The Christian denominations, like the Church of England, that people are members of are often centuries old, and so the messy secular reality of their formation is lost in time as people are caught up in the “beauties” such as hymns and traditions. Oh, and OMG, Kate!
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TRANSCRIPT ▬
https://rechristian.buzzsprout.com/2298988/14690193-the-church-of-england-and-that-photo-of-kate
SOURCES ▬
◘ Church of England, “Leadership and Governance,” Church of England Website, https://www.churchofengland.org/about/leadership-and-governance
◘ CBC News, “Royal Mystery: What’s Going on with Kate Middleton?,” Front Burner, https://www.cbc.ca/listen/cbc-podcasts/209-front-burner/episode/16048856-royal-mystery-whats-going-on-with-kate-middleton
◘ Hans J. Hillebran, editor, The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Reformation, Oxford University Press, 1996, 2005
◘ @KensingtonRoyal, X, https://twitter.com/KensingtonRoyal/status/1767135566645092616
◘ Simon Perry, “King Charles Vows to Serve ‘to the Best of My Ability’ in New Video Address amid Cancer Treatment, People, March 11, 2024, https://people.com/king-charles-commonwealth-day-speech-missing-event-amid-cancer-treatment-8606473
◘ Jordan B. Peterson, “Say the Truth and Nothing Else,” TikTok, July 9, 2023, https://www.tiktok.com/@dr.jordan.b.peterson/video/7253953845401881862
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Hi, I’m Wayne Jones, and welcome to re:Christian, a critical and satirical reconsideration of Christianity, the Bible, and God. This is episode 19: “The Church of England and That Photo of Kate.”
I’m an atheist and a non-royalist, so depending on your point of view I am the worst of disrespectful humanity, doomed for the fires of hell and unable to appreciate the lovely pomp and even lovelier circumstance of kings and princesses. Or I’m a man who uses his brain, does not attribute supernatural causes to things that I can’t understand, and puzzles over why some countries pick out one family to have royal blue blood whereas like a savage I am stuck here with my red goo.
Let me start with the controversy over the picture released by Kensington Palace on British Mothers Day and the shitstorm—does it sound fancier in French as tempête à la merde?—it caused. The photo was of Kate and her kids, no husband Prince William, and she wasn’t wearing her wedding ring. And then people who knew something about digital photography said it had been altered or doctored, and the Palace withdrew it but refused to release the original. But an explanation had to be issued to the royalist media, and Kate was happy to step in with a lie on X: “Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day. C.” Then, or even before then, the rumors and theories started. She and William are having marital problems. Her unspecified “abdominal surgery” was more serious or had results that were negative. She was in a coma. Kate’s statement about her as an amateur photographer getting her photo-editing messed up was—hold on, there’s a technical term for this—oh, right, yes: bullshit.
But the story of Kate and her conniving is not what I’m interested in today. This podcast is about Christianity, and I want to talk about the Church of England. I admit that I am half-guessing and half-assuming (mea culpa), but I would say that most people don’t know the origin of this denomination of Christianity. Was it started based on a reasoned disagreement with the prevailing Catholic Church? Was there a revelation from heaven that compelled a cleric to break away and form a new faith grounded in a better sense of goodness and hope for humanity and the beautiful and fragile planet that we have been gifted by the grace of God?
No. Back in the 16 century, and in fact continuing to this day, the King or Queen of England is the so-called “Supreme Governor of the Church of England.” Right now, it’s King Charles, but the Kings and Queens asserted their power more in the 16th century than in the 21st. King Henry VIII was in a quandary. He was married to Catherine of Aragon but he wanted to have that marriage annulled so that he could marry his mistress, Anne Boleyn. The then-reigning pope, Clement VII, refused, and so Henry in effect activated what we today call the Reformation, and set up his own church, separate from the Catholics. The Church of England is born.
So, the glorious origin of that church is anchored in a king being adulterously married but wanting a divorce, and having difficulty getting one so that he could marry his mistress. Just lovely. Kind of brings a tear to your eye. But all that narcissistic history has now been folded into the other lies and embarrassments of the past, and the king can reign supreme, while his two archbishops, of Canterbury and York, do the day-to-day work, so to speak.
The belief system and articles of faith of the Church of England are kind of an amalgam of Catholicism and breakaway Reformation tenets. It’s a bit more liberal. Gay people, for example, are not only not condemned as “objectively disordered,” as they are by the Catholic Church, but are actually allowed to participate in the governance of the Church of England.
But for me one of the most disturbing aspects of both these denominations is in their capacity as actual countries, not mere churches. The Vatican, the HQ of the Catholic Church, is in effect its own country, as it has a representative in the United Nations and has voting power. The Church of England, at least in theory, blatantly defies the separation of church and state. As I mentioned, the King of England is at the top of the governance of the Church of England, and though he might not go so far as Henry VIII and cause a major rupture if he didn’t get his way, the symbolism is important and offensive.
I’m a recent “convert,” if I can put it that way, to one of the main “teachings”—I can already see that this analogy is going to go too far—of the controversial public intellectual Jordan Peterson. He has been stupidly condemned by the woke, who love to condemn when the often ridiculous issues they champion happen to collide with common sense. One of Peterson’s main principles is: always tell the truth. Here’s a short snippet of him speaking to his reasoning on this:
[see Sources]
It’s easy to dismiss this, or not realize its immense importance, because it’s kind of a truism: be honest. But just try it for a week. I had an experience during the past Xmas holiday where I insisted on telling the truth about something. I caused a major series of hurt feelings and awkwardnesses and arguments by doing so, but my aim was, if I may say so, pure. I told the truth as I saw it. I didn’t know what would happen, but I was insistent on telling that truth. That was about two and a half months ago, and I believe my point was made and acknowledged, and those whom I angered and with whom I had strong relationships—well, my relationships with them are the same if not better. For those involved with whom I have lighter relationships, I don’t know. They may still think I was raving and nuts. But the fact is this: if you tell the truth based on your careful assessment and with an integrity of character, that can never ever be wrong.
So, why am I going on about this? We’re back to Kate’s photo now. Couldn’t she just have told the truth? Frankly, if she is really sick, or something else serious is going on within the inbred palace, who really gives a fuck? The king and the lesser minions like Kate have no real power any more. There’s not going to be another Reformation over whatever it is that’s wrong with her. In the midst of it, I also heard King Charles, in that pompous, self-satisfied voice of his, thank people for sending him best wishes as he recuperates from cancer treatment: “I have been most deeply touched by your wonderfully kind and thoughtful good wishes for my health and, in return, can only continue to serve you, to the best of my ability, throughout the Commonwealth.”
What exactly do you do, dude? And are you deluded enough to think that the entire Commonwealth might be affected if you are not out there shaking hands, kissing the occasional baby in a crowd, or waving from a car? This is the greater and greatest lie of royalty. They just don’t matter.
And that’s all for this episode. Thanks for listening. Check the show notes for a transcript, sources, and for how to contact me. And please join me again on Monday.