The Anglican Church

Some places still have tithes. Iirc when I bought my house I had to get insurance against the local church roof falling in.

My cousin is married to an Anglican Dean, I think. I have never been clear on the hierarchy. He seems very positive the church will continue in a fairly socially progressive direction as the cantankerous old Bishops die off.

xp In England, some of it's not voluntary - when you buy a house you're recommended to pay for research to find out if you're in a parish where you might be responsible for upkeep of the church.

The church doesn't have to be nearby - there's a story from 10 years ago of a couple being stung for £100k for repairs of one 100 miles away: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/mid/3023276.stm

For all the Church of Scotland folks, my local (or ex local) church was
Always 30-40 sexagenarians+ each Sunday. And this was a historic church, about 1150ad. I stopped attending because of the churches stance on gay rights - my old minister was very pro, and said she would be willing to marry a gay couple. But the new minister was a bit more conservative, and in Kirkcaldy I got in an argument with the minister because he used a sermon to denounce homosexuals and stress the reality of hell. It's irritating, and I only got baptised about six years ago, so I'm maybe more bolshy than they are used to. I still believe the church can be a great force for good, even if it's been the opposite in the past.

https://www.scribd.com/doc/152217519/Menace-of-the-Irish-Race-to-our-Scottish-Nationality

What's this all about?

Someone in the bell ringers was a sexual abuser?

Allegations concerning the bellringer at the heart of the dispute are believed to date back more than 15 years, and further concerns have emerged more recently.

The York bellringers are a close-knit team, including several members of one family. Last week, the bellringers and their supporters reacted with anger to the dismissals, accusing the minster of behaving in an “unchristian” manner.

It sounds like one of the bellringers was dismissed because of something dodgy in their past and then the others weren't feeling very harmonious about the decision.

it is a volunteer gig, so it isn't like they will need recourse from Bellringers Benevolent Fund. But if they were true christians, they would at least move them on to another church elsewhere to ring the bells:p

John Sentamu has a bot (presumably) that sent me a PM blessing me for following him on twitter. This is a significant step up from prayer wheels on the way to fully automated spirituality

i dunno Sentamu seems like a guy with time on his hands

the thread linked to in this tweet is a rare delicacy

So, last night I was talking at an event with Rowan Williams. I pop into the vestry at the church beforehand and he’s there. The parish priest introduces us:

Me: ‘Hello, a real pleasure to meet you’
The Lord Williams of Oystermouth: ‘Greetings from Thai Sweet Chilli’

AMAZING https://t.co/QPtYz9D0Q7

— Fergus Butler-Gallie (@_F_B_G_) June 11, 2019

lol I knew Dr Francis Young would be referenced on that thread. He's a fellow from English history twitter who sometimes dresses as an Anglican priest to demonstrate the vestments of different eras.

Wow

One day I'll tell you about the time my pal made him say 'minge'

— Jon Mackenzie (@Jon_Mackenzie) June 11, 2019

From the perspective of international Christianity, the Church of England has always struck me as more progressive than most, so this absurdist statement comes as a bit of a surprise to me:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jan/23/sex-married-heterosexual-couples-church-of-england-christians

Great opening post itt.

C of E is a complicated creature but are they fuck "progressive"