UK in transition: A resilient Crown?
Gerald Bray
The sad demise of Queen Elizabeth II inevitably invites reflections on the institution of monarchy and its prospects under her successor.
Speculation has been going on for some time, but now we have reached a turning point that cannot be ignored. Monarchy as we know it traces its origins to the Germanic tribes that invaded the Roman Empire and set up states that have endured in recognisable forms to the present day. The kings and chiefs of those tribes were often regarded as shamans, even as descendants of gods, who had special spiritual powers that bound the people together. When they became Christian, those rulers had to abandon such pretensions, but the Church filled the void thus created by claiming the right to legitimise monarchs as servants of Christ, endued by Him with the power and authority to govern their people in secular affairs.
Biden: liberal changes or token gestures?
Gerald Bray
The
inauguration of a new American
President
is
always
a
time
of
great
expectations, but especially now, after the
sorry end to the previous regime.
Most people are relieved that the transfer
of power went off without a hitch. The
overarching need to deal with the pandemic
is at the forefront of everyone’s minds, and
Joe Biden’s promise to deliver 100 million
does of the vaccine in his first 100 days in
office is being widely hailed as an ambitious
but still achievable goal. In the circumstances,
other matters have taken a back seat. Biden is
a sincere Catholic and his recent attendance
at church has been duly noted,
though
some of his executive orders are not what
the Vatican would have prescribed. He has
rescinded the restrictions on abortion that
the previous administration introduced and
has appointed homosexual and transgender
people to prominent positions. He has also
removed the bar to transgendered soldiers
serving in the armed forces. It is hard to
say what practical effect things like that will have, and for the moment few people are
talking openly about them. Whether they are
the tip of a looming iceberg of radical reform,
or simply a nod to left-wing lobbies that will
soon be disappointed in their deeper aims,
remains to be seen.
Donald Trump – victim and martyr?
It is not every day that one gets to be an eye-witness of an assassination attempt, but that is what happened to me and to thousands of Americans on 13 July as we sat watching the evening news.
Donald Trump was holding a political rally that the networks were covering, when suddenly shots rang out and blood started flowing from his right ear. It soon became clear that one man was killed, two others were injured and that Donald Trump himself had come within inches of losing his life. What motivated the shooter will probably never be known, since he was soon dispatched by security forces - but his action changed the American political landscape almost instantly.