Appointment of Archbishop of Canterbury
According to profiles of Justin Welby, the new Archbishop of Canterbury, he is extremely able. After graduating from Cambridge, he had a very successful career in the oil industry. Eleven years later, he resigned and trained for the Anglican ministry. In less than 20 years, he rose to become the Bishop of Durham. Now, at the age of 56, he has been appointed as the hundred-and-fifth Archbishop of Canterbury.
Does his elevation to the Primacy of England augur well for the strife-torn Church of England, with its deep divisions over same-sex marriage and the ordination of women as bishops? To many it appears so. It is reported that “theologically, he is unashamedly part of the Evangelical strand of the Church, upholding a more traditional and conservative interpretation of the Bible than some” – although one has questions about his theology considering that he was a lay leader at the charismatic Holy Trinity Brompton church in London in his oil executive days, and now is an “enthusiast for catholic styles of worship” and has “close links to the Benedictines”. He has the gift of being a “visionary and strategic leader” and is “strong on protecting the position of traditionalists in the Church”. He is also “skilled at conflict resolution”.
However, other facts give cause for concern. He states that he will definitely vote for the ordination of women as bishops. And, although he defends the Church’s right to oppose same-sex marriage, he is “keen to accommodate opposing views” and his thinking on defining same-sex unions, in law, as marriage is “evolving”. Also he is a “strong advocate of more modern styles of worship”. As Dean of Liverpool, “he gave his blessing to a Halloween service called ‘Night of the Living Dead’, complete with a man in gothic dress leaping out of a coffin”. He also “allowed the cathedral bell-ringers to chime the Liverpool-born John Lennon’s [song] Imagine, widely regarded as an atheist anthem”.
It seems that he may well compromise on vital issues, although no doubt his skill in conflict resolution will make it appear to many that he is adopting the “prudent middle way”. Within the Church of England itself there is the view that he will be accommodating. The Daily Telegraph reports that “he is not without support among liberals, some of whom believe he will prove a pragmatic and flexible Archbishop”.
While it hoped that he will be more aligned to Scripture than his predecessor, it is clear that the ills of the Church of England will never be remedied but by an outpouring of the Holy Spirit – a blessing that is needed for the visible Church as a whole. May we plead with the Lord “until the Spirit be poured upon us from on high” (Is 32:15). NMR
Spiritual Darkness in the Highlands
Recent press reports of a plan to open up a Buddhist Peace and Healing centre on the shores of Loch Ness are very disturbing. This follows the Dalai Lama’s visit to Britain in June this year, when he undertook various speaking engagements in London, Manchester, Edinburgh, Dundee, and Inverness, where he apparently received an enthusiastic welcome. The 1300 tickets issued for his appearance at Eden Court Theatre, Inverness, were sold out in 24 hours. The Tibetan Buddhist “spiritual leader” is the fourteenth Dalai Lama and his followers believe that he is a reincarnation of the previous one.
Such then is the spiritual darkness covering the Highlands, a place where, at one time, the gospel flourished and such a visit would not have been countenanced. Now many souls, in ignorance of the “the only true God and Jesus Christ whom” He has “sent” (Jn 17:3), are following Satan, who is leading them captive at his will – opening up further ways to draw them away to worship false gods. Well does the devil know that there is a void in the heart of man which can never be filled by materialism. As Augustine prayed to God long ago: “Thou hast made us for Thyself and we are restless until we find our rest in Thee”. Sinners turning away from God and the Bible are therefore a ready prey for Satan, who seduces men to seek to fill the void in their hearts by embracing false religions.
Buddhism is one of the false religions which are increasingly gaining ground. Beginning around the sixth century BC in India, where Gautama Buddha supposedly achieved “enlightenment”, it then spread across Asia, where a variety of Buddhist philosophies took root. Buddhist thought currently influences over one billion of the world’s population and is now infiltrating Western culture; we even see Buddha statues as a decorative accessory in houses and gardens. And in England there are, among other ancillary organisations, a chaplaincy, a hospice project and an animal rights group.
Scotland already has Peace and Healing centres near Dumfries and on Arran, founded by Lama Yeshe Rinpoche, who is also at the forefront of the Loch Ness project; he fled from Tibet in 1959 with the current Dalai Lama. He states that the new centre will be open to everyone and will offer classes in yoga and tai chi as well as Buddhism. Explorations of ecumenism and inter-faith relations are also on his agenda, and it is worth noting that the Dalai Lama himself has engaged in dialogue with various Popes, a former Archbishop of Canterbury and senior figures in Mormonism.
The Buddhist believes that all events in the universe are governed by “karma” (a form of cause and effect). After death he believes that there are repeated rebirths or reincarnations until the cycle is broken by the person reaching the goal of “nirvana”. Ultimately “nirvana” is said to be an end of every desire and the loss of individual identity, the “extinction of the ego”. This extinction is “the final union with absolute reality”. Sin is not acknowledged. There is no mention of a saviour. The teachings and techniques of Buddhism, according to the Dalai Lama, can be adopted by anyone and are particularly suited to those in the west, even atheists, as Buddhism “is a kind of atheism and a form of humanism”. All that seems to be required is to chant a few phrases and meditate on a single object, such as a flower, to the exclusion of everything else. The mind is “emptied” and then moves on to a “state of freedom”. What the poor participant does not realise is that he is opening his “empty mind” to dark satanic powers which, far from bringing him freedom, only increases his bondage.
How different to the Christian religion which highlights sin, the Saviour and an eternity in heaven or in hell. The Bible clearly tells us about God, who holds us accountable for our sin, yet offers us deliverance from it through the Person and work of His beloved Son Jesus Christ. We are not trapped by the fatalism of “karma” and its pessimistic, irresistible law; our universe is controlled by the gracious and sovereign providence of Almighty God. There is no reincarnation; “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgement” (Hebrews 9:27). We are never going to reach a “nirvana” where all personality is destroyed. No! Our “selves” are to exist for ever. How solemn then for those who reject Christ! How glorious for those who are saved by Him! Their desires after God, far from being extinguished, will be fully satisfied for evermore in heaven.
How we need to pray that God would thwart these plans to lure souls into eastern mysticism and superstition and the worship of false gods.
“For all the gods are idols dumb,
which blinded nations fear;
But our God is the Lord, by whom
the heavens created were” (Psalm 96:5, metrical)
KHM
The Late Sir Jimmy Savile
In searching for something else on the internet, the writer came across an obituary of Sir Jimmy Savile, from October 2011. The obituary was as excessive as one would imagine, and it provided an extraordinary contrast with what is presently said about him. Then no praise was too high for him; now he is regarded as a vile man about whom one may say anything. The alacrity with which many of his former friends have deserted him, even before any of the allegations of sexual abuse have been established, suggests that they had a shrewd suspicion about these things even when they were heaping him with praise. Some of his friends and family have, however, shown a measure of loyalty and have expressed their perplexity that one whom they regarded as kind and caring could have done the things of which he is accused.
To the Christian, this almost contradictory conduct is not such a surprise. Even in the believer, the same fountain may be sending forth “sweet water and bitter” (James 3:11) and in the unbeliever the “common operations of the Spirit” (Westminster Confession 10:4) are in conflict with the lusts of the heart, which is “desperately wicked” (Jer 17:9). Jimmy Savile was a bold and powerful man, and his outward sins were very great, even by ordinary human standards. In his autobiography, published in 1974, he openly admitted to leading an exceedingly immoral life. His “good works”, such as they were, were also of the prominent nature that one would expect from a man of his exuberant character. We see no reason to take away from his charitable work and his kindness to his friends: to some extent these may have been a cover for his secret sins, but probably also it was a relief to him to escape for a while from the power of temptation and to return to the ordinary human world, where there was some natural kindness and love.
His Roman Catholic background, with its false teaching on sin, temptation, confession and pardon, would not have helped him to understand and control himself, and it did not point him to Christ, in whom he might have found forgiveness and a new life. Nor did the sinful idolatry associated with being a “celebrity” help him – it made many of these sins possible, or easier to commit.
The lesson that Britain needs to learn from the example of Jimmy Savile, which God is prominently bringing before us in providence, is that the human heart is naturally wicked and that the measures commanded in the Bible for restraining sin in national life are necessary. The BBC, for whom Savile worked, and on whose property he allegedly committed a number of his abuses, has itself done much to subvert these restraints. Over many years it has promoted frivolity, vanity, blasphemy, obscenity and atheism; and those who have been responsible for this subversion of morality have thereby made themselves partly responsible for the sins of Jimmy Savile.
Our great need is not further “independent enquiries” but a return to the simple teaching of the Bible: to the Ten Commandments and to the gospel of Christ. “Thou shalt not commit adultery” (Ex 20:14); “neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind . . . shall inherit the kingdom of God” (2 Cor 5:9-10); “the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin” (1 Jn 1:7). DWBS
Stonewall and the Spirit of Sodom
For a number of years, the sodomite group Stonewall has awarded a “Bigot of the Year” prize to the person who, in its judgement, has done the most to oppose sodomy in Britain. This year the prize was awarded to Cardinal O’Brien, the prominent Scottish Roman Catholic. The award has set two sections of Satan’s kingdom, the sodomites and the Romanists, in opposition to one another and this embarrasses politicians who wish to be friendly with both parties. Despite requests from these politicians, Stonewall is stubbornly refusing to discontinue its “Bigot” award. This may well result in a loss of funding. The spirit of Sodom is one which cannot bear to be criticised (Gen 19:9). Perhaps this will be its downfall; “pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall” (Prov 16:18). DWBS