Church refuses veteran’s final wish.

Check this idiot out The Reverand Campbell refuses to allow a coffin containing a veteran to be draped with the Australian flag.
“I believe the rituals of the church belong within the church building and the RSL service (should be) another event,” Dr Campbell said.
Sound a bit strange on the face of it untill we read of his political leanings.
Dr Campbell, a former social justice spokesman for the Uniting Church of Victoria and Tasmania, is a member of a small group known as Christians For Peace. He was heavily involved in a series of daily People For Peace vigils outside St Paul’s Cathedral in early 2003 denouncing the Iraqi war.
I wonder just what community the good Reverand thinks he represents. Just the peace makers opviously. The fact that it is the veteran’s final wish is not the point. A flag over the coffin has been a courtesy afforded returned servicemen since there has been veterans. The leader of the Uniting Church in Victoria and Tasmania doesn’t help when she offers these paragraphs of nothing as an apology
The leader of the Uniting Church in Victoria and Tasmania, Reverend Sue Gormann, today said she deeply regretted any additional pain the family suffered as a result of the the decision.
She must agree with the fool, otherwise she would have phoned up and pointed out that he was just being un-Australian and to get on with his job of reflecting the mores of all of society.
“I am very sorry that this matter will have added to the grief of Mr Vipond’s family,” Rev Gormann said in a statement. “I am sad that we were not able to meet the needs of the Vipond family at this time, and I look forward to meeting with them in the future.
What a useless statement. We are not going to help you, we refuse to honour your veterans service but we look forward to having a cuppa’ with you in the future.
“It was not the intention of the Reverend Dr Wes Campbell to offend the family, and we both deeply regret that this passage of events has taken place.” But the church is unable to guarantee the situation will not happen again as it has no policy outlining the use of flags in funeral services.
It was very much the intention of Campbell to offend the family, the country and more particularly, The Government. Are we expected to believe that a Minister of the Cloth, normally a person of some import, a leader in the community, is not aware of the courtesies offered returned servicemen. Bullshit. He’s making a political statement at the expense of a grieving family to get his opinion across that the Iraq war was illegal or whatever. Poor show. The mans details are:The Rev Wes Campbell, of St John’s Uniting Church in Essendon and the only church in Essendon I can find in the Yellow Pages is this one; Cnr Mt Alexander Rd & Buckley St Essendon VIC 3040 ph: (03) 9375 1065 I presume it’s the one. Heads up from James Riley

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