Royal wedding preacher Bishop Michael Curry says he could 'feel the presence of slaves' at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's nuptials and calls it a 'sign of hope' for the future

Bishop Michael Curry reflected on the royal wedding in an interview with People. Claims to have felt the presence and heard the voices of slaves while preaching. He said the moment was a sign of hope that things don't have to stay the same. The 67-year-old delivered the sermon at Meghan and Harry's nuptials in 2018

Bishop Curry, from Chicago, who delivered a 14-minute sermon during Prince Harry, 35, and Meghan Markle's, 39, wedding, said in an interview with People: 'After I preached the sermon, I just remember it was like I could feel slaves around the place. I don't mean to be spooky, but it was like their voice was somehow heard that day.' He explained that the Queen was 'gracious' about including the hymn Balm in Gilead, which was sang by slaves to lighten their misery.

Bishop Curry added that the move had all been 'a sign of hope' and he felt it was a positive sign of 'change' to come. The royal preacher explained: 'It was like their voice, one of their songs, one of their descendants was there that day.'

Bishop Michael Curry said the combination of things that occurred throughout the wedding was a marker of hope revealing how one 'who descends from people who were captured in the slave trade, probably the British slave trade, is brought from the shores of West Africa, to the shores of America.'

He added: 'That one of their descendants was in the presence of the Queen of England, and she quoted one of their songs.

'That's hope that we don't have to be the way we've always been.' The Bishop added that he sees many of his own values displayed by Meghan and hopes her platform will encourage others. Speaking about Meghan's recent activism, he said: 'We need people to lift up other people.

'There's enough negativity and enough putting people down, there's enough hurt. We don't need any more hurt.' In Britain alone over 17 million viewers tuned in to watch the royal wedding, in addition to many more people in a variety of countries across the globe.

Bishop Michael Curry, who was labelled passionate after being given the opportunity to speak freely about whatever he thought would be appropriate at the wedding, presented a sermon entitled 'The Power of Love'.

While he is no longer in contact with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, the 67-year-old has spoken on numerous occasions about the love he felt between the couple and its power to bring unity across borders.

Speaking during the sermon, he said: 'Oh there's power, power in love. Not just in its romantic forms, but any form, any shape of love.' He claims to have had more conversations about life and love since the wedding than in the past 40 years.

Bishop Michael Curry has now penned a book featuring the same themes of love, power and hope, which includes his fight to gain recognition of LGBTQ people in the Episcopal Church. The royal preacher also delves into the challenges he has experienced throughout his life and the work he has done as a civil rights activist.

He explained the main lesson his book aims to teach is that it's possible to live a life based in an unselfish love, that seeks the best interest of others as well as yourself.

Reference: MailonLine: By LATOYA GAYLE FOR MAILONLINE: PUBLISHED: 10:34, 23 September 2020 | UPDATED: 13:14, 23 September 2020 

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Archbishop of Canterbury warns of ‘sheer power of government’ and says coronavirus rules must be decentralised

The Archbishop of Canterbury has called on Boris Johnson’s government to stop curtailing people’s freedoms by imposing so many coronavirus restrictions from Westminster.

The Rev Justin Welby said UK ministers had “determined the daily details of our lives” over recent months in a way “few of us have experienced” – as he argued instead for more flexibility and localism.

The Church of England chief – said to be worried about the impact of the rule of six on the elderly and vulnerable in the run-up to Christmas – argued that the government must challenge its own “addiction” to centralisation.

“We are not immune to the temptation to pull more decisions into the centre, to feel that ‘something is being done’,” the archbishop wrote in The Daily Telegraph. 

“But it is a temptation that should be resisted. Often that ‘something’ might not be as effective as what could be done locally. Scotland and Wales have shown that local public health is the best qualified to

deal with local outbreaks.”

He added: “Local government, schools and voluntary agencies – including churches – can communicate well, act swiftly and measure risk and consequences on the ground.

“The new normal of living with Covid-19 will only be sustainable – or even endurable – if we challenge our addiction to centralisation and go back to an age-old principle: only do centrally what must be done centrally.”

The Telegraph quoted a source close to Rev Welby as saying he was “deeply concerned about Christmas and the impact of the rule of six on the vulnerable, the needy, the poor and the elderly”.

“He is concerned about families being kept apart and the knock-on effect that has, particularly on people who are on their own,” the church source said.

The rule of six – banning gatherings of more than six people indoors and outdoors – came into force on Monday. It is intended to simplify and strengthen the rules on social gatherings amid rising coronavirus cases.

John Apter, the Police Federation chairman, said officers were still “trying to interpret” the rules and understand exactly when penalties might be imposed. He said: “Maybe we should have guidance, because we haven’t had any yet.”

Matt Hancock said on Tuesday he was “keeping an open mind” about the possibility of relaxing the rule of six to exclude children, which would bring England into line with Wales and Scotland.

Reference: Independent: Adam Forrest 7 hrs ago: 15/09/2020

Vatican stresses importance of resuming in-person masses

The Vatican has said it was “necessary and urgent” to return to in-person masses as soon as anti-coronavirus measures permit.

The head of the Vatican’s liturgy office, Cardinal Robert Sarah, said in a letter to bishops conferences that virtual liturgies, while useful, were no replacement for the real thing.

He said physical presence by the faithful in churches was “vital, indispensable, irreplaceable”.

While some Catholic priests claimed coronavirus lockdowns that shuttered churches infringed on religious liberties, Pope Francis has adhered to Italy’s strict lockdown.

He halted all public masses at the Vatican, livestreamed his morning liturgies during the peak of Italy’s outbreak, and at one point even admonished priests who baulked at the measures for their “adolescent resistance”.

The Vatican said on Saturday that Francis had approved the cardinal’s letter to bishops’ conferences, which makes clear that government authorities cannot dictate liturgical practices.

Francis had urged the Catholic faithful to obey anti-Covid measures, saying government authorities were responsible for public health.

He was seen this week wearing a face mask for the first time, and has been using hand sanitiser.

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In recent weeks Francis has resumed public gatherings and has celebrated a handful of public masses before limited, socially distanced groups.

Reference: By Associated Press Reporter 8 hrs ago: 12/09/2020

Pope uses mask, sanitizer as he appeals for public health

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis wore a face mask and used hand sanitizer Wednesday as he appealed for the faithful to look out for the health of others as well as themselves during the coronavirus pandemic.

Francis took off the mask as his car pulled into the San Damaso courtyard inside the Apostolic Palace, where last week he resumed his weekly public audiences after a nearly six-month COVID-19 shutdown.
While chairs were spaced out in the courtyard, the limited crowd massed along the barriers as Francis passed by and some lowered their masks to call out to him.

The 83-year-old pope, who lost part of one lung to illness when he was young, loves plunging into crowds but tried to keep his distance and urged the crowd to stick to their seats to avoid contagion.

An aide squirted some hand sanitizer in Francis’ hands after he greeted the well-wishers and before he approached his cleric translators on the podium. It was the first time the pope has been seen in public wearing a mask and using hand sanitizer.

During his remarks, Francis lamented that “partisan interests” were emerging in which some nations and groups are seeking to keep vaccines for themselves, or to further their own political or economic interests.

“The coronavirus is showing us that each person’s true good is a common good and, vice versa, the common good is a true good for the person," he said. “Health, in addition to being an individual good, is also a public good. A healthy society is one that takes care of everyone’s health.”

Francis is expected to elaborate on the need for the world to seek out the common good after the pandemic in an upcoming encyclical that he will sign next month during a private visit to Assisi, birthplace of his namesake, St. Francis.

Reference: Associated Press: 4 days ago: 08/09/2020