Perhaps it is that our culture has become quite negative about politics that I am so often asked what are the most difficult and the worst parts of my job. But this morning as I was walking past Peers Entrance a man was taking his young children out of their buggy to sit them on the security barrier. He then proceeded to take a photo with my workplace as the background and it reminded me of the best parts of my job. How many people work in a building that has world iconic status like the Houses of Parliament? So that is one of the best parts of my job but here are some of the others…
On Tuesday I was able to book a beautiful room and terrace to host a dinner to celebrate the 20th anniversary of a church called Jesus House. Jesus House is the HQ church of the largest black led denomination in the UK. (700+ parishes established in 20 years) These anniversaries are important to reflect as well as to celebrate. I could not help thinking what UK Church attendance would look like without the migration from the Caribbean and Africa into the mainstream as well as ‘Black Led’ denominations. Or without the Eastern European migration into the Catholic Church and the establishment of vibrant Chinese, Brazilian and Pakistani Christian Fellowships to name but a few. To invite people in for a meal, to be free to pray over our food and to be served by wonderful staff is one of the best parts of my job.
I got home that night on such a high that when I saw on twitter that the Bishop of Leicester had been speaking about fast tracking women bishops into the Lords, I responded. I don’t ordinarily get involved on twitter but I was already on public record (the House magazine on line) that waiting 5 years or so for a woman to be the longest serving diocesan Bishop to be able to join the Lords, is too long. The next day a couple of media outlets were calling the office for further comment. Now that is a great part of the job; that people are sometimes interested in what I have to say.
On a more serious note, I serve on the Joint Committee on Human Rights and it was our committee that raised with the Secretary of State for Justice how the one year residence test for legal aid would affect refugees. They are not asylum seekers, who were already exempt from the test, but arrive on our shores with refugee status usually granted by the UN. The SOS said he would take the issue away to look at it and the government has now exempted refugees as well. Will any refugee ever know that I had a wee role to play in obtaining their legal assistance in the UK; of course not, but it gives me great satisfaction.
Finally, as I am single I often end up applying for tickets, for staff or friends, for occasions such as the State Opening of Parliament. Such tickets are balloted but the peels of delight when I handed my member of staff her ticket to sit in the Royal Gallery will remain with me for a long time. Now that is perhaps the best part of the job!
“I could not help thinking what UK Church attendance would look like without… … to name but a few”
You may be surprised to know that some of us are saddened by that. Not by the immigration — I am very happy to welcome them and to celebrate their diversity and their culture. But I am still saddened that they bring with them what I can only think of as the blight and cruelty of superstition, religion, false hope and misplaced faith.
I realise that you see it differently — I fully respect your, and their, rights to believe and to practice your religion. I am also very happy to acknowledge that there are very many good and wise people in churches. But I am still saddened to realise that there has been a small setback in the continuing Enlightenment project to replace religion with rationalty. I wish we could all share in the hopes, fears, vibrancy and friendship of the people you mention, without their misplaced crutch of religion.
I am not trying to insult or criticise you — nor to pick a fight. I just wanted to point out that not all of us see the continuing survival of religion as positive for our society, or the world.
“not all of us see the continuing survival of religion as positive for our society, or the world.” (Graham)
Leading a comparatively solitary life as I do, it may be the people of the world who do not survive; the world itself most certainly will!
The Truths of the Bible and the Quran, particularly the Maryad,
are of ever increasing value, and inspiration, to me. The Culture of those marvellous people, the Indian Jains, is marvellous too.
“The individual peer’s job”, is it ?
and in its place within a greater _ _ (democratically-representative-and-scrutinising parliamentary Job ?)
or just the (Party-Political-Peers’ Job or job ) ?
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To a point, please, if I may:
How affordable would be a gathering similar to that Jesus House one, in celebration,
or better still integration of,
such a “new” human-development Movement as “Somatics” ?
I mean, is there any inclusively Eclectic Gathering
for at least the public’s
and inter-professions’-& parliamentary/establishmentarians’
recognition and celebration,
of such ‘new’ health-improvement
and long-term sustainworthy Wellbeing-building Bodies/bodies
as Somatics, BodyMind Balancing/Centering, Body-Mind-Spirit Functional Integration ?
and therewith, possibly alongside, a “win-win-win” Ordering/Re-Ordering of the “old” or Long-Since-Established ?
I suppose that the Baroness’ poisitive expewrience of politics is the democracy of the twelve man jury, and not the electoral bllot box at all.
I do agree though about the great value of new religious bonds created between the new generations in the UK. I marvel also at the good breeding of the Poles, and their lively contribution to the Catholic churches through out the country. Nor are they ashamed to live in country towns which much of the young British population has deserted for the false values of the Big Smokes. Full marks to the Poles.
Very good marks to the Evangelising churches as well.
Would some-one please tell me how
the ‘Bottom-Up’ lifespan human development of the individual human being
[not the “Aggregate Inter-National-Human-Development-league-table”, as in the UNDP HDI – Human Development Index (which surely is inescapably founded in ‘Nature-Nurture’ Adversarial Competitivity between all Nation-States)]
is historically, and now ongoingly ‘externally’ balanced ?
and how it is internally balanced {i.e. between the ‘topmost’ and the ‘bottommost’ individuals)
and how (and accessibly where) further-planned to be improved and made more ‘lifeplace-efficient'(*) ?
———–
How especially the ‘poorest’, or most-disabled/impaired/disadvantaged individuals, can both trust their own-direct-link-with-God/The Divine,
utterly separately from organised dogmatic or pedagogic Religion and Schooling, and lifelong be afforded unbiased guidance and disinterested educational-support in their individual lifespan self-development;
and how both Religion and Education non-negotiable requirements and services should be thoroughly preceded by
individual-development support, guidance, and help,
prior to collective dogmatisations, indoctrinations, disciplines and enforcements of abrogation of the individual’s independent world -social & -governance responsibilities and response-abilities ?
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* ‘lifeplace’ occupies 75% of one’s time; distinct from both workplace-individual-worker efficiency** and Sanctuary-place efficiency***
** workplace = jobskills (for the 40-hr week or “economics supply-side” 25%-timeframe).
*** Sanctuary-place = such as being hospitalised, or otherwise disabled from participating in a workplace, and also disabled from fully-socially and democratically participating in the surrounding civilisational lifeplace.
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Some foundational reading/reference sorces:
“Do They Think You’re Stupid ?” (Baggini);
“The Peaceful Revolution” (E. de Bono);
“Reclaiming Vitality and Presence” (guidances by Selver & Brooks);
“Wisdom of the Body Moving” (Hartley);
“Lifestreams” (Boadella);
“The Second Centering Book” (Hendricks & Roberts: with extensive, classified bibliographies).
Secularism or Religious Freedom: a separation of government and persons representing the state from religion, a liberty to worship God or Gods freely.
A Michael Stewart production in 1996 for the BBC series Timewatch called ‘Karnak: A hidden History’ is widely available on the internet. In the first few minutes the narrator paraphrases a translation of the hieroglyphs of the ‘Sacred Texts’.
“In the beginning there was Chaos. Chaos was darkness, the waters of the abyss. The first God Amun arose from the waters using nothing but his own strength to give form to his body. Amun existed alone, all was his. Yesterday and tomorrow were his. Alone he took his penis in his hand. He made love to his fist. He made his exquisite joy with his fingers, and from the flame of the fiery blast which he kindled with his hand, the universe was formed. Amun hidden from the gods, too secret to be uncovered made his home at Karnak in the Temple of the god.”
Amun coexists with Osiris. This religion of the Pharaohs’ ran for about 4000 years. Amun needs to be hidden so then are his secrets known only to the Pharaoh himself, his immediate family and the priesthood; also to Moses the adopted son of his daughter.
One of the challenges that Osiris presented was how could a God of the dead be in possession of a life giving phallus? Osiris was torn to pieces and later reassembled or resurrected minus his phallus. Men in death also possessed a life giving phallus and had no place in the land of the dead. Osiris must be pure so he resurrects men after they have given an offering of life; a woman in death remains dead.
This is depicted in various places but prominently at a temple of Ramses III; a relief sees scribes taking inventory of cut hands and sectioned phalluses, piled in heaps in front of the Pharaoh. Being demonstrated is a proof that the enemies of Egypt will not return.
Roman women are not at all happy about this – debut Christianity.
In Leviticus 18:22 “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination.” Is Moses respecting Osiris and denying the resurrection or simply tidying up morality?
Parliament has now established in law that being gay is to have the physical attributes of the God Osiris. That marriage represents a new birth, the resurrection of men but not women.
The next election will be a test of faith. Return only new people to power and embrace the resurrection through Jesus Christ. Return only new people to power and accept that the God of Abraham is the hidden God not Amun.
@Daedalus:
Your post was enlightening. I really enjoyed it. However, I didn’t follow your gist in respect of political policy for today? And I’m not being facetious, I’m truly curious.
In the meantime, here is the video you mentioned. It’s fascinating. It is three parts.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33JGzwmo0t4
Let’s take a view that the Egyptian priesthood might hold if it existed today. All religion has its roots in the Egypt of antiquity by virtue of Amun creating both the universe and time? Amun is the alpha and Osiris the omega. Gay men, the blessed of Amun are creatures of the natural world that exist only to experience the exquisite joy of creation. They are best served by the Gods of nature.
In legislating for gay marriage the state now uses a virtual representation of gay men such that sex plays no part in their marriage. There is a purity about this that is lacking in straight marriage; a purity that is associated with the God Osiris.
Straight marriage uses a man’s seed in the prospect of giving life. In a gay marriage the law says there is no seed to give life. Politicians hold that marriage is now equal making a man’s seed in marriage redundant. Life has no value as it has no value for Osiris.
Perfection and purity is stamped all over gay marriage and unmarried gays being in possession of a phallus are transformed by the law of marriage into a virtual representation of Osiris. A miracle is performed by the state. Blessed be the state!
Not happy with any of this?
Go to the polls next May and remove all from the House of Commons that have offended. None can be spared. Vote only for new people and ask them to remove the miracle of Osiris from statute and return the prospect of life once more to the institution of marriage.
To marry under civil law is to accept Osiris as part of that law. Go to a place where gay marriage is illegal such as Ireland and marry under its civil law then come home and have the blessing of a church wedding.
Can it be reasonable to force people to abandon their homeland in order to balance religious belief with the needs of civil law? People will simply abandon marriage altogether.
Egypt before and during the time of Moses had an ambitious building programme and was a huge consumer of slaves. The Egyptians were a very moral people and asked where all the slaves were coming from. The priesthood would reply by saying that Osiris was returning slaves and only a few new ones were coming back into the system.
Moses openly disputed this. His challenge was to deliver his Hebrews both from the slavery of the living and to break the cycle of death and resurrection back into slavery.
The Egyptian military were tasked with obtaining new slaves and would wage war to get them. These wars were brutal, an abattoir of severed limbs and horrific injury. The priesthood would tell the army before it embarked saying that they shouldn’t fear death as Osiris would rejoin and repair their broken bodies. This was an army that believed it couldn’t die and they fought on that basis.
Much later the Roman army took a keen interest in resurrection; it had military value where the resurrection of Christ had none. They saw the Christians as a threat to Osiris whom many worshipped.
When Peter arrived in Rome as the leader of the Christians he was already a target. Eventually he was sentenced to death by crucifixion. Realising that Christian resurrection was the exact opposite of Osiris resurrection they crucified him upside down just to make the point.
Constantine I had a political problem. A very large number of women in Rome had embraced Christ but the military favoured Osiris. On an expedition he witnessed a fiery blast travelling through the heavens. He was reminded of Amun and took this to be an omen but of what? He recalled the fierceness of the Egyptian army. Rome had many enemies and should they take up the resurrection of Osiris the already difficult fight would be made impossible.
He brought this argument to the military and they agreed with him. At a stroke he both boosted his popularity and removed the military threat by abandoning the pagan Gods.
The stock that Rome drew its slaves from hearing of Rome and resurrection and knowing only of Osiris believed slaves would never escape their slavery and suffering in death. The priesthood of the enslaved peoples were roused into a holy war to free the slaves of the Roman Empire.
The Vatican erased all knowledge of Osiris and the Egyptian hieroglyphs everywhere they found them. With the authority of Constantine I, Saint Antony the Great and his Coptic following persecuted into ‘extinction’ the Amun Priesthood and their religious practices. Amun and Osiris disappeared from history until the Rosetta stone was found in 1799 by the Napoleonic expedition to Egypt.