Kelvin Holdsworth Strikes Again

Kelvin Holdsworth, Scottish Episcopal provost of St Mary’s Cathedral in Glasgow, has made the news again. He’s requested that Christians pray that four-year-old Prince George becomes gay as a means of forcing the Anglican Church to accept gay marriage. Why are LGBTQ campaigners so obsessed by projecting their aspirations on children? Gavin Ashenden, former chaplain to the Queen, responded: "It doesn't have the prince's best interests at heart, but uses him as a gender-political football to please 1.7% of the population.”

Holdsworth is no stranger to controversy. As a theological liberal, his anaemic gospel of wine turned into water won’t attract anyone’s attention unless he says and does outrageous things. Last year, he (presumably) authorised and defended the reading of the Qu’ran in his cathedral’s epiphany service. The Surah in question is 19, Maryam, which plainly objects to Christ’s deity and His being the Son of God:

88. And they say, “The Most Merciful has begotten a son. 

89. You have come up with something monstrous. 

90. At which the heavens almost rupture, and the earth splits, and the mountains fall and crumble. 

91. Because they attribute a son to the Most Merciful.

92. It is not fitting for the Most Merciful to have a son.

93. There is none in the heavens and the earth but will come to the Most Merciful as a servant.

Muslims have been taught this for 1400 years, but to have it read at a so-called Christian service marking the wise men’s gifts to the incarnate Son of God is nothing short of disgraceful.

David Chillingworth, the bishop of St Andrews, Dunkeld and Dunblane, Holdsworth’s line manager, said he was “distressed”, but reported objectors to the police saying “We also deeply regret the widespread abuse which has been received by the cathedral community”. If he had regretted the provost’s blasphemies a little more, we might not have had yesterday’s pronouncement.