Justin Welby Acknowledges Concerns About Immigration

Long time readers should sit down before I begin.

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Seated?  Good.  I am going to praise the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Nobody has fainted?  Good.

Just so you know, no one has drugged me.  My praise is rational and justified. 

For Justin Welby has acknowledged concerns about immigration as legitimate.  Further, he has said it is “absolutely outrageous” to smear said concerns as racist.

Still further, he said the Church of England will not take a stand on the Brexit Referendum. 

Now, this stand may seem mild to some.  And Iain Duncan Smith certainly has a point that it is overdue. 

But, in the midst of C of E bishops who oft are the Labour Party at prayer and after the vitriol of years and decades toward those who want rational immigration restrictions and want out of the EU, Canterbury’s statement is courageous and needful.

I cannot let pass the contrast with the Vatican, which for decades has been cheerleaders of the EU Beast and remains so.

The Vatican: “It’s a Trap!”

Tuesday, I warned that Pope Francis may be walking into a White House trap of Obama’s making, namely a problematic guest list, accompanied by the usual photo ops. 

Due to my outstanding humility, I cannot claim credit, but I am heartened to see the Vatican sees the trap very much as I do.  From the WSJ (paywall):

On the eve of Pope Francis ’s arrival in the U.S., the Vatican has taken offense at the Obama administration’s decision to invite to the pope’s welcome ceremony transgender activists, the first openly gay Episcopal bishop and an activist nun who leads a group criticized by the Vatican for its silence on abortion and euthanasia.

According to a senior Vatican official, the Holy See worries that any photos of the pope with these guests at the White House welcoming ceremony next Wednesday could be interpreted as an endorsement of their activities.

Exactly. . . .  And you heard it here first.

You can also read a longer quote from the article with some background here.

Of course, seeing a trap and not walking into it are not necessarily the same thing.  Wednesday might be interesting.