Email quarantine
I genuinely wonder how much of a place there actually is in the body of Christ... for perceptive people telling important but inconvenient truths, let alone asking informed but awkward questions
Further to these posts…
…this is an update for those readers who are interested in how things are at the church I attend.
On Sunday 26th January, I was approached two of the churchwardens after the morning service. Among other things, one of them told me that he was going to arrange for the church email system to be configured so that if I sent a message to the staff, it would automatically be quarantined with the wardens for release at their discretion.
For context and for the record, I have reproduced below in full1 all the messages I have sent to the church staff during the last three months.
I should perhaps add that, in late October, in response to various messages I had sent, and in the absence of engagement from the staff, the wardens collectively offered me a meeting where the sole agenda item would be the cessation of my emails to staff and wardens.
I guess the staff had not appreciated me sending them links to then-recent articles such as Error hates truth.2
Anyhow, I didn’t take the wardens up on their offer. I couldn’t see how such a meeting would help anyone. It certainly didn’t look like a first step on the path to truth and reconciliation which will have to come eventually.
And I didn’t email the church staff again until 6th January (see below), when I did so fairly briefly in the context of the previous day’s sermon on 1 Peter 2:13-17.
On the plus side, the wardens have indicated that they may be willing to meet with me in person for discussion, so long as we don’t talk about covid. I hope and pray that, if it happens, it will be in the spirit of Ephesians 4:25.
22You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.25 Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbour, for we are all members of one body. Monday 6th January
To the four main preaching staff, copied to the wardens and the Church Office
Good morning preachers
In the context of yesterday’s sermon [on 1 Peter 2:13-17], I thought it worth sharing this short article re silent prayer near abortion clinics:
https://thinkingcoalition.substack.com/p/the-british-state-introduces-thoughtcrime
I wonder what (the apostle) Peter would say
This is far from the only thing like this that is happening beneath the radar in our “democracy” [NB the virtues of British democracy had been spoken about in the previous day’s sermon]
[To the Church Office] I’d be grateful if you could forward this to [the preacher from the previous day] [who is not one of the four regulars]
Best wishes
Friday 10th January
Having realised that, in the Thinking Coalition post cited above, there wasn’t actually a link to the government website
To the four main preaching staff, copied to the wardens
PS a link to the government website re the potential criminalisation of silent prayer near abortion clinics can be found in the “thoughtcrime in the UK” section here:
https://dearchurchleaders.substack.com/p/updates-jan-2025
Also, I have posted a revised and updated version of the two-part article “God over government” that I wrote last year, not least so that the relevant content is all in one article.
I am still interested in answers to the questions I originally asked in late 2021. And particularly in the use of the different words translated “submit” and “obey” etc. This seems to me an important distinction?
I wonder what the generation of “lockdown babies”, some of whom apparently “can’t respond to their own name” (as per the update linked above), will eventually have to say. And indeed older children, some of whose lives were devastated by the response to “the pandemic” one way or another.
The God over government (Jan 2025 update) article can be found here:
I have had no reply to either of the above messages. And there was, as I recall, no discussion of the different words translated “submit” and “obey” in the sermon on 1 Peter 2:18-25 on Sunday 12th January.
Thursday 23rd January
Almost two weeks later, and in the context of the church’s annual “Partnership Sunday” on 19th January, and an appeal letter about church finances from the vicar, treasurer and wardens on 17th January
To the four main preaching staff, copied to the wardens
Dear all
It was good to be reminded last Sunday of the imagery of the body of Christ. Though I genuinely wonder how much of a place there actually is in the body of Christ at [our church] for perceptive people telling important but inconvenient truths. Let alone asking informed but awkward questions.
You may find that the discussion here helps join some of the dots as to the bigger picture:
https://dearchurchleaders.substack.com/p/the-weakening-of-society
As noted in the article, you don’t have to agree with everything that is said to get the gist of it.
Everyone will have to face up to this sooner or later.
Yours (still) in the spirit of Ephesians 4:25
Maybe the link to The weakening of society was the final straw?
I take some solace in the fact that we have just started a sermon series on Ecclesiastes — that little-studied book of the Old Testament which ends with the words:
For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.Dear Church Leaders most-read articles
Some posts can also be found on Unexpected Turns
The Big Reveal: Christianity carefully considered as the solution to a problem
With personal information redacted, and occasional explanatory notes added
Looking back, it appears that I didn’t send the staff a link to Wake up, Church… (which was posted on 1st November)