MetaCatholic

Apparently the Lord Chief Justice has now come out in support of Rowan Williams’ earlier controversial (and in my view poorly presented, and wilfully misunderstood) remarks about Sharia and UK law. The bit of the Telegraph’s report that got my attention, however, was this:

Cardinal Cormac Murphy O’Connor, the Archbishop of Westminster and leader of Britain’s Catholics, said that people should live under the laws of the UK.
His spokesman said: “As the Cardinal has consistently said and indeed said earlier this year, was that Britons should abide by and be subject to the law of the land.”

And where, precisely does this leave the whole apparatus of Canon Law and marriage tribunals, which refuse to recognise as valid at least any second wedding (if not any first secular wedding) contracted by the state, and likewise refuse to recognise the state’s divorce law as ending a marriage, unless a couple have also followed the Church’s annulment procedures? This is, it seems to me, exactly an example of a religious community adjudicating certain practices by a a separate and different code of law to that which is enshrined in the law of the land.

Today’s Worcester News features a front page story about Steve Jeynes’ death. I’m afraid I’ve been out all day so slow off the mark in linking to this story in which I and others are quoted paying tribute to Steve. (As always Dave Walker managed to be very quick off the mark.)

Both the front page of the paper edition, and the page as accessed today show this photo.

You might have thought that this was an old stock photo, from the SPCK name displayed prominently on the awning. Well, while I don’t know when the Worcester News took the photo, I can tell you that this could indeed be seen as recently as on a sunny day two weeks ago, after they’d made Steve, the last remaining original SPCK employee here, redundant. It’s also what, 9-10 months after all rights to use the SPCK name were withdrawn from the SSG. Somehow this adds insult to injury.

Steve’s action is a particularly tragic consequence of this whole sorry mess, but that it is a mess of SSG making seems underlined by this cavalier pretence still to be trading under a name they have no right to, and after having destroyed the business, while treating its loyal staff in ways which from Steve’s descriptions to me no business, never mind a so-called “Christian” business, should treat even the lowliest of casual labour. One of the things that increasingly distressed him was the inability to protect his staff from managerial whim, and dismissal by email. This is not a tragedy without a very specific context and a clear history of personal and personnel devastation.