eChurch Blog

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Hat-tip: One Theological Cellist

Hey some good news emanating from an NHS trust for once. Previous post can be found here.

Bibles in bedside areas could pose a risk of cross-infection if not cleaned properly, according to research studied by Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust.

But the trust decided against banning the book in bedside lockers, opting instead to keep copies in holders and protective plastic covers that can be easily cleaned after each patient has used them.

But on wards for patients with virulent infections, single use Bibles will be introduced.

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Gosh this is no small development.

Background information and previous posts relating to the decision earlier this year by the Methodist church to partially boycott Israel can be found here.

I was alerted of this development by Daphne Anson:

The legal dispute has been prompted by a controversial resolution passed at the Methodist Conference which called for a boycott of some Israeli goods.

If the legal action is successful, it would likely bring to an end all similar campaigns that boycott Israeli goods and services.

David Hallam, who preaches in Methodist churches around Birmingham, has accused his own church of wasting funds to pursue a vendetta against Israel. There are no Methodist churches in either Israel or the Occupied Territories.

Mr Hallam, 62, a former labour MEP, said: “What I object to is money which I am putting on the collection plate on a Sunday being used to fund a political campaign against the Jewish state. This is both discriminatory and a misuse of a charity’s funds.

“The Methodist Church seems to think it has a God given right to tell Jews how to run their affairs. It is very disturbing we are getting involved in a territory where we don’t have any members or churches.”

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Interestingly Mr Hallam has hired Barrister Paul Diamond, of whom we are not unfamiliar!

The superb website British Religion in Numbers have alerted us to a new survey from Populus who interviewed 1,037 adults aged 18+ online between 20th and 23rd August 2010.

Within this survey of attitudes are a few questions of religious interest.

The following is a link to the results in a PDF format:

Populus Omnibus Survey – August 2010

Here’s a highlight of results of interest to us:

God created the Earth in six days and on the seventh day He rested:

True = 18.8% – Don’t Know = 25% – Not True = 56.4%

Human beings evolved from apes:

True = 67.8% – Don’t Know = 17.8% – Not True = 14%

There is life after death:

True = 36.8% – Don’t Know = 37% – Not True = 26%

There’s more on the PDF link above which breaks the numbers down by gender, age, socio-economic group and region.

Oh this is hilarious:

Mark 16:18

They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

Hat-tip: Biblical Paths

Dr Jim West alerts us to a new film offering written and directed by George Clooney, which is a steaming pile of piffle and balderdash at best.

A shocking allegation has been made by American movie actor, George Clooney, which is sure to upset millions of religious believers around the world. In a film written and directed by Clooney, he claims that the Roman Catholic Church and the figurehead of Jesus were knowing inventions of the Roman government in the first century B.C.E., part of a hoax designed to produce a passive, orderly society.

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I was a big fan of Clooney…gutted!

UPDATE: This whole story appears to be a fabrication…phew….I can go back to loving Clooney:

I hope this is a joke

Tim Kimberley over at the Parchment and Pen blog, is featuring a series based on the top ten Biblical discoveries in archaeology.

As promised, I intend to link to them from here, and so here is the ninth offering, at number two on the list:

Top Ten Biblical Discoveries in Archaeology – #2 House of David Inscription

Druidry is to become the first pagan practice to be given official recognition as a religion by the Charity commission:

Telegraph:

The Druid Network has been given charitable status by the Charity Commission for England and Wales, the quango that decides what counts as a genuine faith as well as regulating fundraising bodies.

It guarantees the modern group, set up in 2003, valuable tax breaks but also grants the ancient religion equal status to more mainstream denominations. This could mean that Druids, the priestly caste in Celtic societies across Europe, are categorised separately in official surveys of religious believers.

Supporters say the Charity Commission’s move could also pave the way for other minority faiths to gain charitable status.

Archbishop Cranmer finds this incredulous and asks why the jedi should not now be recognised as a religion, which is a little silly as I suspect the Druids have been around a tad longer than the Jedi.

If you really want incredulous then it would be prudent to look to Ireland where the Orthodox Church does have charitable status but is not officially recognised as a church!

Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia at the meeting with President of Ireland Mary McAlleese discussed the question of changing status of the Russian Orthodox Church in Ireland and registering it as a Church, not a charitable organization. “His Holiness the Patriarch talked to the President and raised the issue of giving the Russian Orthodox Church a registration in some respect similar to the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland.

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Now that’s ridiculous.