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Why I won’t be gagged
CANON Michael Ainsworth, a priest and colleague
of mine just a couple of miles from
my rectory in the City of London, was recently
attacked in his churchyard by three Asian
youths.
Fr Michael suffered two black eyes, cuts and
bruises - so the attack was significant, not just a
bit of horseplay. He was taken into hospital and
his wife Janina, also a priest, stood in for him at
the Palm Sunday service. Janina said: "It's obvious
that the attack on Fr Michael does contain a
religious element." It certainly is obvious:
Michael's attackers shouted: "You f****** priest!"
as they beat him up
This is the second time that Fr Michael's church
has been attacked. After the Good Friday service
last year, louts threw bricks through the church
windows. A parishioner, Susan Crocker, said: "It's
not out of the blue, they broke the glass last Easter
- it's a recurrent problem." Another church
member, Toni Davey, said: "To be honest something
like this was going to happen sooner or later
- it is the area and the times we are living in. There
is tension in the area with the Muslims."
I find this disturbing for more reasons than one.
First, it's clear that the yobs who attacked Michael
were Muslims. To their credit, the local Muslim
leaders have tacitly admitted this by publicly deploring
the crime. So why were the police, and
much of the media, so vague as to call these yobs
"Asians"? If I went into a fish and chip shop and
beat up the owner, you can be sure the police and
the papers wouldn't describe me as a "European".
Of course, we know the reason for official evasiveness
in the cases of violence by Muslims: it is
allegedly all in the interests of racial harmony
and community relations. Actually, it's beating up
priests - not reporting the crime fully - which
damages community relations.
There is never any official hesitation in condemning
attacks by white yobs on blacks or
"Asians". This is quite right. Whenever there is violence
against a person, the incident should be reported
fully and fairly, regardless of the race and
colour of the perpetrators and the victim.
But, have you noticed yet, there is a worldwide
policy of appeasing religious persecution - but
only when the persecution is directed against
Christians. With due sympathy for Fr Michael, his
case is trivial in the general run of things. On
every continent Christians are being persecuted
by Muslim fanatics. In Pakistan, churches are
burned down almost every day. In Sudan, Somalia
and the northern parts of Nigeria, Christians
risk death for their faith.
In Saudi Arabia there are no churches - because
the Christian faith is officially declared illegal
there. If I walked down the main street in Riyadh
wearing my clerical collar and priest's pectoral
Cross, I would be arrested by the religious police
and thrown into jail. But in Britain Muslims have
complete freedom of religious expression and are
even allowed to build towering mosques in prominent
locations - such as Regent's Park.
There is so much violence worldwide perpetrated
against Christians in the name of Islam.
Yet I, as a Christian priest, am not supposed to notice
it. I am expected to keep my mouth shut and
certainly not to write about it in a daily newspaper.
Where are the official complaints from the
Archbishops, the rest of our failed and spineless
hierarchy and the General Synod? Recall the spirit
of appeasement from the 1930s. It was disastrous
then and it will lead to a much greater disaster
today.
■ Peter Mullen is Rector of St Michael's,
Cornhill, in the City of London, and Chaplain
to the Stock Exchange.
9:49am Tuesday 25th March 2008
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CommentPosted by: David Lacey, Newcastle on 12:43pm Tue 25 Mar 08
We all know that conflict between Muslims and the rest of us is inevitable. Peter says that Muslim leaders deplore attacks like this. Sadly many others appear to have more sanguine views and numerous polls suggest that there is a very sizeable minority within the Muslim community who are anticipating a civil war in the UK with something close to delight.
We all know that conflict between Muslims and the rest of us is inevitable. Peter says that Muslim leaders deplore attacks like this. Sadly many others appear to have more sanguine views and numerous polls suggest that there is a very sizeable minority within the Muslim community who are anticipating a civil war in the UK with something close to delight.
Posted by: Peter Mullen on 11:06am Wed 26 Mar 08
Dear David: I agree. The jihadists do want to kill us - and there are plenty of them. I was only giving credit in this particular case where some Muslim leaders in the East End of London did condemn the attack on my colleague
Dear David: I agree. The jihadists do want to kill us - and there are plenty of them. I was only giving credit in this particular case where some Muslim leaders in the East End of London did condemn the attack on my colleague
Posted by: Keith, Essex England on 5:12pm Wed 26 Mar 08
Religion, which was once a benign influence in the UK, now seems to have been so empowered and financed with taxpayers funds that it is becoming an imposition and a form of coercion and oppression. Certainly some people do now live in fear that if they speak out the New Labour thought police will come and interview them. I suspect that the non religious majority are incensed and will have their say at the next election where being a religious MP may be a very serious vote loser.
Religion, which was once a benign influence in the UK, now seems to have been so empowered and financed with taxpayers funds that it is becoming an imposition and a form of coercion and oppression. Certainly some people do now live in fear that if they speak out the New Labour thought police will come and interview them. I suspect that the non religious majority are incensed and will have their say at the next election where being a religious MP may be a very serious vote loser.
Posted by: Dhimmied, Southeast on 12:57pm Thu 27 Mar 08
Unfortunately most UK citizens do not understand Islam,-if they did they would never allow the endless ongoing immigration of Muslims to the UK.
For an education on Islam, see the book 'Religion of Peace?' by Gregory M. Davis, available from Amazon, or see the video http://video.google.
com/videoplay?docid=
-871902797772997781&
q
Unfortunately most UK citizens do not understand Islam,-if they did they would never allow the endless ongoing immigration of Muslims to the UK.
For an education on Islam, see the book 'Religion of Peace?' by Gregory M. Davis, available from Amazon, or see the video http://video.google.
com/videoplay?docid=
-871902797772997781&
q
Posted by: Dhimmied, Southeast on 1:39pm Thu 27 Mar 08
[quote][bold]Peter Mullen[/bold] wrote:
Dear David: I agree. The jihadists do want to kill us - and there are plenty of them. I was only giving credit in this particular case where some Muslim leaders in the East End of London did condemn the attack on my colleague[/quote] Hullo, I think you are being brave to break through the 'PC world' barrier that the current Government is applying to the UK citizens! I have a question for you with reference to your education for becoming a member of the UK Clergy; were you given a full education on the other religions in the World? -or was your training just restricted to Christianity? I ask this because it appears to me that the clergy of the UK do not seem to understand what Islam is to any great depth, to the detriment of themselves, and the UK population.
Peter Mullen wrote:
Dear David: I agree. The jihadists do want to kill us - and there are plenty of them. I was only giving credit in this particular case where some Muslim leaders in the East End of London did condemn the attack on my colleague
Hullo, I think you are being brave to break through the 'PC world' barrier that the current Government is applying to the UK citizens! I have a question for you with reference to your education for becoming a member of the UK Clergy; were you given a full education on the other religions in the World? -or was your training just restricted to Christianity? I ask this because it appears to me that the clergy of the UK do not seem to understand what Islam is to any great depth, to the detriment of themselves, and the UK population.
Posted by: Dhimmied, Southeast on 5:24pm Thu 27 Mar 08
[quote][bold]David Lacey[/bold] wrote:
We all know that conflict between Muslims and the rest of us is inevitable. Peter says that Muslim leaders deplore attacks like this. Sadly many others appear to have more sanguine views and numerous polls suggest that there is a very sizeable minority within the Muslim community who are anticipating a civil war in the UK with something close to delight.[/quote] I think we are still in the Taqiyya and demographic- colonisation stage at present, but the Balkanisation of Britain is still the prospect for the future.
David Lacey wrote:
We all know that conflict between Muslims and the rest of us is inevitable. Peter says that Muslim leaders deplore attacks like this. Sadly many others appear to have more sanguine views and numerous polls suggest that there is a very sizeable minority within the Muslim community who are anticipating a civil war in the UK with something close to delight.
I think we are still in the Taqiyya and demographic- colonisation stage at present, but the Balkanisation of Britain is still the prospect for the future.
Posted by: Dhimmied, Southeast on 8:24am Fri 28 Mar 08
Here is another relevant video, Fitna, the movie by Geert Wilders:-
http://www.liveleak.
com/view?i=7d9_12066
24103
Here is another relevant video, Fitna, the movie by Geert Wilders:-
http://www.liveleak.
com/view?i=7d9_12066
24103
Posted by: Peter Mullen on 1:49pm Fri 28 Mar 08
Yes, to answer your question, we were taught other world religions at theological college. And when I was a teacher in Bolton I made a special study of Islam and also some aspects of Hinduism - Peter
Yes, to answer your question, we were taught other world religions at theological college. And when I was a teacher in Bolton I made a special study of Islam and also some aspects of Hinduism - Peter
Posted by: Dhimmied, Southeast on 5:38pm Fri 28 Mar 08
[quote][bold]Peter Mullen[/bold] wrote:
Yes, to answer your question, we were taught other world religions at theological college. And when I was a teacher in Bolton I made a special study of Islam and also some aspects of Hinduism - Peter[/quote] Thanks for your reply. If UK clergy have studied Islam, ie. the Quran, why are they so keen to support the establishment of Islam in the UK, eg. Bishop of Carlisle, and Bishop of Oxford, and Archbishop of Canterbury, when one only needs to read the Quran to see that Islam is not a religion of peace, but a religion of conquest,and that it is essentially at War with any other religion, and has been since Islam was invented by Muhammad?
Peter Mullen wrote:
Yes, to answer your question, we were taught other world religions at theological college. And when I was a teacher in Bolton I made a special study of Islam and also some aspects of Hinduism - Peter
Thanks for your reply. If UK clergy have studied Islam, ie. the Quran, why are they so keen to support the establishment of Islam in the UK, eg. Bishop of Carlisle, and Bishop of Oxford, and Archbishop of Canterbury, when one only needs to read the Quran to see that Islam is not a religion of peace, but a religion of conquest,and that it is essentially at War with any other religion, and has been since Islam was invented by Muhammad?
Posted by: Peter Mullen, London EC1A 9DE on 10:49am Tue 1 Apr 08
You ask why the bishops are so keen on Islam. I don't think they are - not especially. It's just that they support anything and anyone who is not traditionally British/English. These church leaders (and it goes for many of our politicians and journalists too) despise the culture and civilisation they have inherited
You ask why the bishops are so keen on Islam. I don't think they are - not especially. It's just that they support anything and anyone who is not traditionally British/English. These church leaders (and it goes for many of our politicians and journalists too) despise the culture and civilisation they have inherited
Posted by: Dhimmied, Southeast on 7:05am Thu 3 Apr 08
[quote][bold]Peter Mullen[/bold] wrote:
You ask why the bishops are so keen on Islam. I don't think they are - not especially. It's just that they support anything and anyone who is not traditionally British/English. These church leaders (and it goes for many of our politicians and journalists too) despise the culture and civilisation they have inherited[/quote] I think you may be right there, and I also, wonder why. To come up to date, have you read Simon Heffer's article in the Telegraph on weds.2nd April 'Don't mistake the Government's malignance for incompetence',which resonates with your observations.
Peter Mullen wrote:
You ask why the bishops are so keen on Islam. I don't think they are - not especially. It's just that they support anything and anyone who is not traditionally British/English. These church leaders (and it goes for many of our politicians and journalists too) despise the culture and civilisation they have inherited
I think you may be right there, and I also, wonder why. To come up to date, have you read Simon Heffer's article in the Telegraph on weds.2nd April 'Don't mistake the Government's malignance for incompetence',which resonates with your observations.
Posted by: Peter Mullen on 10:55am Thu 3 Apr 08
Yes, thanks, I did see Simon's brilliant DT piece. I don't know why we despise our history and traditions, but we do. Of course one reason for wanting to get rid of things that are established is to get one's own inferior new product into the hands of the public: certainly that's what the liturgical revisers have done with new Bibles and Prayer Books; and it explains to some degree all political parties' obsession with "change"
Yes, thanks, I did see Simon's brilliant DT piece. I don't know why we despise our history and traditions, but we do. Of course one reason for wanting to get rid of things that are established is to get one's own inferior new product into the hands of the public: certainly that's what the liturgical revisers have done with new Bibles and Prayer Books; and it explains to some degree all political parties' obsession with "change"
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