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Over 2,000 folks have signed a petition protesting a current silent disco at Canterbury Cathedral.
The cathedral was based by St Augustine in 597 AD and stays an essential centre for pilgrimage because the mom church of the worldwide Anglican Communion, the seat of the Archbishop of Canterbury, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was additionally the place of the martyrdom of English archbishop Thomas Becket.
The silent disco featured pop music from the 90s and alcohol was on sale within the constructing for the occasion. A silent vigil was held on the identical time exterior the cathedral by Christian protesters.
Despite the furore, extra cathedrals have signed as much as host silent discos of their buildings within the coming weeks and months, together with Hereford, Leeds, St Albans, Coventry, Sheffield and Manchester. In addition to a silent disco in May, Manchester Cathedral additionally has a Punk Rock Club night time deliberate for 29 February.
A petition on Change.org known as ‘Anglican Deans, Stop turning our Great Cathedrals into Nightclubs’ has been signed by 2,140 folks.
It accuses cathedral deans of desecrating the sacred buildings and says that the place for silent discos is in nightclubs, not cathedrals.
It calls on Christians to voice their opposition and for deans to make their cathedral buildings a home of prayer.
“The desecration won’t cease until we resist, with petitions and prayers, to point out the clergy their errors and awaken in folks’s hearts a renewed reverence of our sacred locations,” it says.
“We the undersigned oppose all desecration of our historic holy locations, and particularly their use as nightclubs. Dear Anglican Deans, please cease the discos and make the Cathedrals homes of prayer as soon as extra.”
Other Christians have questioned the occasion.
Christian Concern tweeted, “If Canterbury Cathedral’s purpose was to draw younger and real worshipers, a silent disco was positively not the best way.”
Priest and blogger Steve Kneale questioned whether or not there was any level to church buildings filling their buildings with folks if there is no such thing as a intention to share the Gospel.
“I see no motive to imagine we’ve achieved something of evangelistic price by any means once we see these items,” he stated.
“Simply ‘getting them in’ shouldn’t be the identical as doing something for the gospel. Simply ‘getting them in’ doesn’t lead anyone nearer to Christ. In and of itself, ‘getting them in’ would not actually obtain something in any respect,” he wrote on his weblog.
Vicar and commentator Rev Daniel French stated, “If a silent disco within the birthplace of English Christianity elicits revulsion the place, say, a theatrical efficiency or live performance doesn’t, it’s because it isn’t only a secular use of a sacred area, however a parodic one: a caricature of Holy Communion.”
Christian commentator Adrian Hilton stated, “The Dean and Chapter of Canterbury Cathedral deem this ‘silent disco’ to be an exercise ‘akin to befit[s] the House of God’ (Canon F16). I take a broad view of mission, however I believe it inclines towards profanity ‘inconsistent with the sanctity’ (F15) of the shrine of St Thomas Becket.”
