MY ADVENT FAREWELL TO ISLAM'S PERSIA ...

I have so much to write about my adventure

to Iran that I cannot begin to cover all that I

want to say. I feel more like a foreigner in my

own country of England, than I do being an actual

foreigner in a foreign country like Iran. Strange,

but true. For me, Iran is also demographically,

socially, culturally, politically, and emotionally,

and historically a predominantly male-oriented

society of the kind I have never witnessed quite

before. Everything seems subservient to the

male and most especially the women. Iranians

are neither Arabs nor Europeans, they're

Persian or Irani.

I shall endeavour now to write about

such issues inside Iran of home-

lessness, cost of living, web censorship, oil

rationing, bogs (not blogs) or public toilets,

infrastructure, sense of humour, Islamic prayer

days, cashing American Express travellors

cheques, Islamic art, the new refugees, tourist

scams, Iranian Christians, traffic accidents,

police radar guns, and above all the issue of

UN and Yankee economic sanctions

against the people of Iran ...

Homelessness is handled by providing

state accommodation for all. Folkz are

not allowed to sleep or stay on the streets.

They are picked up and given shelter

off the streets.

Web censorship by Iran of Western

newsites is much like I found in China

when I was there earlier this year. But

unlike China, Iran seems otherwise

alot more open to its citizens

accessing the web.

Iranians buy a litre of oil or gas or petrol

for 10 pence or 20 cents. They are

rationed to 100 litres per month unless

they're taxi drivers or running a business.

For that they can get an additional 80 litres

per month. The problem for Iran is not

crude oil, but the ability or means to refine

such oil. It's something like having a

rough diamond, but needing other folkz

to cut and polish the diamond for you for

it to be sold on the world market. Iran's

crude is a rough diamond, but needs to be

refined for sale and use by being cut

and polished for it first so to speak ...

Beware of bogs or public toilets!! You'll

rarely find the usual Western version of such

with a toliet bowl and seat and a wash

basin unless you're at some fancy Tehran

hotel. No sir, you'll find instead a loo laid

in the ground and where you squat and

do your thing ... And, toilet paper is not

to be found either. Rather, a small hose

is provided for one to clean up one's

own bodily excretion and urine. It's a

dizzy experience, let me say ... Don't ask

me please about the women's WC ...

As for the infrastructure regarding

roads and streets at Persia's capital,

I found them wanting ... They're

uneven and poorly constructed

and dangerous to walk if you don't

look carefully due to the sidewalks

or pavements going up and down

from one section to another. Drain-

age consists of deep troughs running

along or across the sidewalk or

pavement. If you don't look each

time, you can either find your foot

in the rough or you fall on your

ass or asrse quite easily ... Public

road repairs seemed almost non-

existent to me ...

The Persians have a wonderful sense

of humor and when I would put on

faces they'd laugh as good as the

rest of us. They like irony, too.

Jokes about me being a foreigner

inside Iran was always met with a

good laugh and poking fun at myself

and then at them would always bring

the house down ...

Acts of Faith are strong in Iran.

Friday Prayer Day means most

town and cities solidly close down

all day. It was something like Sundays

were of years ago in the American deep

south and in England prior to WWII.

Mosques and shrines are everywhere

and full not just on Fridays but on

most other days, too. As an Anglican,

I encountered no prejudice whatsoever

from anybody I met in Iran ... Nor did I

hear any anti-British sentiments against

me. When I was Isfahan, I requested that

I attend any Christian Sunday service in

town if such was available to me. And, sure

enough it was. I attended the local

Armenian Orthodox Church for the First

in Advent and was taken along the back

alleys of the city to find the church for me.

It was a 400 year-old treasure of Orthodox

Christianity that I found and although the

service was in Farsi, I understand the

whole ceremony of the Blessed Eucharist

and I was overjoyed to witnesss such

as a visiting Christian inside Shi'ite

Iran ...

"Don't leave home without them," de-

clares the American Express travellors

cheque television ads in the states ... Well,

if you plan on taking them to Iran you'd be

alot better off leaving them at home - period.

I took American Express travellors cheques

with me -- not in US dollars, but in EUROS --

and found no bank would cash such travellors

cheques not even the Tehran Headquarters of

the Melli Bank. Yes, they'd cash Euro bank-

notes or British banknotes into Iranian Rials,

but not American travellors cheques or checks.

I had not choice but to use American Express

travellors cheques from my bank because those

were the only type they'd issue me and others.

As for banks, Iran must have more banks than

any other country I have visited. Everywhere

they're dozens of banks of every name possible

on what seems like every other street in

Tehran, Rasht, Shiraz, and Isfahan ...

If I wanted to cash my travellors cheques

the only option I had was on the local

blackmarket which would entail at least

a 25 per cent loss to me of the face value

of each cheque. So for 100 Euros, I would

have gotten 75 Euros back. With the London

bank fee and commission I paid to get the

cheques in the first place to take safely with

me from England to Iran, I would be even

more out of pocket having already paid the

bank's exorbitant fee and commission of

over £22.oo or $44.00 ... So what did I do?

I simply brought back those American

Express travellors cheques I had right

back to England. Since the euro continues

to increase in value, I hold on to them un-

til I need them next on some other travel

adventure come this upcoming New Year

of 2oo8 ... Bravo!!

Iranians resent the term Islamic art

because as Persians their own art is

actually Irani art ... The term Islamic

art is used by most Westerners to

describe the artwork from Islamic

countries. But in Iran, Irani art is

their art and it's not per se Islamic

in origin or anything else but Irani.

I must stop quickly, but will say

more once I can get back to my blog ...

A group of Iranian High School students

asked me to sum-up what I thought of

George W. Bush. I told them: "Bush is

America's First Shah. And like the last

Shah of Iran, Bush is equally brutal

against the Iranian people ..." The

students almost wanted to hug me for

what I instinctively said as we stood

having gazed together at the more than

2.500 year-old UNESCO world heritage

site of monumental Persepolis. It was there,

too, that Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi

held his $100 million celebration of Persia's

founding while the people were starving and

subject to torture by the shah's secret police.

When the extravangant party was over,

it was also to be his last party inside Iran ...

Harvey Morris' recent report in The

Financial Times on what appears to be

some disturbing similiarities

between the shah's then ruthless

regime and today's government of

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

(1956- ). is an eye opener. The pres-

ident was, incidentally, one of the

Iranian student leaders at the

American Embassy at Tehran during

the hostage crisis at the rise of the

Islamic Revolution in 1979.

For me as a Westerner to have spend

such time has I did inside Iran was

remarkable and such a personal joy ...

I happen to like the Iranians

and I like their country and their

culture and history truly fascinates

me ... And, why not?

Cheers for now,

+The Crimean Christians, 2oo7.

"My Heart is in The UK," says Arlene Johnson ...

I knew Arlene, an homeless American from California, at Father

Sherbrooke's homeless suppers before she then headed off to

Ireland and later to Norway. Here is her latest e-mail to her

many fans, that also includes me, that arrived for me while

I am now preparing to bid "My Advent Farewell To Islam's

Persia" on this my last leg of my multi-city visits inside Iran.

But for now, read what Arlene has so informed to us ...

My dear British friends & Monty. Please see this article

which is at http://www.eutruth.org.uk The author doesn't

understand about democracy, but he's right on with what

he has here. Then, please forward this to everyone you

know there (in UK). We can't allow this to happen to any

of you. If you would like to not receive anything more from

me, just let me know. I will feel sad for you, but will remove
you from my Address Book. Please forgive me for placing
your Email address in the To field. I did it so those who are
interested would know how many people I know in the U.K.
Peace, Arlene Johnson. Publisher/Author
http://www.truedemocracy.net
To access my work, click on the

icon that says 'Magazine.'

Now Off To Isfahan's Orthodox Vank Cathedral ...

Before leaving today for Tehran for the third and finally time, I

will go to Vank Cathedral here at Isfahan to check out what

Anglican/Episcopal Sunday services are available to me to attend

for divine worship on this the first day of Advent.

As an Anglican and Christian, I have encountered no religious

intolerance or prejudice here against me in Shia Iran. In fact,

Christianity has long been rooted in such cities like Isfahan and

Shiraz and Tehran with the Armenian Orthodox Church very

active in its permanent presence in Persia for centuries. I

have already visited the Armenian Orthodox Cathedral while

I was last in the capital of Iran.

Here at Isfahan, I have been treated so well by all who I have

met and my walkabout yesterday in town produced pretty

sore feet for me since I walked for miles around this truly

historic city ... I found a number of antiques shops, too.

Some wonderful old photographs from the late 19th

century I saw and so badly wanted that depicted,

among other subjects, Armenian Orthodox Patriarchs

and Archmonks and also oddly enough finely attired

and swaggering English gentlemen with walking

canes and gold fobs and waistcoat watch chains ...

The dealer wanted about 100 pounds for the

photo album of 12 images. Not too bad, but

too much for me to pay ...

Must run again since my guide and able driver

Zabihollah Saki, 63, is here at my rented computer

ready to take me to Vank Cathedral now,

which I am looking forward to greatly ...

Faithfully. Monty.

+First in Advent, 2oo7

OVER 2.000 MILES I'VE NOW BEEN INSIDE IRAN.

Two or three gaggles of gracious geese I saw at the soothing

sunrise on my first morning at the throbbing heart of Iran's

Isfahan. What a beautiful sight it was and a kind of blessing to

see ... Arriving here late last night from Shirez and the nearby

2.500 year-old monumental site of Persia's Persepolis, which

is indeed a worthy UNESCO World Heritage Site, I am now set

to explore this old Irani city of Isfahan. With over 2 million

residents, Isfahan is the third largest city in Persia. It

also has the world's second largest square -- Naghsh-E-

Jahan -- after China's Tiananmen Square, which is the

biggest of them all. I have stood there, too!!

Oh, parking tickets here are between 5 and 10 pounds

that are issued by the local traffic police. Of course, the

predatory and shameless traffic wardens of England

rake in millions of pounds per year against the British

motorists. Such wardens border on mafia gangsters to

extract all they can for their council employers in the

name of mindless "parking enforcement" ...

But back here at Isfahan, I'm far away from such

crude and malicious enforcers. I mention tickets

simply because my guide here was unforunate to

get his first ever ticket. I told him he was lucky not

to be ticketed by London's Westminister City traffic

wardens since Westminister is the most vicious

of all traffic taliban ...

And, while I have now been over 2.000 miles inside Iran,

I've only yet seen such a tiny bit of this revolutionary and

rivetting country. But by what I've seen so far, I have been

enthralled by the colour, the fabric, and the character of

Iran and her open people ...

It's just after 9:00am at Isfahan Kowsar International

Hotel at where I'm staying for the time being. Today,

I shall visit here, there and everywhere and go off,

like I like to do, on my walkabouts to see and hear

the real Iran and no just the spots where foreign

and local visitors are trucked to ... For me, the joy

is seeing the ordinary and the extraordinary all

around me be it here at Isfahan or Persepolis or

the Caspian Sea or Tehran.

Again, I must rush since my guide and driver will

be here shortly to greet me and I don't want him

to miss me, of course ... Kudos, Monty.

+Eve of Advent, 2oo7.

IRAN'S CASPIAN SEA HAS CAPTIVATED ME ...

So off to the Caspian Sea I went with my guide "K" and our

driver on our 485-mile round trip first to Rusht and then

onto the seaport of Bandar-e Anzali, where we stayed over-

night at the 400 room Hotel Sefid Kenar. But, it neither

had internet use nor milk for my tea!! Whatever, the

Caspian Sea has now captivated me like no other sea

that I have seen upto now ...

Most of it is owned and controlled by Iran, but that's

not what has captivated me! No, it's just something

hard to explain right now for why I feel the way I do

about it. To stand and wander less than 100 yards from

the seafront of the Caspian Sea was a fulfilment for me

of some sort having journeyed almost 6.000 miles from

England to see it and then to touch it with my own hands

and feet was wonderful. And, my hotel veranda was a

perfect spot to see and hear the overnight roar of the sea

as bad weather hit us badly at Anzali. It sadly stayed

with us, did the soaking and grim weather, until we need-

ed to return to Tehran so that I could catch a domestic

Iran Air night flight to Persia's ancient city of Shirez

at where I'm now briefly updating my blog for all the

good folkz to know I'm still here in the Middle East ...

I will get back with you all within perhaps the

next day or so to give you all alot more titbits

about my upfront adventure and experience of

seeing Iran first hand. It's like no other country I

have visited and it is a country that has enthalled

since the rise of the Islamic Revolution of 1979 ...

Greetings once again from Iran, Monty.

+St. Andrew's Day, 2oo7.

SIGNS OF XMAS EVEN AT SHIA TEHRAN ...

Yesterday, I took my first walkabout along Nejatollahi Street and

Taleghani Avenue at downtown Tehran to see what was going on at

late afternoon just before sunset at about 4:45pm local time.

I never expected to see anything to do with Advent and

Christmas at Shia Iran! But I did ... there I saw one shop all decked

out in lovely Xmas streamers and a grand Xmas tree right in the

large front window all done up nicely in bright red ornaments and

shiny royal blue and green tinsel ... Here then was the symbol

of Christmas for me some 4.000 miles away from England!!

I was overjoyed and surprised, but I also sad that in England

all one sees today is the almost deChristianization of Christmas

at the stores in Covent Garden and the West End.

What decorations they use are simply perfunctionary at

best and at worst as deChristianized as possible as they can get.

So much for an English Christmas of once upon a time, I guess ...

Here in Tehran, I also did my first grocery shopping at less

than 24 hours of being here and to find the food pretty cheap. My

full shopping bag of milk, orange juices, chocolate biscuits, and

sugar for my tea, cost me around 3 quid -- 60.000 Rials -- while

in England the same would have cost me at good 10 to 12 quid

with nobody helping to fill my bag of groceries for me like I found

at this Islamic city ... Nor would I have been given a "thank you" at

Tesco or Asda or Sainsbury or Marks and Spencer for my purchase

like I was given here at the grocery store. My only problem was

being sure I was buying the right stuff since everything was printed

in the Farsi or the Persian language. What one thinks is milk could

easily be nothing more than sour white yogurt or something that

tastes so bitter one wants to immediately spit the stuff out of

one's mouth, especially someone like me who has a very sweet

tooth. Luckily and by sheer chance I got what I thought I had

like real milk and sugar that wasn't white rice ...

For once in my life I got it right!!

I must now run since by "bodyguard" known simply as "K"

and who tries to charge me bodyguard price, is here to yank

me off around town this morning where the sun is shining and

the day is mild. I am so excited to be here in Shia Iran that

no matter how much this may have cost me -- as you all

know I am so poor and yet so rich in spirit -- so whatever I

must go for now ... Cheers, Monty. +St. Lucas, 2oo7.

I'm back from a full day of seeing alot more of Tehran.

Spending some of the morning at the grand Golestan

Palace was fascinating to me with the historic paintings

of the late 18th and early 19th century "Fathalishahs" of

the once powerful Peacock Throne. In primitive art style,

the images were remarkable to view simply because of the

period of dress and the nobility of the subjects so well

painted or depicted. The last of the Peacock Throne was,

of course, Shah Pahlav of Iran, who was overthrown in

1979 by the rise of the Islamic Revolution here and who

died in Egypt as a rather forlorn, pitiful, and hated

figure by his own Iranian people ... The interior and

exterior of the palace, like most old palaces, was of

outstanding craftmanship and taste, and in this case,

of acclaimed historic Islamic artwork ... I must have

taken at least 20 photographs of the Golestan Palace

and could have taken more that's for sure ... Inside

the Coronation Room was furbished by imported

German stained glass and bevelled mirrors that

covered all the walls and the entire ceiling along with

handcrafted tablets of Farsi inscriptions and carved

fable figures that have stood the test of time by still,

for the most part, being intact to this day and are

now preserved for all time ... What I find odd is

that with the hatred against the then dreaded

Shah Regime, that today items related to the Shah

himself are readily offered for sale to foreign visitors

like me as if the Shah was somehow a relic of the

past who did no wrong under his brutal regime.

Time can play tricks on the people, too. When such

folkz benefit from selling such itims, they are in a

certain way diminishing and forgiving all that was

wrong about the man. In fact, the selling of such

Shah items should be outlawed much like we see in

Germany where items relating to Hitler and his

Nazi regime are forbidden under law not to be sold

at the public marketplace. So should the Shah ...

What I enjoyed most about today was being caught-up

in the city milieu of Tehran and getting stopped by folkz

asking me for street directions that I assume was what

they wanted of me even though I didn't understand a

word of their native Farsi. And, being here a mere 36

hours so far and to have folkz treat me like I'm a native

in such a short time is to me quite complimentary ...

On main Valiasr Street, I saw long lines of waiting

drivers to get their gas or petrol at the station. Iran

being, I believe, the world's second largest oil producer

it shouldn't have much of a problem providing oil for

her people. I assume there is no rationing and that the

price of petrol is relatively cheap here compared to

other countries like the UK. Maybe it was the time of

day at around 5:30pm and that since most city workers

leave their job then and live in suburban Tehran that it

was just a very busy time for the gas station to cope

with all those waiting to fill-up ...

What I have seen of Tehran from Javadiye to Majidiyeh

to Kavoosiyeh and to Shahrake Gharb by car, and

also by my free walkabouts, I would say the city is

quite humble and poor and flat and unshowy. The city

roads and streets seem in okay condition, but the side-

walks or pavements are pretty treacherous to walk

and in disrepair with potholes, broken chunks of

asphalt or concrete, and steep steps that join one part

of the street to another. If you don't watch yourself

you could easily be injured badly by falling flat on your

face or back or dislocating some part of your body or

slipping on your heels and screaming like mad.

As for traffic, it's a case of the survival of the fittest!

Cars are the weapons and the people are the targets.

The streets are wide and open, but clogged to the

hilt with choking cars and masses of people. The

two elements converge on each other like a daily

battle of mind over matter. The "mind" is the person

and the "matter" is the car. If there are enough people

trying to cross the street, the cars are forced to stop

only with seconds given and then off they go again.

Usually, there are more cars than people, so the

cars usually win one way or another. So be alert,

quick and very careful when you venture across

any street or road in Iran's Tehran.

A few other quick observations for today:

Never have I seen a city with so banks!! Every

street seems to have a bank despite America's

unilateral sanctions against the Iranian banking

system ... At also every few hundred yards there

are charity collection boxes for the city to raise

money to help house and feed the poor. The blue and

yellow boxes depict two hands together and a sad

figure of a needy mother and unfed child. I haven't

seen anybody put some money in such boxes yet,

but I'm pretty sure kind folkz do. This Tuesday

evening here, I see the shops seem quite

full and busy with customers especially at the

many jewellery stores and at the new fangled

phone stores full of cheap cellphones. Cellphones

are not by far as widely used as I see in London

although it seems the young city workers are

more drawn to using mobiles than the older folkz

from what I have seen here. As for the weather, its

been perfect with clear skies and dry and mild

degrees in the upper 60's/lower 70's f.

Tomorrow I head out of town to the Caspian

Sea by going to Rasht and Bezvanshar that will take

a good five to six hour chauffeur-driven ride for me.

I will make contact with you all again once I return

to Tehran. Shortly after that, I shall then go by

Iran Air onto Esfahan and Yazd. See you then!!

My regards, Monty.

Just got this from you know who ... So I'll leave

it unedited as it is written and sent to me. Glad

always to get such frank and open comments ...

From: Anonymous noreply-comment@blogger.com

To: thebiggerissue@k.st Subject: [thebiggerissue.org]

New comment on AT THE CAPITAL OF IRAN, I NOW

STAND .... Date: Mon, 26 Nov 2007

05:08:16 -0800 (PST)

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post

"AT THE CAPITAL OF IRAN, I NOW STAND ...":

"Monty THings you must do: 1- See the Crown Jewels 2- Hike

the mountain trails around Tehran (probably snowy now so

bring boots) especially Darekeh (I think they're open in

winter) 3- Quick trip to the Caspian coast 4- See the bazaar5-

Get out of Tehran (dirty crowded ugly) and See Isfahan and

Shiraz and Persepolis AND WATCH OUT FOR TRAFFIC ... "

AT THE CAPITAL OF IRAN, I NOW STAND ...

After a long weekend at inimitable Istanbul, I arrived here at 4:00am

local time at Tehran ... I am thrilled to be here and to see with my

own eyes and to hear with my own ears all that is so extraordinary

about this country called Persia. As luck would have it, I still

made it here after almost missing my flight due to the half-

hearted Turkish airline giving me the wrong gate number of

216 instead of 301. Just by chance, I noticed their mistake and

like a mad man I then ran through the Ataturk International

Airport to reach my flight to Iran just in time by about three

minutes. Woooow ... Glad I did.

Thus, it's only my first few hours inside fanetic Tehran and so

I will post more observations and views of my extraordinary

stay here for all to hopefully find worthy and interesting to

read from me over the next coming days ... My regards

from the Capital of Iran, Monty. +St. Simon, 2oo7.

Now having spent the first half day here in Tehran, there

was not the expected tension or fear that I thought might

exist. Rather the oppose is true with no evidence of tension

or isolation at all and a busy and yet relaxed atomsphere

about the capital is everywhere from what I have seen so

far. Thus life goes on, despite grave threats here of

possible Yankee attacks and bombings to try to prevent

Iran's desire to achieve its own nuclear independence.

It isn't an old city by European standards, at least not from

the Westernized architecture of the early Edwardian period

and onward of many of the downtown buildings that looked

like as if they were pre-fabricated structures and plainless.

Not stylish in design then, but functional and also no sky-

crapers of the American kind could I see at this city of 12

million. As for the many Tehran Mosques, then such archi-

tecture of such is definitely Irani or Islamic in design

and character with intricate Islamic art adoring such

edifices of Muslim worship. The huge New Mosque I saw

being built, as we drove by, was simply awesome and

magnificent to my eye ...

How about Iranian money? Well, when I made my first

exchanged of 25 British pounds sterling this morning for

Iranian Rials I was shocked at the amount of money I

got back. I got 32 banknotes of 20.000 rials each plus 1

at 10.000 Rials. Such was a pile of money compared to

my one British banknote of 20 quid and one of five quid.

So for two Limey banknotes I now had 33 big Iranian

notes to stuff in my pockets ...

And while talking of money, my guide called "K" -- a

married man with four daughters and quite chubby and

who speaks good English after spending quite some time

in San Antonio, Texas, before the Islamic Revolution of

1979 -- took me to see huddles of antiques, old coins,

medals, and medallions, from early Persia to the last

period of the late Shah of Iran. I bought a Shah

and Shahress medal with the original blue and

yellow ribbon attached for a mere 12 quid after

the street dealer first wanted 25 pounds or $US50.

for it. Such vendors or dealers stand or sit at their little

spot on the sidewalk or pavement and wait patiently for

coin and antiques collectors like to come and buy. Dozens

and dozens of US Liberty and Peace Dollars are available

for as little a 5 or 6 dollars each. But two problems exist with

such. One, the modern dollar is now practically worthless here,

and two, many of the old American coins are little more than

re-pros or re-strikes or out and out fakes. Certainly to find

early 1800's US silver dollars in such quanitites as I found at

Tehran brings the immediate question as to the authenticity

of such silver coins to say the least. Oftentime, they quote

in US dollars although the euro is the hard currency most

wanted now by businesses and the government in the know

here inside Iran.

So far, I have really enjoyed my encounters with the local

folkz and I am looking forward to also travelling outside of

Tehran in the coming days ... I'll update my adventure here,

with you all, from time to time. For now, all is well here in

historic Persia ... Kudos, Monty.

The Streetwise Opera ... at First Carol Service

"You are cordially invited to join us for the first Housing Justice

Christmas Carol Service Featuring St Angela’s Ursuline School Choir,

Streetwise Opera (as shown above) and Second Opinion." Refresh-

ments to follow. Thursday 13th December 2007 at 7.00pm at

St. John’s Church, Waterloo Road, London SE1 8TY.

Nearest tube station: Waterloo.

If you can come, please RSVP by e-mail to Alastair

Murray: a.murray@housingjustice.org.uk

Consecration of Women To The English Episcopacy.

The Church of England will decide in the not too distant futrue on whether its

ordained women clergy can next be consecrated as bishops of the church. It is

a rather contentious and divisive issue between the many faithful conservative

or traditional and liberal or radical Anglicans. Next to the never-ending

debate and issue of homosexuality among the clergy (as best illustrated by

the American consecration of the openly gay clergyman Gene Robinson

to the New Hampshire bishopic), the role of women in the protestant
church has created yet another time-bomb for church leaders to resolve as

best they can. No matter what decisions are finally made by them, someone,

somewhere, somehow, will disapprove or reject of whatever the final outcome

is regarding women and gays in the church.

Across the pond in America, the 2.5 million member Episcopal Church, USA,

has not only consecrated women to the American Episcopacy since African-

American Barbara Harris was first elected to be a bishop in early 1989, it now

has its first woman -- Bishop Katherine Jefferts Schori -- as the presiding bishop

of the what is considered by many to be the richest endowed church in the US,

too. Next they'll want a female or an openly gay Archbishop of Canterbury to

head the worldwide 75 million member Anglican Communion!! And such,

will undoubtedly occur, sooner or later, if the present liberal trends

in the church continue unabated.

In hostile reaction to the liberal feminization, affirming homosexuality and
same sex marriages or blessings that are so permitted by some radical bishops
and gay dioceses in the Anglican Communion, many conservative or traditional
Anglicans and their parishes have flocked to join ultraconservative dioceses in
Africa and Asia. So once women are consecrated to the English Episcpacy,
the traditionalists will bolt from the Church of England even in greater numbers
than seen before. Also, the present silent issue of the Africanization of the laity
in the Church of England will eventually come to head in the future. Many of
the Anglican parishes in London and Birmingham now have majority black
parishioners that out number the white ones by 4 to 1 in some instances.

Ruth Gledhill, writing in The Times, stated that "(English Church) opponents

of women bishops could be given the 'conscientious objector' status within

the church. Such would allow the "time-honoured way of reconciling those

who are unable to go along with a change which is taking place (in the

church)." I am not sure if such a proposal borders on covert recognition

by the campaigners for consecrating women to the Anglican espiscopate

as being confronted with a war footing by their opponents. Certainly,

some traditional Anglicans and their conservative parishes are at war with

the church and bishops, especially in the US and Canada over the issues

of ordination of women and gay clergy. I have little doubt that the liberal/

conservative divide will continue to deepen the rift among faithful Angli-

cans no matter if somekind of 'conscientious objector' status is approved

by the General Synod.

In America, the rise of the so-called "Continuing Church" has been

around since the early 1970's based on such disputes as the modern

revision of the ECUSA 1928 Book of Common Prayer (BCP), the

ordination of women, the intergration of black Episcopal worshipers,

the consecration of female bishops, and opposition to gay clergy.

The problem with the "Continuing Church" is that it has no episcopal

standing or church legitimacy since many of its so-called archbishops,

bishops, vicar generals, monsignors and deacons are self-appointed

and oftentimes little more than crackpots and in extreme cases even

convicted criminals waltzing around in clergy attire that they have no

moral right to claim or to wear. Few, if any, are accepted or

tolerated or recognised by either Canterbury or Rome.

Thus, I call them "bogus pulpiteers."

On the question of who is likely to become the first English fe-

male bishop, Ruth Gledhill also wrote the following:: "Among the

women high-flyers in the Church of England who could be in the

frame for a mitre are Canon Christine Hardman, Archdeacon of

Lewisham; the Very Rev'd Vivienna Faull, Dean of Leicester and

acknowleged as the Church's most senior woman, and the Very

Rev'd June Osborne, Dean of Salisbury." No matter what, it is

unlikely that any one of those mentioned would be considered for

consecration as bishop until 2010 at the earliest. In the meantime,

the next Lambeth Conference is set for 2oo8 and will be held

at the Canterbury campus of the University of Kent. No doubt

His Grace, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Rowan Douglas

Williams, will have his plate full just trying to keep the Anglican

Communion from splitting, not just in half, but into various

fractions that will do irrepairible damage to the true body

of Anglicanism.

Anonymous states...
The sooner the C of E purports to consecrate a woman to the episcopate the better. It will clear the air and show the impossibility of having different religions in the same state framework and calling it a church.
11/22/2007 07:53:00 AM
4My caption photo, seen above, is that of Rev'd Liz Russell of London's famed St. Martin-in-the-Fields. She again officiated at this year's Commemoration Service of the Homeless Dead, like she did so ably last year at where I then photographed her.

IN MEMORIAM TO THE 2007 HOMELESS DEAD.

Yesterday's ecumenical event of the "Annual Service of Commemoration for the Homeless People Who Have Died in
the Past Year," which is held annually at London's dis-
tinquished St. Martin-in-the-Fields at Trafalgar Square,
was a worthy service indeed. With around 300 people
gathering for the moving service, 127 known names of
the homeless dead were respectfully read and marked
for each person in remembrance of the him or her. I
was privileged to read one of the four blocks of names.
I also added a few personal comments to the gathering
the need to hve a national memorial to the homeless dead.
Perhaps one day such will be done ...

Here, then, I list each of those names in the order in
which they were presented at the service that was
graciously officiated by the Rev'd Liz Russell and by
Anglican reader Roger Shaljean. Roger is the key man be-
hind organising the annual service that seems to be
growing in more importance by each year under his
able direction and thoughtful dedication ... For the
past 40 years or more, he has been with St. Martin's
first as a social worker there and later as director
of St. Martin's Care Unit. We give thanks for Roger
and Rev'd Liz and St. Martin-in-the-Fields ...

First Set of Names:
Thomas Aiken : Ahmed Ali : John Allen : Ray Angel

Nicholas Barnes : Joe Barrett : Krystoff Bednarski

Michael Behan : Tim Bennett (Count) : John Berry

Lisa Blake : Mark Bond : Kevin Bradshaw : John

Breslin : Rachel Bridgeman : George Burgess

Colin Burns : Albert Butler : Patrick Byrne : John

Caniffe : James Carney : John Cary : Chris Chandler

Paula Coker : Bob Collie : John Collins : Rayley

Conrad : Terry Coster : John Creavey : John Curry

Robert Cusick : Marek Czuwki : Thomas Dale : Clifford

Davies : Arthur Day : David Dickie : Sean Dillon

Cathleen Doyle : Thomas Doyle : Richard Draper

Michael Duffy : Dougie Durham

Second Set of Names:
Theresa Ertus : Peter Evans : Peter Famer : Patrick

Flynn : Michael Foley : John Fraser : Patrick Gallagher

Bert Gaughan : Terry Gibson : Leslie Haggan : Alison

Hennah : David Higginson : Karl Hodgkinson : Jim

Hollingsworth : Craig Hooper : Chris Hornett : Shane

Howarth : Damon Humphries : Michael Irvine : Arthur

Jeffrey : Shane Joslin : Arunasalam Karunathatan

Steve Kumarlea : Bryan Lawson : Donald Lee

Richard Lewtey

Third Set of Names:
John McCarthy : Ian (Marge) McKenzie : James McLean

Neil McLeod : Angus McNab : Dereck Miller : Andy

Morgan : Kenneth Morgan : Philip Morgan : Brian Mark

Morley : Bernard Morris : Maureen Moynihan : Edward

Munnelly : Kevin Murphy : Richard Murphy : Michael

Murtagh : Sabina Mustafa : Donald Naylor : Lee Newton

John Nicholls : Olivia Nwoyne : Thomas O'Brien

Don (MacDonald) Parris : Jackie Queen : Norman Riley

Michael Ripley : Stanley Edward Roberts : Arthur

Rotherham : Theophilus Ryan

Fourth Set of Names:
Moses Sendawula : Brian Smith : Anthony Somerville

Ray Southwell : Raquel Speed : Walter Spencer

Stuart Spencerly : Colin Standrin : Jaciek Stangreciek

John William Stanton : Andrew Stewart : Timothy Stewart

Gene Stuart : Eddie Sumpter : John Surath : Patrick

Tighe : Peter Tindall : Stephen Tracy : Barnard

Ward : Samuel Joseph Ward : Alan Welsh : John Weston

Roger Wethersfield : Fred Wheeler : Annie White : Sidney

Wildego : Philemon Yombo-Djema : (Ziggy) Zbigniew

In the coming year, if you are aware of any homeless
person who has died please be sure to contact me with
their name, age, place of death, cause of death (if known)
or any news report about such a person's death. I will
then add each name you send to the annual list of the
homeless dead in the United Kingdom. Put in the subject
line the words "Homeless Death" and please send to thebiggerissue@k.st as soon as you are aware of such a
person's passing.

More of my comments are set below about some of the
people who attended this year's service at St. Martin's,
which is undergoing a $US72 million renovation of the
church itself. What's been done so far of the interior
is simply and truly magnificent ...

Also, a quick note for all to remember:
On Sunday, December 2nd, 2oo7, at 7:55AM, BBC Radio
4, will broadcast live from St. Martin's its Christ-
mas Appeal on behalf of those who are homeless ...

After the service, it was nice to first meet both Catholic Religious Sister Rosahe Hayes
and Anglican minister Gordon Mererith, who are pastoral workers at London's "The
Passage" Day Center and Night Shelter for the Homeless. Members of the Streetwise
Opera I also met again this year like last and the year before. A new member of the opera
is Vivien James, 57, whose uncle was the late Freddie Mills (1919-1965). He was a noted
British boxer in his day. He became light-weight champion of the world in 1948. Vivien's
dad Les James, 87, also attended the service. While homeless Dereck Defreitas, 56, is now
the longest serving cast member of the Streetwise Opera. I've seen Dereck performs on
other occassions, too. And, BBC Radio 4's Sally Roberts and I had a little chat during
refreshments that was so ably provided by St. Martin's. Representing The Big Issue was
Steve Farrell. He helps man TBI distribution spot at Covent Garden. He was a vendor for
3 years before he was picked to do the present distribution job ...