One Cliché after another.

Greetings to my Reader at Christmas, and Best wishes for a prospering 2010. It must be time to make Resolutions for the latter; mine as ever is to ‘Carry on Blogging’ and thereby make hopefully constructive comment, for ‘The Powers That Be’ are usually far too busy ‘to see the wood for the trees’. Possibly it is a matter of ‘I blog therefore I am’. If there is nothing one can do to put the world to rights oneself, it seems logical to make comment to those who should be able so to do, be he or she Parish Councillor or Priest, County Councillor, Member of Parliament. The former District but now Unitary Council, or may the politically correct forgive me ‘The Daily Mail’ (for we all should support local businessmen.) A Newspaper Reporter once accused me of having ‘News Sense’ but to one of my asociability absolutely everything comes as News.

There are those who seek a more practical approach, become Parish Councillors, join some Political Party or attain more exalted Councillorship; become Activists in Church Affairs or of a sudden find a calling to Holy Orders, or alternatively indulge in all other manner of good works. Thank goodness that so many are willing to come to the assistance of others. But such eagerness to seize ‘ the baton’ of participatory democracy could be more of a hindrance than a benefit to posterity, for if ones only aim is to polish the thing before handing it on to the next man or woman who happens by, is that game worth its candle?

It is not the job of any level of Governance to maintain the Status Quo, but to provide Leadership. A necessity for compromise should never be confused with the siren calls of either Political Correctness or Short Term Opportunism. One should stand by what one believes in regardless of personal cost, if thereby one falls off the ‘Band Wagon’ so what? None should enter Politics for self advancement.
Leadership is the voice of Dissent not Patronage.
Thus seldom is it to be found in the Hierarchy of the latter.

THATCHERISM.
This week under the thirty year rule Cabinet Papers are released for the first eight months of Lady Thatcher’s first Administration. The Lady was most certainly a Leader apparently surrounded by sycophants, but whether or not she was leading the country in the right direction is a mute point. Any aspirations I had to participate in local Government ceased on the day of her accession ,for I believed that there was such a thing as ‘Society’, also that many of her policies were less than beneficial to the country. (e.g. Selling off Council Housing, Leasehold Enfranchisement, and the Destruction of our Manufacturing Base and an over Reliance on Service Industry. I having worked in the ‘City’ for a number of years myself had , seemingly now correctly, far less confidence of its efficacy than did she.)

RELIGION.
Fractional Christianity is an irrelevancy in the face of Islam. Is yesterday’s interpretation of Gospel that of the morrow, let alone our today? Where now Christian’s Progress and which his Highway Code? Unfortunately few know what now is the Common Creed. It is past time for Christianity ‘to get its act together’ speak with one voice rather than just sing Carols together.

On Christmas Eve whilst my family attended Our Parish ‘Midnight Service’ I watched on Television that which emanated from Westminster Cathedral. Why was it that Catholicism abandoned its Tridentine Latin Mass for the Vernacular? Possibly a majority of the Congregation at HQ. that eve had English as but its second tongue. Even the stirring ‘Adeste Fideles’ burst into English half way through. It was written in Latin and always so sung in any Church until its translation into English in the 1840.s. It was interesting to see that someone hereabout recently proposed forming a group to chant Compline in Latin. One awaits to hear the richness of its

"Fratres: Sóbrii estóte, et vigiláte: quia adversárius vester diábolus, tamquam Leo rúgiens círcuit, quaerens quem dévoret: cui resístite fortes in fide." - I Peter 5: 8-9

Because

Brethren, stay sober and alert your adversary the devil, is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour, resist him being strong in your faith.) - I Peter 5: 8-9

Will never be quite the same.