It's all Blair, all the time at the moment, as our former PM finally undertakes his long-expected conversion to Catholicism. It would be unChristian to ask whether he is truly entitled to take this step, but that hasn't deterred a lot of people, including the lovely Ann Widdecombe, who is herself a convert to Catholicism. She points out that Blair's House of Commons voting record on a range of issues, including abortion and same sex unions, is hardly in accord with the doctrines of the Church. And of course, the Vatican has always been vocally opposed to the Iraq invasion.
Blair is a man who never seems to be troubled by the possibility that he may be wrong, so it's hard to see how he can feel at home in any organised religion. A number of years ago, Cardinal Murphy O'Connor asked Blair to desist from taking communion on the frequent occasions that he attended mass, since the Catholic understanding of communion is radically different from that of other denominations. (Our local priest compares it to the difference between blanks and live ammunition!) Blair acceded, but with very bad grace, penning a letter to the Cardinal in which he wondered "what would Jesus think about this"? For me, that really says it all about Blair's ego. It's to be hoped he adopted a humbler tone for his induction into the Church.
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