Hull City were robbed of at least a draw tonight thanks to an incompetent team of officials.
The Tigers lost 2-1 to Leeds at the KC Stadium during a scrappy relegation battle.
After equalising just before half time through Nicky Forster, City had the ball in the back of the net for a second time just after the break but the goal was disallowed because of offside. Jon Parkin was miles onside when he took a brilliant through ball and put it sweetly in the bottom right hand corner. But at least 5 seconds after receiving the pass, Mr Smith, the assistant referee on the nearside, but his flag up for offside. It was to be one of numerous ridiculous decisions by both him and the referee, Mr P Joslin.
Before the game, the referee seemed very pally with Leeds manager Dennis Wise. Is there a case here of, “Oh dear, we can’t have Leeds going down another division etc”. I wouldn’t rule it out. The City faithful were incensed at the poor way the game was refereed.
To be fair, both sides looked fairly average and it was generally a scrappy affair. Alan Thompson’s free kick, which turned out to be the winner, was a great strike but there were even question marks over whether the free kick should have been given.
For the first time, I was critical of new manager Phil Brown’s tactics. Jon Parkin clearly isn’t in form. His fitness is appalling and he generally looks lazy. I was amazed he stayed on until the last ten minutes.
Ryan France, City’s in-form midfielder, continued to shine although he doesn’t perform as well on the left wing as on the right. But he was first to be substituted, which was a bit baffling.
After booing the referee and his assistants of the field and listening to that sickening sound of Leeds United fans celebrating, I came out the ground to find two coppers on horseback dealing with a crowd of Hull scallies. It nearly kicked off, with riot police out in force. But it was a case of Hull chavs v Humberside Police as opposed to Hull v Leeds fans. More importantly, however, I came out to find my bike on the floor with the lock broken. Someone had tried to nick it but obviously got disturbed. I was lucky.
A few guys nearby were really annoyed with the police as one of them was apparently bending down to tie his shoelace when a copper came up and whacked him with a baton. If it’s true, there’s no need for it. The police are far too aggressive up north and once their adrenaline gets pumping, some coppers are up for a confrontation even with those not even involved. The lads said they had spotted the number of the policeman concerned and were going to make an official complaint. Good on `em.
The situation outside the ground eventually passed without any serious incident, except a couple of distressed elderly and disabled fans, and a man who I think got slightly injured.
There’s really no need for even isolated hooliganism to start. But from what I’ve seen over the years I’ve concluded that a lot of it is down to how the police handle the situation.
Wednesday, 31 January 2007
Wednesday, 24 January 2007
Opus Dei depicted as a murderous sect, this time by the BBC
Opus Dei in the UK has lodged an official complaint against the BBC, accusing the corporation of a “defamatory portrayal” of the organisation in its programme Waking the Dead earlier this week.
In the plot, a member of Opus Dei shot dead a man and a woman (also a member of Opus Dei) whilst they were having sex.
After watching the first episode of the two-part story of the crime drama series (which I actually quite enjoy), I contacted Jack Valero (UK Director) for his reaction to the programme.
I was quite concerned at what appeared to be the programme jumping on the anti-Opus Dei, and indeed, anti-Catholic bandwagon.
Jack got back to me yesterday to tell me they had indeed found it offensive and had sent a letter of complaint to the BBC.
Opus Dei said its depiction in the programme shown on Sunday and Monday evenings on BBC1 at prime time is in breach of the Corporation’s guidelines. Amongst numerous clauses, Opus Dei particularly mention the BBC’s Religion Editorial Guidelines which say the corporation “will ensure the religious views and beliefs of an individual, a religion or religious denomination are not misrepresented, abused or discriminated against, as judged against generally accepted standards.”
The organisation also claims the depiction of Opus Dei members as pious hypocrites and murderers bent on wealth and power was lifted directly from the Da Vinci Code.
“Despite strenuous and well-publicised objections at the time by the Catholic Church, and despite countless press reports into Opus Dei which found the organisation innocent of Dan Brown’s depiction, the BBC chose to exploit this portrayal as if it were commonplace fact,” Opus Dei says in the letter.
The organisation complains that Waking the Dead chose to create a fictional bank (“BICF”) but it chose not to create a fictional religious organisation, “when it would have subtracted nothing from the plot to have done so.”
In the first of the two-part episode by Damian Wayling, two corpses of a man and woman who were engaged in sexual intercourse at the time they were shot dead, are discovered in a bank in the City of London that is being regenerated. The murder took place around the time of Black Wednesday (1992) but, as the story goes, the bodies are only discovered now. One of the victims is an Opus Dei member.
The investigation team pull in an OD member to help with their enquiries. The man went to Rome in 1971 as part of an OD delegation that was offering to bail out the Vatican Bank which had lost over 200 million dollars in bad business deals. In 1982 the man had meetings with Roberto Calvin. Two days later Mr Calvin was found hanging under Blackfriars Bridge in London. The Police have evidence that OD have been connected with fraudulent deals between large banks. These deals have led to people being assassinated and found dead in suspicious circumstances.
In the next episode, OD member Philip White, emerges as the murderer.
I’ll leave it up to you to make your own mind up but it seems pretty sinister by the BBC to specifically put Opus Dei - a real-life organisation – at the centre of the plot whilst making up fictional names for the bank. Is there yet another hint of anti-Catholicism endorsed by the BBC?
From what I’ve heard Jack Valero say in the past, Opus Dei found that more and more people were interested in finding out what Opus Dei was really about following the Da Vinci Code saga. They seem to have converted the bad depictions and publicity by opening their doors to the general public and to journalists. In fact, Jack amusingly invites BBC journalists to visit their centres and talk to real Opus Dei members.
My other (now largely inactive blog) contains a report about a Hull Faith Forum talk given by Jack Valero about the Da Vinci Code in July last year. He came up with some quality quotes a few of which I’ll share with you now. You can read the full report at http://flipsidenews-marsden.blogspot.com/2006/07/opus-dei-director-nods-off-at-da-vinci_07.html.
The UK Director of Opus Dei advised people going to see The Da Vinci Code film to "take a pillow and a good magazine" because it is so "incredibly boring".
Jack Valero said he could "hardly keep awake" but was amused by the plot.
"There is the anagram in one of the paintings, in the Mona Lisa I think where it says, 'So dark, the con of man,'" Mr. Valero said. "And we had this idea that we should rename this, 'So dull, the con of Dan.' Because for me, the film was so incredibly boring.
"It was so long. I mean there was a car chase at the beginning and I thought wow. And that was it, that's the end of the excitement.
"Before the film we said look, go and enjoy yourself, this is going to be a great film but don't believe any of it. And we stopped saying that after we watched the film and said, 'Please if you go to the film take a pillow and then don't believe any of it.' Take a pillow and a good magazine.
"We did think it was a long lecture by a nutty professor, very anti-Catholic, and much more grotesque on Opus Dei. I would have spent the whole film laughing except they take it so seriously. I couldn't believe it."
In his address to the Hull Faith Forum, Mr. Valero, who is a numary of the organisation, dubbed the best selling novel by Dan Brown as "the complete opposite of reality" and attacked the producers of the film, Sony Corporation, for being deceptive.
But despite his attack on the story, he said that the Catholic organisation were the only winners because of massive media interest and publicity."We've made a positive response to a negative portrayal," Mr. Valero said.
"We have become part of what people are saying. Our messages have been heard. We have all these inquires and people wanting to join and so on.
"We've been able to show that we are completely open and have nothing to hide. So in that sense it's a complete and utter success."
In the plot, a member of Opus Dei shot dead a man and a woman (also a member of Opus Dei) whilst they were having sex.
After watching the first episode of the two-part story of the crime drama series (which I actually quite enjoy), I contacted Jack Valero (UK Director) for his reaction to the programme.
I was quite concerned at what appeared to be the programme jumping on the anti-Opus Dei, and indeed, anti-Catholic bandwagon.
Jack got back to me yesterday to tell me they had indeed found it offensive and had sent a letter of complaint to the BBC.
Opus Dei said its depiction in the programme shown on Sunday and Monday evenings on BBC1 at prime time is in breach of the Corporation’s guidelines. Amongst numerous clauses, Opus Dei particularly mention the BBC’s Religion Editorial Guidelines which say the corporation “will ensure the religious views and beliefs of an individual, a religion or religious denomination are not misrepresented, abused or discriminated against, as judged against generally accepted standards.”
The organisation also claims the depiction of Opus Dei members as pious hypocrites and murderers bent on wealth and power was lifted directly from the Da Vinci Code.
“Despite strenuous and well-publicised objections at the time by the Catholic Church, and despite countless press reports into Opus Dei which found the organisation innocent of Dan Brown’s depiction, the BBC chose to exploit this portrayal as if it were commonplace fact,” Opus Dei says in the letter.
The organisation complains that Waking the Dead chose to create a fictional bank (“BICF”) but it chose not to create a fictional religious organisation, “when it would have subtracted nothing from the plot to have done so.”
In the first of the two-part episode by Damian Wayling, two corpses of a man and woman who were engaged in sexual intercourse at the time they were shot dead, are discovered in a bank in the City of London that is being regenerated. The murder took place around the time of Black Wednesday (1992) but, as the story goes, the bodies are only discovered now. One of the victims is an Opus Dei member.
The investigation team pull in an OD member to help with their enquiries. The man went to Rome in 1971 as part of an OD delegation that was offering to bail out the Vatican Bank which had lost over 200 million dollars in bad business deals. In 1982 the man had meetings with Roberto Calvin. Two days later Mr Calvin was found hanging under Blackfriars Bridge in London. The Police have evidence that OD have been connected with fraudulent deals between large banks. These deals have led to people being assassinated and found dead in suspicious circumstances.
In the next episode, OD member Philip White, emerges as the murderer.
I’ll leave it up to you to make your own mind up but it seems pretty sinister by the BBC to specifically put Opus Dei - a real-life organisation – at the centre of the plot whilst making up fictional names for the bank. Is there yet another hint of anti-Catholicism endorsed by the BBC?
From what I’ve heard Jack Valero say in the past, Opus Dei found that more and more people were interested in finding out what Opus Dei was really about following the Da Vinci Code saga. They seem to have converted the bad depictions and publicity by opening their doors to the general public and to journalists. In fact, Jack amusingly invites BBC journalists to visit their centres and talk to real Opus Dei members.
My other (now largely inactive blog) contains a report about a Hull Faith Forum talk given by Jack Valero about the Da Vinci Code in July last year. He came up with some quality quotes a few of which I’ll share with you now. You can read the full report at http://flipsidenews-marsden.blogspot.com/2006/07/opus-dei-director-nods-off-at-da-vinci_07.html.
The UK Director of Opus Dei advised people going to see The Da Vinci Code film to "take a pillow and a good magazine" because it is so "incredibly boring".
Jack Valero said he could "hardly keep awake" but was amused by the plot.
"There is the anagram in one of the paintings, in the Mona Lisa I think where it says, 'So dark, the con of man,'" Mr. Valero said. "And we had this idea that we should rename this, 'So dull, the con of Dan.' Because for me, the film was so incredibly boring.
"It was so long. I mean there was a car chase at the beginning and I thought wow. And that was it, that's the end of the excitement.
"Before the film we said look, go and enjoy yourself, this is going to be a great film but don't believe any of it. And we stopped saying that after we watched the film and said, 'Please if you go to the film take a pillow and then don't believe any of it.' Take a pillow and a good magazine.
"We did think it was a long lecture by a nutty professor, very anti-Catholic, and much more grotesque on Opus Dei. I would have spent the whole film laughing except they take it so seriously. I couldn't believe it."
In his address to the Hull Faith Forum, Mr. Valero, who is a numary of the organisation, dubbed the best selling novel by Dan Brown as "the complete opposite of reality" and attacked the producers of the film, Sony Corporation, for being deceptive.
But despite his attack on the story, he said that the Catholic organisation were the only winners because of massive media interest and publicity."We've made a positive response to a negative portrayal," Mr. Valero said.
"We have become part of what people are saying. Our messages have been heard. We have all these inquires and people wanting to join and so on.
"We've been able to show that we are completely open and have nothing to hide. So in that sense it's a complete and utter success."
Tuesday, 23 January 2007
Gay Rights Laws
Enough has been said on the big story of the day regarding the Church's stance on gay discrimination laws and their implications for Catholic adoption agencies.
All that's left for me to say is: Actually do something about it! Sign the petition to the Prime Minister at: http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/SexOrientation/?ref=sexorientation
All that's left for me to say is: Actually do something about it! Sign the petition to the Prime Minister at: http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/SexOrientation/?ref=sexorientation
Apologies
Sorry for the lack of blog entries in the last few days. I’ve been busy writing stories and was in London at the weekend for a meeting.
Combating Modern Slavery: Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald
There was a rare treat for Hull last Wednesday evening when one of Britain’s most senior Catholic clergymen was in town to give the prestigious Wilberforce Lecture in this the 200th anniversary year of the abolition of the slave trade.
Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald, the Apostolic Delegate to Cairo and the Arab League (formally President of the Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue under Pope John Paul II), celebrated Mass at St Charles Borromeo before giving the lecture on “Combating Modern Slavery” in the Guildhall.
The senior Brtish cleric was the centre of attention in March last year after Pope Benedict to sent Archbishop Fitzgerald out to Eygpt. The move was seen by many as a "demotion", signalling a change in the Vatican's approach to dialogue with Muslims in particular. But others think the archbishop was simply too liberal to be involved in the Pontificate of the German pontiff.
During the celebration of the Mass, he signed the “Join the fight for freedom” petition, calling on governments and international bodies to work to end slavery for all time.
In his address to hundreds of Catholics and non-Catholics alike, the archbishop paid tribute to the determination of William Wilberforce (Hull’s most famous son) in leading the campaign against the slave trade in parliament.
“Results were long in coming but Wilberforce persevered perhaps endowed with Yorkshire stubbiness,” he said.
He went on to describe in some detail the state of modern day slavery in its various forms and suggested ways of addressing the tragic situation.
“In today’s world slavery still exists in its classical form,” he said. “It is set to remain an accepted way of life in places such as northern Nigeria and Sudan.
“But there are also many other forms of slavery and I am sure that William Wilberforce and Thomas Clarkson had they been alive today would be campaigning against these forms of modern slavery.”
He highlighted the tragedy of trafficking for slave labour and sex transportation from Eastern Europe, Latin America and parts of Asia.
A UN report says trafficking is taking place in 137 countries. The archbishop quoted figures of between 600,000 and 800,000 trafficked internationally across boarders each year.
Focusing particularly on the transportation of women for prostitution, he said we needed to change attitudes towards sex to curb the “oldest profession in the world”.
“We need to reduce the demand of sexual services. What is required here is good sex education for the young which impacts on the spirit that marriage gives rather than passing on information about safe sex,” Archbishop Michael said.
“It [prostitution] is not going to be stamped out but it can be discouraged through a more positive approach to sex education.”
Afterwards, we went into a posh reception room where I found myself busy conducting several shortish interviews.
The most fascinating of these was with Father Gerard Wilberforce, a Catholic priest in Exeter, whose great great grandfather is the man himself. He told me that some of Wilberforce’s sons became Catholics, and the family has been mostly Catholic ever since.
I briefly interviewed the Archbishop after his address at the Guildhall but didn’t get much out of him as he was quite tired and only really wanted to answer a few questions.
There were lots of people there I knew and I responded enthusiastically to two or three shouts of, “Oy, Marsden, I’ve got a story for you!” Always a welcome thing to hear.
For a more comprehensive account of the evening and related matters, read the Catholic Times and Universe this week and next.
Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald, the Apostolic Delegate to Cairo and the Arab League (formally President of the Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue under Pope John Paul II), celebrated Mass at St Charles Borromeo before giving the lecture on “Combating Modern Slavery” in the Guildhall.
The senior Brtish cleric was the centre of attention in March last year after Pope Benedict to sent Archbishop Fitzgerald out to Eygpt. The move was seen by many as a "demotion", signalling a change in the Vatican's approach to dialogue with Muslims in particular. But others think the archbishop was simply too liberal to be involved in the Pontificate of the German pontiff.
During the celebration of the Mass, he signed the “Join the fight for freedom” petition, calling on governments and international bodies to work to end slavery for all time.
In his address to hundreds of Catholics and non-Catholics alike, the archbishop paid tribute to the determination of William Wilberforce (Hull’s most famous son) in leading the campaign against the slave trade in parliament.
“Results were long in coming but Wilberforce persevered perhaps endowed with Yorkshire stubbiness,” he said.
He went on to describe in some detail the state of modern day slavery in its various forms and suggested ways of addressing the tragic situation.
“In today’s world slavery still exists in its classical form,” he said. “It is set to remain an accepted way of life in places such as northern Nigeria and Sudan.
“But there are also many other forms of slavery and I am sure that William Wilberforce and Thomas Clarkson had they been alive today would be campaigning against these forms of modern slavery.”
He highlighted the tragedy of trafficking for slave labour and sex transportation from Eastern Europe, Latin America and parts of Asia.
A UN report says trafficking is taking place in 137 countries. The archbishop quoted figures of between 600,000 and 800,000 trafficked internationally across boarders each year.
Focusing particularly on the transportation of women for prostitution, he said we needed to change attitudes towards sex to curb the “oldest profession in the world”.
“We need to reduce the demand of sexual services. What is required here is good sex education for the young which impacts on the spirit that marriage gives rather than passing on information about safe sex,” Archbishop Michael said.
“It [prostitution] is not going to be stamped out but it can be discouraged through a more positive approach to sex education.”
Afterwards, we went into a posh reception room where I found myself busy conducting several shortish interviews.
The most fascinating of these was with Father Gerard Wilberforce, a Catholic priest in Exeter, whose great great grandfather is the man himself. He told me that some of Wilberforce’s sons became Catholics, and the family has been mostly Catholic ever since.
I briefly interviewed the Archbishop after his address at the Guildhall but didn’t get much out of him as he was quite tired and only really wanted to answer a few questions.
There were lots of people there I knew and I responded enthusiastically to two or three shouts of, “Oy, Marsden, I’ve got a story for you!” Always a welcome thing to hear.
For a more comprehensive account of the evening and related matters, read the Catholic Times and Universe this week and next.
Friday, 19 January 2007
Tigers update: Boro thriller (FA Cup 3rd Round Replay)
It was an absolute thriller at the Riverside on Tuesday night. Although being knocked out of the FA Cup, the Tigers staged an almighty fight back in the second half.
Boro debutant Seb Hines opened the scoring mid-way through the first half. Things went from bad to worse after the break. Just over 12 minutes into the second half we found ourselves 3-0 behind courtesy of a well-taken goal from Viduka and a dodgy penalty converted by Yakubu.
At this point, I had my head in my hands thinking it could be a rugby score. But spurred on by 3,000 fabulous City fans who were still egging their team on even at 3-0 down, we got back into it thanks to a great glancing header by Andy Dawson.
Five minutes later, the controversial Abel Xavier (he’s just come back from a lengthy ban for drub taking) hauled down City forward Nicky Forster. I thought it was just outside the box, but Premiership referee Rob Styles gave a penalty. Xavier was undoubtedly the last man and should have been sent off. But City fans were just overjoyed with the penalty decision. It was converted with great composure by Jon “The Beast” Parkin.
But the pulsating excitement was short lived when Viduka scored his second just a minute later, effectively to put the game beyond us at 4-2.
But Andy Dawson had other ideas. Awarded a free kick about 20 yards out, he struck a first-time curling shot over the wall. It was too powerful for keeper Mark Schwarzer. The ball hit the underside of the crossbar and went in for Dawson’s unlikely second of the night. It was still not over!
I was so excited during the celebrations I waved my scarf about, hitting the guy next to me. He was obviously understandable at my over enthusiasm. Boro fans were clearly rocked.
Despite singing our hearts out till the end of the game – and - despite City having a few close chances to level it, time ran out. But the scale of our fight back made it feel as though we were the victors. The Tigers’ ever increasingly popular manager, Phil Brown, punched the air towards us to thank the fantastic support. And it was such a passionate and vociferous following that I almost shed a tear.
As you know, I travelled up there with my good friends, the McAllister’s. Back at the car, Michelle McAllister said that a female Boro supporter came up to her at the end outside the stadium and said: “You know, if I wasn’t a Boro fan I’d most definitely be a Hull City fan. Your support is fantastic!” Need I say more.
On the way back, I decided to text into 606 on Radio 5 Live to praise our valiant comeback. To my surprise, they read my message out. It said: “Richard Marsden says there was a thriller at the Riverside tonight. We’re coming away as if we’ve won it. City are staying up.” Hugh, who was driving, bibbed the horn in celebration.
It was the happiest I’ve ever been after seeing the Tigers lose a match.
Boro debutant Seb Hines opened the scoring mid-way through the first half. Things went from bad to worse after the break. Just over 12 minutes into the second half we found ourselves 3-0 behind courtesy of a well-taken goal from Viduka and a dodgy penalty converted by Yakubu.
At this point, I had my head in my hands thinking it could be a rugby score. But spurred on by 3,000 fabulous City fans who were still egging their team on even at 3-0 down, we got back into it thanks to a great glancing header by Andy Dawson.
Five minutes later, the controversial Abel Xavier (he’s just come back from a lengthy ban for drub taking) hauled down City forward Nicky Forster. I thought it was just outside the box, but Premiership referee Rob Styles gave a penalty. Xavier was undoubtedly the last man and should have been sent off. But City fans were just overjoyed with the penalty decision. It was converted with great composure by Jon “The Beast” Parkin.
But the pulsating excitement was short lived when Viduka scored his second just a minute later, effectively to put the game beyond us at 4-2.
But Andy Dawson had other ideas. Awarded a free kick about 20 yards out, he struck a first-time curling shot over the wall. It was too powerful for keeper Mark Schwarzer. The ball hit the underside of the crossbar and went in for Dawson’s unlikely second of the night. It was still not over!
I was so excited during the celebrations I waved my scarf about, hitting the guy next to me. He was obviously understandable at my over enthusiasm. Boro fans were clearly rocked.
Despite singing our hearts out till the end of the game – and - despite City having a few close chances to level it, time ran out. But the scale of our fight back made it feel as though we were the victors. The Tigers’ ever increasingly popular manager, Phil Brown, punched the air towards us to thank the fantastic support. And it was such a passionate and vociferous following that I almost shed a tear.
As you know, I travelled up there with my good friends, the McAllister’s. Back at the car, Michelle McAllister said that a female Boro supporter came up to her at the end outside the stadium and said: “You know, if I wasn’t a Boro fan I’d most definitely be a Hull City fan. Your support is fantastic!” Need I say more.
On the way back, I decided to text into 606 on Radio 5 Live to praise our valiant comeback. To my surprise, they read my message out. It said: “Richard Marsden says there was a thriller at the Riverside tonight. We’re coming away as if we’ve won it. City are staying up.” Hugh, who was driving, bibbed the horn in celebration.
It was the happiest I’ve ever been after seeing the Tigers lose a match.
Tuesday, 16 January 2007
Cheers
Many thanks to Kenneth Hislop, Paul Mullane and the editorial team over at The Trinity Review for giving my new blog an excellent and amusing plug. (http://trinityreview.blogspot.com/2007/01/new-blog-of-interest.html)
The Trinity Review is a wide ranging blog in terms of subject matter. It provides a thought provoking look at Catholicism, literature and upcoming films, Celtic Football Club and includes amusingly-written personal diaries. Unlike most blogs, it pools the talents and interests of several Catholic authors together to provide a great mix of content.
In addition, thanks must also go to the king of Catholic bloggers, Father Tim Finigan, for plugging Bashing Secularism. Fr Tim's blog, The Hermeneutic of Continuity, needs no detailed recommendation. His London location, numerous contacts and witty writing style make his blog arguably the most well known and looked-at Catholic blog in Britain.
The Trinity Review is a wide ranging blog in terms of subject matter. It provides a thought provoking look at Catholicism, literature and upcoming films, Celtic Football Club and includes amusingly-written personal diaries. Unlike most blogs, it pools the talents and interests of several Catholic authors together to provide a great mix of content.
In addition, thanks must also go to the king of Catholic bloggers, Father Tim Finigan, for plugging Bashing Secularism. Fr Tim's blog, The Hermeneutic of Continuity, needs no detailed recommendation. His London location, numerous contacts and witty writing style make his blog arguably the most well known and looked-at Catholic blog in Britain.
Monday, 15 January 2007
The meaning of life
Last night I thoroughly depressed myself by watching a new series on BBC1 called The Meaning of Life. It was a half-hour ordeal, narrated by the Vicar of Dibley (Dawn French who mentioned the “God thing” once or twice and consisted of interview snippets from celebrities such as Frankie Dettori and Trisha Goddard.
Fern Britton said “she hadn’t got a clue what the meaning of life was” whilst another contributor decided it was all about “having as much sex as possible”.
The only Christian voice consisted of a woeful effort from Gloria Hunniford, who presents the BBC’s Heaven and Earth show. She said she would like to think she believed in God and that the meaning of life was about love. Ah, that’s nice.
What sentence would you have come up with if you were next in line on the show? Mine would be: Jesus Christ is the master key to the meaning of the universe and, therefore, to all of mankind.
What a glorious day it would be if the BBC were to give Father Patrick Burke or Father Roger Nesbitt a half an hour slot to explore the question. Dream, dream, dream, dream…
Perhaps I should have called this blog Bashing the BBC after all.
Fern Britton said “she hadn’t got a clue what the meaning of life was” whilst another contributor decided it was all about “having as much sex as possible”.
The only Christian voice consisted of a woeful effort from Gloria Hunniford, who presents the BBC’s Heaven and Earth show. She said she would like to think she believed in God and that the meaning of life was about love. Ah, that’s nice.
What sentence would you have come up with if you were next in line on the show? Mine would be: Jesus Christ is the master key to the meaning of the universe and, therefore, to all of mankind.
What a glorious day it would be if the BBC were to give Father Patrick Burke or Father Roger Nesbitt a half an hour slot to explore the question. Dream, dream, dream, dream…
Perhaps I should have called this blog Bashing the BBC after all.
School bans crucifix
Devout Roman Catholic pupil Samantha Devine, 13, was humiliated in front of her classmates after being forced to remove a small crucifix and chain from her neck.
Staff at the non-denominational Robert Napier School said they girl had been asked to take it off on health and safety grounds, The Daily Express reported.
The school said it did not allow jewellery to be worn by any pupils in years seven to10.
But Samantha said she was “proud of her religion” and vowed to keep wearing it even if it meant getting suspended or expelled. Good on her.
Even though Catholics are not required to wear a crucifix and chain, many do as an expression of their faith. To prevent her from wearing it on health and safety grounds is just a ridiculous excuse behind a more sinister intention, to stamp out religious expression.
The only two situations where wearing the necklace could possibly be a safety issue is during a Design and Technology lesson when bending down to use a sewing machine or during a PE lesson. In which case, to take it off and put it in the pocket for the lesson may be acceptable.
Not only is the banning of the cross “political correctness gone mad”, it’s also a direct attack on Christianity. Samantha’s dad, Danny, hit the nail on the head when he told the Express that people are scared to say anything against other faiths “because they don’t want to be accused of discrimination. But it’s acceptable to discriminate against Catholics. We are British and should be allowed to wear it in our own country.”
Hats off to Samantha and her family.
Staff at the non-denominational Robert Napier School said they girl had been asked to take it off on health and safety grounds, The Daily Express reported.
The school said it did not allow jewellery to be worn by any pupils in years seven to10.
But Samantha said she was “proud of her religion” and vowed to keep wearing it even if it meant getting suspended or expelled. Good on her.
Even though Catholics are not required to wear a crucifix and chain, many do as an expression of their faith. To prevent her from wearing it on health and safety grounds is just a ridiculous excuse behind a more sinister intention, to stamp out religious expression.
The only two situations where wearing the necklace could possibly be a safety issue is during a Design and Technology lesson when bending down to use a sewing machine or during a PE lesson. In which case, to take it off and put it in the pocket for the lesson may be acceptable.
Not only is the banning of the cross “political correctness gone mad”, it’s also a direct attack on Christianity. Samantha’s dad, Danny, hit the nail on the head when he told the Express that people are scared to say anything against other faiths “because they don’t want to be accused of discrimination. But it’s acceptable to discriminate against Catholics. We are British and should be allowed to wear it in our own country.”
Hats off to Samantha and her family.
Tigers update – Saturday report and “big diocesan cup clash”
Saturday’s encounter with QPR at home lasted a total of 100 minutes and finished at the ridiculously late time of 5 O’clock. This was mainly down to Rangers’ players going down regularly like a sack of spuds to time waste, their only hope of defending their slim one goal advantage. It was also a scrappy - and dare I say it – dirty encounter. Some of the challenges by QPR (and by us, a couple of times) were cynical. QPR’s keeper must have had shares in a paint company, with City hitting the woodwork on two occasions in the second half. My good friend Martin McAllister sitting next to me announced that it wasn’t our day. But thankfully, he was wrong.
On the stroke of the 80th minute, on came Stuart Elliott, the Northern Ireland international and Christian (of some description, not quite sure what). Ten minutes later, I nearly had a heart attack as he had scored not just the equaliser, but also the winner to snatch all three points in a crucial relegation battle. To say I went a bit crazy was an understatement. Mr Elliott – super sub or what! He told the Hull Daily Mail: “To get two goals was beyond what I could have hoped for but I believe in the great God so anything is possible.” Good man.
Tomorrow night, it’s the big Diocese of Middlesbrough clash. The only two professional football clubs in the Diocese, Middlesbrough and Hull City, will battle it out at the Riverside for a place in the 4th Round of the FA Cup. The replay follows a pulsating 1-1 draw last Saturday at the Kingston Communications Stadium.
I’m going up in the afternoon with the McAllister’s (unfortunately without Martin because he’s got an exam). The only setback is that Nicky Barmby is injured and will be unlikely to face his former club. But after Saturday’s emphatic comeback, who knows what might happen? Hopefully there will be a few glum faces at the Knights of St Columba Club in the Boro tomorrow night.
Match report to follow on Wednesday…
On the stroke of the 80th minute, on came Stuart Elliott, the Northern Ireland international and Christian (of some description, not quite sure what). Ten minutes later, I nearly had a heart attack as he had scored not just the equaliser, but also the winner to snatch all three points in a crucial relegation battle. To say I went a bit crazy was an understatement. Mr Elliott – super sub or what! He told the Hull Daily Mail: “To get two goals was beyond what I could have hoped for but I believe in the great God so anything is possible.” Good man.
Tomorrow night, it’s the big Diocese of Middlesbrough clash. The only two professional football clubs in the Diocese, Middlesbrough and Hull City, will battle it out at the Riverside for a place in the 4th Round of the FA Cup. The replay follows a pulsating 1-1 draw last Saturday at the Kingston Communications Stadium.
I’m going up in the afternoon with the McAllister’s (unfortunately without Martin because he’s got an exam). The only setback is that Nicky Barmby is injured and will be unlikely to face his former club. But after Saturday’s emphatic comeback, who knows what might happen? Hopefully there will be a few glum faces at the Knights of St Columba Club in the Boro tomorrow night.
Match report to follow on Wednesday…
Apologies for digressing
I’m afraid Bashing Secularism readers will have to put up with the slightly unrelated subject of Hull City reports and comment every so often. Worrying about relegation battles and incompetent managers (former City boss, Phil Parkinson) takes up quite a lot of my time. If you are merely interested in bashing secularism, kindly ignore “Tigers updates”.
Friday, 12 January 2007
Faith Conference Report
My report on the Faith Winter Conference has been published in this week's Universe on page 3. The newsdesk have accompanied it with a picture of Aishah Azmi, the Muslim teaching assistant who was sacked for refusing to remove her veil.
I decided to run with Sr Andrea Fraile's comments about how Catholics should support Muslim women in their right to wear the veil in order to defend religious expression.
Here's an extract from the report. If you want the full story, buy a copy!
Catholics should support Muslims in their right to wear the Burkha veil in order to defend religious expression, a conference of over 200 young Catholics was told.
Sister Andrea Fraile, a Sister of the Gospel of Life, told delegates at the Faith Winter Conference that people of all religions should unite to combat the threat of secularism.
“The people who are the real problem are those who want to abolish all religion,” said Sr Fraile, who works at the Pro-Life Initiative set up by Cardinal Winning in Glasgow.
Speaking about recent controversies surrounding the wearing of the veil by Muslim women, Sr Fraile said society had been “whipped into a frenzy”.
“If we say that the Burkha is offensive, we will not be able to show any form of religious symbolism altogether,” she said.
“Be sure that you do defend the Bhurka because what you are doing is defending religious expression.”
A main argument made by secularists is that religions make truth claims based on conflicting ideologies which causes destruction, the conference was told.
“The cause of war is not religion and conflicting ideologies,” Sr Fraile said. “The problem is with us.
“If one man sets himself against his brother he will use anything as an excuse.”
I decided to run with Sr Andrea Fraile's comments about how Catholics should support Muslim women in their right to wear the veil in order to defend religious expression.
Here's an extract from the report. If you want the full story, buy a copy!
Catholics should support Muslims in their right to wear the Burkha veil in order to defend religious expression, a conference of over 200 young Catholics was told.
Sister Andrea Fraile, a Sister of the Gospel of Life, told delegates at the Faith Winter Conference that people of all religions should unite to combat the threat of secularism.
“The people who are the real problem are those who want to abolish all religion,” said Sr Fraile, who works at the Pro-Life Initiative set up by Cardinal Winning in Glasgow.
Speaking about recent controversies surrounding the wearing of the veil by Muslim women, Sr Fraile said society had been “whipped into a frenzy”.
“If we say that the Burkha is offensive, we will not be able to show any form of religious symbolism altogether,” she said.
“Be sure that you do defend the Bhurka because what you are doing is defending religious expression.”
A main argument made by secularists is that religions make truth claims based on conflicting ideologies which causes destruction, the conference was told.
“The cause of war is not religion and conflicting ideologies,” Sr Fraile said. “The problem is with us.
“If one man sets himself against his brother he will use anything as an excuse.”
Wednesday, 10 January 2007
Catholic school admission policy: Worth defending?
New rules on admission to schools published by Education Secretary Alan Johnson yesterday are a kick in the teeth for Roman Catholic headteachers.
Mr Johnson, my neighbouring constituency’s MP (west Hull and Hessle), is to ban the “first preference” system which gives priority to Catholics who select a Catholic school as first choice for their kids. The ridiculous rules also prevent Catholic schools from interviewing parents to judge their commitment to the faith.
These setbacks come despite an excellent victory for the Church over the Government’s embarrassing u-turn on proposals to force faith schools to admit at least 20 per cent of kids from other religions. No doubt that this was due to concerted pressure put on the Government by the Church. But are the rights of our Catholic schools worth protecting?
Today, I heard a very concerning story about a young pupil of a Catholic school who came home and told her mum that her RE teacher had announced to the whole class that abortion was fine and that marriage was an inconvenience because it will probably end up in a divorce anyway. Her mum (a sleeping Catholic) was horrified and so was I when I heard the story. To what extent are our Catholic schools worth defending when RE teachers come out with this crap?
Catholic parents should be able to trust that their kids are being catechised according to the Church’s teaching. But nothing could be further from reality in many Catholic institutions.
I was horrified when I recently came across one of my RE GCSE essays on euthanasia in a file on the computer the other day. It was so balanced, with me only coming down strongly with the teaching of the Church in the concluding paragraph. It seems the teaching about moral issues has deteriorated even further in the last five years.
Of course there are some excellent Catholic schools lucky enough to have sound RE teachers. But many are increasingly using textbooks which haven’t been granted an imprematur and are less than comprehensive in teaching the truths of Catholicism.
I’ve always been a supporter of Catholic schools, but what’s the point in fighting for control over admissions when teachers are telling kids that abortion is fine?
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