Thursday, July 25, 2002

•••New Druid Likely Pick To Rule Anglican Church From the "Things Are Strange All Over" department: THE man expected to be the new Archbishop of Canterbury will be inducted as a druid in a 200-year-old ceremony with pagan roots in Wales next month. The Anglican clergyman is not the first Christian cleric inducted into the druidic ranks, though: Although organisers insist the Gorsedd's pagan roots are long behind it, contributors to discussion forums on the Church in Wales website have already suggested it is "nearer to Shintoism than Christianity". Evangelical leaders in the Church of England described it as "unbelievable". The Rev David Banting, chairman of Reform, the conservative evangelical group, said: "We are concerned that Christian leaders should concentrate on the celebration and promotion of the Christian faith in all its wonder and power rather than dabbling in other things." Dr Williams will not be the only church leader admitted as an honorary druid to the Gorsedd. The Right Rev Daniel Mullins, retired Roman Catholic bishop of Menevia, South Wales, is a member. He insisted: "It has no link at all with ancient druidism." A former Archbishop of Wales, the Right Rev George Noakes, is also a member. My favorite line from the story: 'We are not like the English druids. The Stonehenge druids are a pot-smoking crowd. Ours is a very respectable society.' Apparently, it'd be more offensive for a national Christian church leader to be renowned as a pot-smoker than to participate in a pagan ceremony resulting in his being bestowed with all the rights and privelages of a druid.   1:04:03 PM   googleit 69     itemlink->