The Practical Parson

 This week, the Bishop of Rome has chosen to issue an apostolic letter to exhort the Roman Catholic bishops in the United States against President Trump and the ongoing efforts to secure the Mexico-America border and to deport criminal, illegal immigrants in the United States.  While the Bishop of Rome is entirely within his right to tell his lackeys to do whatever he fancies at a given point in time, his claims on the Christian response to a situation with precedent not seen since the fall of Rome; are not only tone-deaf, but contrary to the natural law and the dignity of the citizens of a free nation.    It is entirely true: the United States is a nation that is built upon a bedrock foundation of immigrants from various places in the world.  Indeed, it is this tapestry of patrimonies which has given the US its unique, cultural importance on the world stage in the modern era.  But what comprises such a nation, and more importantly the national identity?...

 As many Anglicans and conservative Christians have seen in the past couple of weeks, there is a cognitive dissonance between what is correct, and what is personally acceptable; summed up in the ongoing case of Rev. Calvin Robinson.   As I have touched on previously in Rev. Robinson's case, the situation of what transpired was centered entirely around his determined trolling of leftist, liberal ideologues, and their mistaken notions that everyone who thinks other than what they think is a Nazi/ fascist.  While Robinson's actions in and of themselves hold no true transgression against sense or a desire for conversation; they do transgress one of the most important duties of any ordained cleric: which is to defend the church against those who would destroy it, and to protect the people of God entrusted to our care.  While Robinson's actions have had the desired outcome he wished for in the secular scene (inspiring conversation, to some extent); they have had a neg...

 Recently, a well known Anglican conservative commentator and clergyman named Calvin Robinson was dismissed from his position within the Anglican Catholic Church, after his appearance at the National Pro-Life Summit in Washington, DC.  He wasn't dismissed for attending the summit or even for speaking at the same; but rather for a (for him) unavoidable incident of public trolling those who disagree with his positions on things.  First and foremost, the action in an of itself was not terribly horrible; a simple mocking replication of Elon Musk's "my heart goes out to you" gesture from the night of President Trump's inauguration: which prompted accusations of "Nazi salute", despite it being a quite common gesture before large audiences.  The gesture of placing your hand on your heart and then extending it out towards the assembly is a widespread gesture; and has even been used by politicians on the Democratic side, from Hillary Clinton to Tim Walz, Kamala H...