HMRC held this service on Tuesday:
I've read the whole order of service.
I am a Quaker and Christian, plus occasional Anglican. I think this service was deeply inappropriate.
I can find no hint of multi-faith (and no faith) elements within the liturgy.
Being pedantic (if you wish) the choice of hymns was not good (and I am the son of a church pianist who brought me up on what she called Hymns, Ancient and Mouldy).
I hope the testimonials were good, but as it is it worries me that so many seemed to be offered by senior staff, as were far too many of the intercessions whilst the readings have all too strong an impression of a mild worship of neoliberalism within them.
I'm trying hard to find a redeeming feature. I am really struggling. So, the best I can offer is this prayer:
That made me think. I thought about those fighting for tax justice. The NGOs. The faith organisations. The campaigners. The people who believe tax is the way to a better world. And, quite often, the trade unions who represent them. All of them have, in my experience been ignored, chastised or just dismissed as muddled, confused or wrong in the last decade by HMRC.
HMRC, take note, I suggest. If you did and changed your attitude to towards those engaged in tax justice then this service might have been worthwhile. But it requires an act of faith on my part to think so.
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Ah, the prophet Amos. Good stuff. Let’s put that verse back into its context:
I hate, I despise your religious festivals; your assemblies are a stench to me. Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Though you bring choice fellowship offerings, I will have no regard for them. Away with the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps. But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!
Amos is pretty reliable for that sort of stuff
Good on him!
In its entirety what a quote. The complete antithesis of the whole event. “your assemblies are a stench to me”. That about says it all.
I assume they asked Lord (the Reverend) Stephen Green for advice with the service and such like, Richard. He appears to have successfully joined neoliberalism, god and christianity, without any outward signs of concern about how the excesses and corruptions of the one might sit with the beliefs and teachings of the other.
I also assume thanks were given for the willingness of successive governments to allow the capture of the management and oversight of HMRC by big business and the city, and also for the importation of customer relation management (CRM) techniques and practices to the benefit, once again, of big business. Finally, I also assume praise was given – or perhaps an appropriate hymn – for the ease with which senior HMRC staff are able to move into the commercial world once they feel their time as a public servant has usefully been served (ie. they have amassed enough knowledge and expertise to “sell” themselves to the highest bidder).
One thing that I doubt was acknowledged and celebrated/thanked, though – although I’m more than happy to be proved wrong – were the large number of HMRC staff who have been “let go” as surplus to requirements over the last few years, and those due to suffer the same fate over the coming years.
As you say, this was deeply inappropriate. In my book nothing more than an exercise in the religious glorification and legitimation of what’s supposed to be a secular organisation and activity. Appalling.
I write this blog last night
I actually feel angrier about it this morning
It was a vainglorious attempt to aggrandise senior HMRC management with a mantle of respectability that is unjustified by a church that is far too interested in secular appeasement than the issue of faith that it is supposed to promote
A pretty sickening spectacle all round
I’d imagine that your not the only one angry about this Richard, I’d bet that most HMRC staff are seething too !
the church made their position very clear when they kicked the anti-capitalist protesters out from St Paul’s. their view on payday lenders… we just need more of them! as far as i can see the church and Christianity are two very separate things so really who gives a fig what pompous ceremonies they put on.
Do we get a list of the Hymns??
In the pdf I linked to
A new meaning for Holy Trinity Economics-Politics-Religion (works better as a graphic).
There are good people in the C of E-why we are not hearing their voices, I don’t know. The Archbishop of C has also raised questions about debt and food banks -his voice seems to have disappeared without trace in recent months. AS the official state religion the C of E frequently compromises itself and seems to have done so here.
I was there and as an Anglican (liberal) found the service OK, but was surprised there were no other faiths represented, especially as in London many HMRC staff are from non Christian faith communities and can understand why this will have upset some. There was a testimonial from a member of staff who had worked a in public enquiry office but due to the closure of those offices now visits customers in their homes to offer help with their tax affairs, which was fair enough ,but this was somewhat partial in that the wider potential effect of the closures was ignored. The choir was excellent as was the historic setting, but as has been said above I felt very uncomfortable about the Church apparently legitimising an organisation which hardly treats its staff in a just and righteous way.I suspect for a lot of the staff attending it was just a chance to get away from the office for a morning.
Thanks for the report