No comment can do this justice....
The Outer Isles Presbytery of the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland has condemned Cal Mac for its controversial Sabbath sailings between Stornoway and Ullapool.
The Presbytery has recorded its protest which reads: “The Outer Isles Presbytery of the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland met in Stornoway on Tuesday 1st September 2009 places on record its most vehement protest against the actions of CalMac Ferries Ltd in imposing a Sabbath ferry service between Stornoway and Ullapool on the Lord’s Day and against every fair test of community opinion.
“The Presbytery wishes to record that CalMac Ferries Ltd have broken a written assurance, in 2000, to Comhairle nan Eilean Siar that Sabbath sailings would not be introduced against the Council's wishes; that these sailings were only inaugurated after the solitary Western Isles representative on the Company's Board retired in March this year; that they ignore the weight of petition evidence (3,760 island residents against Sabbath sailings, as opposed to barely 1,200 for); that the Company has refused to make public the legal advice on which it claims it is obliged to provide a 7-
“t further considers the alleged reasons for the commencement of this service to be utterly spurious and an incorrect interpretation of the law cited. It considers reprehensible the fact that commercial, social and entertainment interests appear to be shielded behind this supposed legal necessity and demand that Caledonian MacBrayne make public its legal opinion which precipitated this action.
“The Presbytery notes too, with regret, that letters of concern from the Sabbath Observance Committee of our Church in 2007 to Western Isles parliamentary representatives, Alasdair Allan MSP and Angus MacNeil MP, were not even granted the courtesy of acknowledgement.
“The Presbytery considers the action to be harmful to the local community and to be overtly anti-
“The Presbytery further fears the employment rights of those with religious convictions opposing Sabbath work, other than those done in necessity or in mercy, are now imperilled. Despite assurances to the contrary it seems inevitable that, in future recruitment of Company shore staff, applicants not prepared unequivocally to commit to Sabbath working as required will be denied employment.
“There is no legal safeguard against this and little to protect shore staff presently in employment by the Company from pressure to comply in this regard.
“We are again reminded that, as our land retreats from the law of God and all the blessings of the Reformation and our spiritual inheritance, we see not only contempt for the Fourth Commandment but the power of the State being wielded to impose on a despised minority.
“This has been done in open disregard of and in disobedience to the moral law of God contained in the Fourth Commandment, “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: but the seventh is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates; for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.”
“The Presbytery cannot believe these sailings are either a work of necessity or of mercy.
“The operator’s action being a further public breach of God’s law, the Presbytery exhort and warn Caledonian MacBrayne and users of this service of their danger in so acting and that such transgressions deserve the just punishment of God, who observes all sin with displeasure.
“The Presbytery call on CalMac Ferries Ltd to cease this service immediately and encourage the Comhairle’s Transportation Committee to initiate an inquiry into the legal interpretations given as reasons for this action.
“It further calls on islanders and visitors to refrain from using this service and to honour the law of God before temporal and supposed financial gains.”
16 comments:
Then close up the comments before this turns into another lengthy and pointless bit of church bashing.
Utter tripe. These churches are institutionally intolerant and discriminatory of anyone who refuses to swallow the contradictory and unsustainable literal interpretations they choose to make.
Yet, as usual, they depict themselves as the victims in this.
Thankfully, we now have honest community leaders - no, not Angus Campbell - who will stand up against these falsehoods.
Is it any wonder that when the youth of the island see this tripe being foisted upon them the general reaction is to 'eff this, I'm for the mainland'
At least on the mainland there is a degree of tolerance of other viewpoints, culture, and lifestyle.
I would like to congratulate The Outer Isles Presbytery of the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland. That sarticle will no doubt confirm to the rest of the world that that the patients are running the asylum.
How nany people signed the no petition because the MIB were at the door psassing comment? how many people who have signed the no petition have used Sunday flights or ferries?
Sunday is a busy day for flights and ferries so there is a need for them. QED
You've lost. We've all moved on. Get over it.
Yawn
To Anon 3:57
Shome mishtake, surely. Endless and pointless CalMac-bashing by your church, should that not be?
Think they missed the boat on this one !
any-one who has read this web page frequently, will know my thoughts on the matter. LS
Wee Frees, WEE WEE Frees, Wee Wee Frees (Cont) Ultra Frees and the Talibun.
Add turbines and pylons and you have the Promised Land.
Presumably the Minch will open like the Red Sea to let the Tribes of Frees back.
For all that I find many of their views repugnant, it seems to me that the Free Presbyterian Church have been treated very badly in this case. They are not a terrorist organisation. Nor do they espouse a racist philosophy.
Yet Messrs MacNeil and Allan do not even grant their letters the courtesy of a reply.
Are we living in a democracy? Or do these two only represent those with whom they wholeheartedly agree?
Proper representation demands more than this.
YOU HAVE BEEN TOLD TIME AND TIME AGAIN- THIS WILL NOT HAPPEN.
Erm...
"The FPs are not a terrorist organisation."
Hmmm. Well, they certainly spread hatred. Any church that adopts the full Westminster Confession of Faith which condemns the Pope, for example, as the Antichrist are bigoted and encourage others to show hatred.
Hang your heads, FPs, Frees and Continuing.
I honestly believe that any intelligent person knowing they were signing up to that devil-inspired rubbish would think twice.
Some members even claim they did not know about that bit - and that it is not important. Wrong, as Prof Foot and others regularly proclaim.
Fancy joining a church without checking the small print. Tsk tsk. You would have to be mad - and indeed many of them are.
Re - 1.09 am
It seems to me that democracy depends on allowing those whose views we consider reprehensible the opportunity to speak. Otherwise, it just becomes an echo chamber and we emerge with what is a 'Liberal Tyranny', one in which only people like me and '1.09 am' are allowed to express their opinions.
Were Messrs MacNeil & Allan being both undemocratic and unprofessional when they failed even to acknowledge the FPs' letter? Yes - I think they were. And they certainly also suffered from a lack of courage, frozen by their own fear into silence. This in itself makes them unfit to represent any consistuency in Parliament. Not for the first time have they shown their worth.
Free Church office bearers own "the whole doctrine contained in the Confession of Faith". The statement referring to the Pope is exegetical rather than doctrinal therefore it is NOT true that
all Free Church office bearers own that statement.
As a footnote to 9.39, I do not believe this was the only occasion when AB decided that the best way to react to something unpleasant was to do nothing. It looks like he did exactly the same when he was told about the cuts in the Benbecula base - preferring to ignore rather than deal with unpleasant realities.
It is not the way grown-ups should deal with such matters ...
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