I OFFERED WEDDDINGS ON BEACHES IN 1994 - THE LAW IS TO FINALLY CATCH UP IGNORING ANGLICAN SOUR GRAPES

It was 1994 when I launched my independent ministry, offering sacramental services such as weddings and baptisms wherever people wanted to have them. I have performed weddings and services underwater, on planes, beaches, mountain tops, motorboats, in Moroccan palaces and on Greek islands, in homes, gardens, canal boats, circus rings, Parliament, country estates, over the internet, in orchards, zoos, a tree cathedral, Japanese gardens, in Monte Carlo, Spain and in French Chateaux. It was a social matrimonial revolution that swept the nation. I was interviewed by all the press, on prime time TV, on Radio 4 and Sky. At a time when the state only offered weddings in Registry offices and later also strictly controlled 'licensed venues', and religions, only in their 'sacred' buildings, I gave couples the freedom to have their choices respected and their dreams realised. At a time when the state and religions refused to recognise equal marriage, I was offering homosexual and heterosexual couples, equal access to wedding services. The Law finally caught up and at first permitted civil partnerships and then equal marriage. Now the Law Commission has finally caught up and is recommending a comprehensive reform of the marriage legislation to enable weddings to take place in the location of a couple's choice. Meanwhile the Church of England remains a reactionary and toxic force, haunting these wonderful inclusive initiatives with its cobwebbed, prejudiced resistance. I am so grateful that I managed to escape its clutches. Thirty years ago, I understood that the Church had to evolve or perish. I pioneered an accessible, loving, inclusive and innovative approach to Christian ministry that has blossomed over the decades. Now there are independent ministers across the United Kingdom, our Open Episcopal Church is well established, and the public can escape the stranglehold the great denominations used to enjoy. Jesus was one with the people. We are too.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11026261/Couples-able-wed-seaside-new-plans-overhaul-marriage-rules.html

ARCHBISHOP JONATHAN BLAKE - MY LIFE - PART ONE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFpYhuH-n7Q

ARCHBISHOP JONATHAN BLAKE - MY LIFE - PART TWO

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STVJxukhA3o

I AM PROUD OF MY WRITING, FOR JESUS’S SAKE, THAT HAS HAD ME FOUND INNOCENT IN HEAVEN, BUT TWICE A CRIMINAL ON THE EARTH. THE FIRST IN 1990 WHEN I WROTE A BIBLICAL TEXT ON THE HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT IN PEACEFUL PROTEST ABOUT THE BOMBING OF YOUNG IRAQI RECRUITS DURING THE FIRST GULF WAR. THE SECOND, IN 2016 WHEN I WROTE ON MY BLOG, TO ALERT THE PUBLIC ABOUT A PAEDOPHILE, AND WAS SUCCESSFUL IN FORCING THE AUTHORITIES TO STOP HIM HAVING ACCESS TO CHILDREN. THERE WAS ALMOST A THIRD! IN 1997, WHEN I WAS ARRESTED FOR NAILING MY PROPOSALS FOR REFORM OF THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND ON THE DOOR OF CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL. WORDS ARE POWERFUL MESSAGES THAT CHALLENGE  CORRUPTION, CONFRONT THE WICKED AND CREATE A BETTER WORLD. JESUS IS THE WORD OF GOD AND HIS FOLLOWERS ARE CALLED  TO COMMUNICATE HIS WORDS,  IRRESPECTIVE OF THE COST.

http://bishopjonathanblake.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/press-release-concerning-met-police.html

"You brave, courageous and wonderful man. To stand up for the truth

 in the face of suppression and oppression is truly an act of a pure heart."