"but cremation is not "opposed per se to the Christian religion."
My question was rhetorical Nigel - I wished to underline that up to 1963 cremations were totally banned by the church - today's ruling is in fact a compromise
You responded to none of my other examples of church makkie-ups
One of the cruellest examples of these was told to us by a devout Irish Travelling woman – blind from birth and mother of sixteen children (forbidden by the church to use any form of contraception – but that aside)
Her father was an alcoholic, which we rather disapproved of as Mary was separated from her husband and relied heavily on family support
She explained the circumstances of his heavy drinking
She and her sister were born blind and once, while they were living briefly in Dublin, a local doctor suggested that Mary's sister's blindness might be curable
She was operated on and, when they removed the bandages in the presence of her father, she found she could see, for about five minutes, and then her blindness returned
Her father was distraught and went to the hospital chapel to pray
He told the hospital chaplain what had happened and was asked, "did you say "thanks be to God" when you thought she'd got her sight back?"
Her father told him, "No, I was too excited".
"Well" said the priest, "that's why the operation wasn't a success; make sure you do if they operate again".
Mary's sister never had another operation and her father never had another sober day
Jim Carroll