims happily putting up to poster while the authorities go into deep thinking mode wondering if climate change done by overt Christians is still politically correct or not is also hilarious.

Here is what was being advertised:

"Saint Francis Weekend Saturday October 2 to Sunday October 4 at the church of Our Lady Help of Christians, 4 Lady Margaret Road London NW5 2XT

In association with Camdencan"Climate Change is a Christian Issue"
“Send forth your Spirit, and they shall be created, and you shall renew the face of the earth.”

Weekend of events from 2nd to 4th October:

A talk by Ellen Teague at every Mass
A talk by Mark Dowd of Operation Noah 7.30pm on 2nd October
A pet blessing 4pm on 4th October in the church garden."

I just don't know if a secular society can avoid religious civil war if it allows indiscriminate "pet blessings" to be advertised in public places. What do you think? Apparently that is the sort of problem London authorities puzzle over these days. It must make the Brits glad to see how hard their tax dollars work.

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