Posted on 12/24/2007 5:48:49 AM PST by NYer
The Blair Switch Project
Ha, ha!
Yep, only God knows the heart. But, it seems to me that those whose religion he is deigning to join deserve to know the mind.
I don’t think it’s anyone’s business. We all fall short and most of us know it.
It’s not a “conversion” to move from one church to another. It’s a “conversion” when you move from one lord to another Lord.
Yes, you did. You wrote, “Welcome to the Church.” Blair was already a member of a Christian church, the Church of England. He’s changed denominations, perhaps becoming more serious about his faith, but he’s not just coming into Christ’s Church. He did that when he first placed faith in Christ.
Again, let’s rejoice that Mr. Blair is apparently becoming more serious about his faith. Let’s not make it a matter of whether the leadership of his church is in Rome or some other country. We can do without that my-church-is-better-than-your-church attitude here.
Geeze—guess I should have said Welcome to the Catholic Church. There—now are you satisfied?
People can change if they want to. I cringe when I think about some of the things I said and did before I converted to Christianity. For most folks it’s not some Charlton-Heston-seeing-the-burning-bush change, but a gradual thing.
You also have to ask: would it be more likely that Tony Blair would change his views within or outside of the church?
I don’t know, has Kerry, Durbin, Pelosi, Biden...
It is known that the Pope had a long and serious talk with Blair about all these issues (his apparent disagreement with Catholic teachings on life issues) last summer before Blair was received. I’m sure he was told to think about these things seriously, and obviously, he has.
I think even Cormac Murphy O’Connor, while a raving liberal on just about everything, has emerged with some pro-life statements, so perhaps Blair actually did receive some formation in this direction. And, as you say, he has a better chance of becoming solidly pro-life within the Church than outside of it.
Now if only somebody would call Ol’ Teddy K. in for a talking to...
“Now if only somebody would call Ol’ Teddy K. in for a talking to...’
A talking-to only works if the recipient is willing to listen.
Although I disagree with Tony Blair about 80% of the time on politics, he is an intelligent individual who has shown himself willing to use the grey matter that the good Lord gave him. The fact that he has actually come into the church knowing full well what the doctrine says with regard to life gives me some reason to be optimistic.
You never know. We may yet be given reason to roast up that fatted calf.
There is the Church as a organizational legal body and then there is the Church, encompassing all believers regardless of denomination, only God knows the true extent of this Church for sure. I believe that poster was talking about the former rather than the latter.
No. As I wrote, “Blair was already a member of a Christian church, the Church of England.” The poster was implying that only those who are part of the Roman church are part of the “real church.”
They’re free to believe what they want. The Roman church is a fine one. I’m part of a non-Roman church, FWIW, which is also a fine one (though anathema, according to some).
So are you saying that when Blair was a member of Church of England, his heart wasn't turned toward Christ?
It’s not a “conversion” to move from one church to another. It’s a “conversion” when you move from one lord to another Lord.
Jews, Christians, Muslims all worship the same Lord, so it's not a conversion to move among these faiths?
Others may wish to exclaim that we should all just get along and not worry what various groups and individuals might believe, but that is the way of a "dead dog" as Chesterton would say."A dead dog goes with the flow of the stream of life, a live dog swims against the current." Mr Blair has publicly chosen to swim against the current of popular opinion. I hope he intents to swim strongly and keep up the battle!
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