Magnificat

This Sunday's reading from Luke 1:39-56 contains the Song of Mary, the Magnificat.

In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leapt for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.’

And Mary said,

‘My soul magnifies the Lord,

   and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,

 for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant.

   Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;

 for the Mighty One has done great things for me,

   and holy is his name.

 His mercy is for those who fear him

   from generation to generation.

 He has shown strength with his arm;

   he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.

 He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,

   and lifted up the lowly;

 he has filled the hungry with good things,

   and sent the rich away empty.

 He has helped his servant Israel,

   in remembrance of his mercy,

 according to the promise he made to our ancestors,

   to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’

 And Mary remained with her for about three months and then returned to her home.

I have sung several versions of the Magnificat. Here is the one by John Rutter,

 

MEAN, really meanwhile in Canada

 Oh Canada!

From Spiked,

There is a tiny rural township in Ontario, Canada, just over the border from the US state of Minnesota, that glories in the name of Emo. Emo has a population of just 1,300, and until fairly recently was known (though not by many) for its picturesque waterfront park, its annual Rainy River Agricultural Fair and its catch-and-release fishing tournament, the Emo Walleye Classic. It looks idyllic, with simple straggles of wooden houses and vivid verdure bordering the enormous Clearwater Lake.

But no. It turns out that Emo is a false paradise, a hotbed of hate. All that sleepy angling and riparian tranquillity is a front. Prejudice and bigotry reign in the hearts of these simple townsfolk, for which they must be punished. Last month, the human-rights tribunal of Ontario ordered the town to pay $10,000 to an organisation called Borderland Pride, which brought a case against Emo for committing a supposedly terrible crime back in June 2020: the town council had refused to declare June 2020 as Pride Month. The horror!

The tribunal ruling also noted that Emo failed to fly an ‘LGBTQ2 rainbow flag’. The shame of it! (It turns out that Emo doesn’t actually have a flagpole to attach the sacred standard, or indeed a lesser pennant of any kind, but that’s by the by.)

And that’s not all. Town mayor Harold McQuaker made an apparently outrageous statement at a council meeting. He said: ‘There’s no flag being flown for the straight people.’ For this, he must personally stump up another $5,000. This was, the tribunal decided, a ‘demeaning and disparaging’ remark that ‘constituted discrimination’ under Ontario’s human-rights code. Mayor McQuaker and all his staff must now attend special human-rights training.

Borderland Pride, which describes itself as a ‘2SLGBTQIA+ Pride organisation’, has welcomed the decision. It has also magnanimously offered to refund a third of its award directly to the town library on the condition that the library hosts a drag-queen storytelling event ‘on a date of our choosing’. (That ‘2S’, by the way, stands for ‘two spirit’ – referring to a Native American belief in gender non-binariness that may not actually have ever been a thing, and that many actual native Americans have never heard of. It’s a bit like if gays in the UK demanded extra-special recognition for being wicker men.)

We joke about the ‘rainbow mafia’, but this behaviour is pretty close to actual mafia tactics. ‘Nice little town you got here. Very pretty. Don’t see any rainbow flags though… Would be a pity if anything were to happen to your town.’

We can see this also in the UK with the recent hoo-hah over rainbow armbands in football. Sam Morsy of Ipswich Town has refused to wear one, and Marc Guehi of Crystal Palace has added a religious slogan, ‘I ♥ ️ JESUS’, to his.

The arm bands are nominally there to tackle homophobia in football. This is obviously nonsense. Nobody’s prejudice against homosexuality is going to be altered in any way by the sight of a gaudy accessory. Football has been awash with rainbows for many years, and yet still there are apparently no gay top-flight footballers (which seems statistically unlikely, let’s face it).

What the rows about flags in Emo and laces in Ipswich make clear is that rainbow ubiquity is not about ‘tolerance’ or ‘acceptance’ or ‘inclusion’. It’s a demonstration of force, and a display of political power. The FA forbids political and / or religious slogans, so Guehi’s Jesus message may get him into hot water. But the rainbow doesn’t count as political, somehow, despite its association with hotly contested and contentious topics like transgenderism, which you may have noticed is a bit of a hot potato.

The transparently obvious rainbow threat goes like this:

‘Our political cause is so holy that it isn’t a political cause at all. It’s about “rights”, and just everyday niceness. So, to reject our cause is to reject niceness. And you wouldn’t want to be known as that kind of person, would you now?’

There have been certain hopeful signs of late – the Cass Review in the UK, the enthusiastic rejection of the Democrats’ gender madness in the US – and it’s tempting to think that LGBTQ+ rubbish might finally be drawing to an end. But the Emo and FA stories are a reminder of how deeply embedded the Pride ideology is in Western institutions. (An ideology that, it must be remembered, is now only tangentially related to homosexuality.)

Even if some of the bigger insanities may be on their way out, groups like Borderland Pride and Stonewall still have their dirty mitts all over civil society. It’s going to be a long haul, winkling them out street by street with (metaphorical) cold steel.

Gareth Roberts is a screenwriter and novelist, best known for his work on Doctor Who.

Oh dear me Canada I meant.

The Baptist

We get a further introduction to John the Baptist is this Sunday's reading from Luke 3:7-18,

John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, “We have Abraham as our ancestor”; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the axe is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.’

And the crowds asked him, ‘What then should we do?’ In reply he said to them, ‘Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.’ Even tax-collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, ‘Teacher, what should we do?’ He said to them, ‘Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you.’ Soldiers also asked him, ‘And we, what should we do?’ He said to them, ‘Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages.’

As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, John answered all of them by saying, ‘I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing-fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing-floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.’

So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people.

You have a choice. Will you be wheat, or will you be chaff? 

"Reposition(ing) the Messiah story so that it may better resonate with a 21st-century queer audience"

On the heels of last week's post on Handel's Messiah getting cancelled in Finland, we find a performance of Messiah that should have been cancelled. 

From The Catholic Herald,

A London museum is to present a drag-themed reinterpretation of Handel’s Messiah this December.

The Foundling Museum in Camden, London, will show “A Queer Georgian Yuletide: Handel’s Queer Messiah”, which is designed to retell the story so that it “better resonates” with a modern audience.

Les Bougiewill, the vocal and period-instrument ensemble performing the piece, describes the pastiche as an exploration of “what the concept of a saviour or ‘messiah’ means from a queer perspective: in secular, sacred, interpersonal, and intrapersonal senses.”

The group note that “your queer Georgian ‘messiah’ might differ from another’s Queer Georgian ‘messiah’”.

The ensemble also informs prospective attendees that, while the music will remain the same, the text—originally taken from the King James Bible and the Coverdale Psalter—will be “modified” to create “a more universal and inclusive story”. Audiences are encouraged to “expect an evening of intellectually-informed fun”...

...Catholic theologian Dr. Gavin Ashenden, a former chaplain to Her late Majesty the Queen, commented: “They could write their own text and their own music, but perversity is never very creative, and in any case we now know that the great delight taken by the cultural revolution is in blaspheming and perverting beauty and holiness, so of course they would make a beeline for Handel‘s Messiah.

“The exquisite beauty of the music and the sacred resonance of the text are ideal material for blasphemy and perversion if that is your primary motivation. The careful cosmetic choice of words suggesting that the crusade for sexualised hedonism is more inclusive than the love of God for broken people is a triumph of propaganda over truth.

“Such language is used to try and deflate the voice of protest in the name of outraged Love. Those who love God and the beauty of His rescue mission, which Messiah so poignantly captures, should indeed protest, expressing pain, distress, and disgust at one more episode of degradation by a decadent culture.”

Despite this, the Foundling Museum asserts that “for Handel, Messiah can be seen as a fluid document intended to be adapted for different audiences.” They emphasise that they “do not intend this pastiche of Handel’s Messiah to insult any religious and/or non-religious individuals” but rather aim to “reposition the Messiah story so that it may better resonate with a 21st-century queer audience”. 

I'm with Gavin on this one. 

The Time of Jesus' Baptism

 You have to love Luke's chronology in this Sunday's reading from Luke 3:1-6,

In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene, during the high-priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. He went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah,

‘The voice of one crying out in the wilderness:

“Prepare the way of the Lord,

   make his paths straight.

 Every valley shall be filled,

   and every mountain and hill shall be made low,

and the crooked shall be made straight,

 and the rough ways made smooth;

 and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”

Luke clues us in as to the time when Jesus was baptized by his references to the rulers of the period. There is a margin of error as noted at Time.Graphics,

Tiberius became sole emperor on the death of his adoptive father, Augustus, on 19th August AD 14. However, it is a well- known fact that he had become co-regent with his ailing father two years earlier in AD 12. In that year, he was made supreme military commander over Caesar's armies and prov- inces. Ancient coins from Antioch dated AD 12 display the head of Tiberius and documents attest to his reign being fully in force from that time. Thus, his inauguration in AD 14 as emperor was only a formalisation of a that had begun two years earlier. Therefore, the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius would make it AD 26-27 correlating with the start of Christ's ministry and supporting the AD 30 date as the most likely date of his crucifixion. 

Thank you St. Luke. 

’

Cancelling Messiah

I thought I had seen it all when reruns of Gilligan's Island had trigger warnings before each episode, but now Handel's Messiah is the latest thing to require trigger warnings.

From Faithwire,

A school in Finland has cancelled a concert of Handel’s “Messiah” performed by the Finnish Baroque Orchestra and the Helsinki Chamber Choir over concerns the recital’s Christian themes might offend some students.

Officials with the school hosting the concert in question made the decision after learning about a case in Hämeenlinna, a Finnish city, where a child objected to songs about the life of Jesus performed at an undisclosed school. Ultimately, the National Non-Discrimination and Equality Tribunal decided the non-Christian pupils should be compensated 1,500 euros (or $1,562) for their offense, local outlets reported.

However, on Nov. 19, the city’s Education and Welfare Committee voted 6-5 no payment was due to the offended school students.

The show in Hämeenlinna was one of three performances based on faith-filled themes. The first recital was held in 2022, with subsequent recitals in 2023 and 2024. At least one non-religious student watching the 2022 show was purportedly offended.

If one is "non-religious", how can one be offended? 

Finnish news outlet Helsingin Sanomat reported the “religiosity of the concert was not announced in advance, but [the school] apologized after the concert.” It was only the first show accused of being “discriminatory.”

The title "Messiah" was not enough of an announcement of the religiosity of the concert? 

A hymn was removed from the second performance in 2023 and some apparently voiced concerns about a parish choir at the third event.

“The board also found that the educational institution had neglected its obligation to promote equality,” Helsingin Sanomat reported of the choir singing at the performance. “It held this view, inter alia, because the educational institution did not inform that the choir’s performance had been organized jointly with the congregation.”

I guess they should have invited an Imam to do prayer calls, a Rabbi to sing psalms, and a Hindu priest  to conduct a pujā.

Given the experience in Hämeenlinna, the organizers of the yet-to-be performed concert cancelled the event, citing issues with the religious overtones in the music.

"Overtones"? Once again, the title is "Messiah." 

Oh Finland, Finland, where Messiah is cancelled.

Signs of Things to Come

 This Sunday's reading is from Luke 21:25-36,

‘There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see “the Son of Man coming in a cloud” with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.’

 Then he told them a parable: ‘Look at the fig tree and all the trees; as soon as they sprout leaves you can see for yourselves and know that summer is already near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

 ‘Be on guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day does not catch you unexpectedly, like a trap. For it will come upon all who live on the face of the whole earth. Be alert at all times, praying that you may have the strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.’

The Sun is at its "solar max", but that happens every 11 years. The Moon is getting ready for the next manned moon mission, and tropical storm season just ended. 

Jesus must be talking about signs far greater than these.

This is not something to lose sleep over.

Rather, lose sleep over what will become of your soul when you die if you don't listen to Jesus in this and in all the rest of things and follow him.