Category: Uncategorized

 

I received the following last week, included in the weekly Parish Newsletter. Why is it worthy of note?

So much happening at the moment in our world.  On Monday as I’m sure you all know, Donald Trump was inaugurated as the 47^th President of The United States.  I don’t know where to begin.  So maybe I won’t, because I credit you with being intelligent and discerning.

I would like to just quote something that I shared on my personal Facebook with regard to Bishop Mariann Budde’s sermon.  Unfortunately, I cannot take credit for this, bur Rev’d Benjamin Cremer; 

 ‘If your Christianity causes you to be offended by someone asking the most powerful person in the country to be merciful towards the powerless, then you have profoundly misunderstood the teachings of Jesus Christ.’

I think it speaks for itself.

Well the first thing that jumped out at me was the reference to Trump’s inauguration and the writers inability to express his thoughts but leaving it to his  intelligent and discerning audience to try and guess what they are. Given the context of the following comments in support of Bishop Budde’s sermon, at the post inauguration prayer service, I think that we can guess.  I had hoped that I wouldn’t be directly confronted with this biased political statement at the Sunday service but we just couldn’t resist it. From the pulpit we heard the ‘opinion’ of the speaker who, this time, left no doubt as to his political leanings. He referred to the democratically elected US President as, amongst other things, a bully and we assume, the US electorate as being less than intelligent and discerning. The assumption that ‘people like us’ can have only one world view was one of the main reason why the Democrats were roundly beaten in the 2024 election. People are tired of being talk down to, especially when the right to reply is controlled by the speaker. My reaction was of mounting irritation both on the grounds of no reply but also I do not think that an individuals political opinion is a suitable subject to be preached as part of a sermon. Also, perhaps a little humility should be exercised when judging the election result and those with TDS should ask themselves why a wide coalition of voters turned against the Biden/Harris Presidency. (Matthew 7:3-5)

The more difficult question was whether Bishop Budde’s sermon was political and therefore an interference in the Government of the democratically elected President or, the duty of a prominent Christian cleric to ask, “…  the most powerful person in the country to be merciful towards the powerless.” (Rev’d Benjamin Cremer) There is a constant tension between religion and government that is visible around the world today, whether Christian, Muslim or other. It was also an issue in biblical times, the most famous example being recorded in Matthew 22:21 where Jesus is challenged by the Church authorities, to effectively state whether he was a traitor to Rome or, God. His famous response was, “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s” (Matthew 22:21, ESV). Therefore, in Christianity, there is a line between the secular state and the kingdom of God, the problem is how do we define it. 

Do I think that the Bishop’s comments, during her sermon,  were political? In my opinion, the answer is yes. If the summary below is correct then they could have been copied from the Democrats campaign brochure. However, the Christian message often challenges the powerful but scripture and Christian dogma are  used to support many  arguments, sometimes in bad faith.

During the inaugural prayer service, Budde pleaded with the president to “have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now.”“There are gay, lesbian, and transgender children in Democratic, Republican, and Independent families, some who fear for their lives,” she added. She also urged the reality TV star-turned-president not to execute his plans that target immigrants. Donata Leskauskaite, AOL, 23/01/25

Is it possible for two opposing things to be true at the same time? I looked at Bishop Budde’s history on Wikipedia and it seemed to tick all the progressive boxes even to the extent that in, “… August 2020, Budde offered the benediction at the closing of the second night of the 2020 Democratic National Convention.” So, can someone who has a declared political bias deliver such a message, in an arena designed to get maximum publicity and still claim that it is on the right side of the Matthew 22:21 test? Whatever Bishop Budde’s political opinions are, when she speaks from the pulpit she represents the faith, not the Church or, any other viewpoint. That some saw her speech as an ambush, worthy of  Trumps opponents, would explain why not everyone supports the view of  Rev’d Benjamin Cremer. If we take another example, that of the last Archbishop of Canterbury who by any definition was left of centre. He espoused many Christian appeals to support his view of the oppressed, which to others would seem to be highly selective. In the end he chose the reputation of the Church rather than  the protection of the innocents. Should all his teachings now be tainted by his actions? If The past Archbishop of Canterbury or, Bishop Budde speak from the pulpit with a motivation other than that inspired by the scriptures have they then crossed a line?

 

 

 

Source

AOL, https://www.aol.com/woke-bishop-mariann-budde-issues-121559858.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly9kdWNrZHVja2dvLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAMFDx5LaS_TNvINrtP4iJKk5-U6g0KAqKK4jhKodx0ycoRNsKFSQRkjqz00x5kA2vog5LOE94KZ7Go_sFcdTdHz_1QIPTsuHBRi1Er1dp7G_ZECgkEHI0YribktSSBiAwQF8nhS7pweY5i5QDSQGubiJdupFlKb-AzU4_BqctrD2

I was attracted to an article in the Sunday Times Food section today, which is unusual as I normally skip this section in search of something more bloggable. What interested me was that it described what  appeared to be a pragmatic approach to the problems of the small farm sector in Irish farming. The recent headlines showing farmers blockading meat processing plants are an indication that not all is well in the industry.  I have to admit that I approach environmental issues with a ‘shields up’ approach as it is almost impossible to separate ideology from science and as I have said in other articles, we are in a  world where there is no room for doubt, no room for questions, you are either for or, against. So, it was refreshing to see that people had by passed the drama, threats and politicking and had put their ideas into practise.

The new small farmers want to set the farming clock back to pre 1970’s methods. Their marketing strategy is right for the initial stages in that they get very close to their customers. In one of the examples in the article, the producer discussed planting with his chef customer who, was given sufficient time to alter his menus to get the produce as it was harvested. This works well with a non price sensitive niche market but the concept is right for expansion either by direct selling to the end customer through farmers markets or, via the internet. However, it wouldn’t be a blog by disgruntled from Dublin if that was all. I was searching for a certain sentence and it came midway through the piece when it mentioned a scheduled “gathering” (not protest?) outside Leinster House, “…to call on the government to protect our soil and value it as much as they do.” (Sunday Times, 22/09/19) The problem with most environmental groups is that they sell their soul to ideology and instead of taking practical steps to lead by example they just join the background noise demanding that everyone else has to change to their way of thinking. The danger to Talamh Beo is that by engaging in the political debate and seeking government protection or, funding, they become just another interest group in a sea of similar groups.

What differentiates Talamh Beo is that it is small scale and very close to it’s customers. It is as much a social force as a commercial or environmental one and it must keep it’s principles and relationship to it’s customers before all else. It must not be seduced in to joining a larger ideological movement where it will try to save the world by political means   rather than practical leadership   I think that there is a market for food grown by people that you know and that is a market that is prepared to pay above supermarket rates. The small farmers need to hammer away at this target and not be distracted by seeking government support that always comes at a price. Developing a personal relationship with your customer is literally growing organically  with the advantages of a bond of trust between customer and supplier that will withstand the vagaries of the market. Good luck to Talamh Beo  I hope to be reading about a quiet revolution taking place in the countryside led by a hands on group that benefits all.

 

 

 

 

The Sunday Times, Food, Corinna Hardgrave, 22/09/19, Irish growers go back to their roots.