We’re about to leave for Singapore Thursday night. I haven’t been there since 1997, and haven’t been to Asia since September 1998, when I had an absolutely wonderful trip to Hong Kong. Anyone who wants to go to Asia should go to Hong Kong first, via Singapore.
Singapore is about a 3-day trip. After that, you’ve seen everything. The shopping is quite good, and various items such as the MRT (subways/Underground), light rail, and Sentosa Island are well worth a visit. A sombre visit to the war memorial cemetery is also worthwhile. Singapore suffered during WW II, first from neglect by the British (who wasted time defending Singapore from a naval attack while the Japanese were hastening down the Malay Peninsula on bicycles to attack their backs), and then from a brutal Japanese occupation. Changi Jail has a display of wartime artifacts and a replica of the chapel that the prisoners built during the occupation. Very touching.
HWMBO is, of course, going to see the relatives (my in-laws). I am tagging along and staying with our friend BK, hoping to see HWMBO as often as possible. I also hope that his dad will refrain from suggestion that he go out on a date with the daughter of a friend of his. We are planning one or two excursions out of the country to lie on beaches and generally relax. I’d love to get south of the equator, given that Singapore is only 1.? degrees north, but probably won’t be able to this time around.
There is also a burgeoning gay scene in Singapore. When I first travelled there, in 1995, there was only one gay pub (Vincent’s Lounge, in Lucky Plaza) and one gay disco, once a week. Now there are many gay pubs, at least 7 gay saunas, and some gay karaoke places and discos. Gay Pride was held this year during Singapore’s National Day weekend (although they didn’t call it Gay Pride, but something else which I forget). Gay sex is still illegal, but the Government seems to have come to the conclusion (surprise!! surprise!!) that some of their brain drain (where young Singaporeans just out of university suddenly go abroad to work and never return to live and pay taxes) may come from the fact that some gay men and lesbians there feel threatened by the law and the culture. So, while the laws have not been repealed, officially, there seems to be a relaxation when sex between consenting adults is concerned.
I will endeavour to update the blog regularly since I can’t send you all (whoever reads this) postcards.
During my time there, the Eames Commission of the Anglican Communion will deliver its report on ways of ensuring that the different “communities” within the Communion can live together, considering the great differences between some and others over the question of ordination of gay men and lesbians and the blessing of same-sex unions. There was, for a time, considerable leakage from the Commission and its hangers-on–had the Eames Commission been the Titanic, it would be on the bottom of the North Atlantic today.
I’m going to commit myself to some predictions about the findings here.
1) The Commission will not expel, or call for the expulsion, of the Episcopal Church or the Anglican Church of Canada over the gay ordination and blessings question.
2) It will, however, call for the banning of those bishops who have indicated their support for such events from the next Lambeth Conference (scheduled for 2008 in South Africa).
3) It will call for the Episcopal Church and the ACC to formally renounce (or perhaps, “repent of”, or both) their positions on lesbian and gay ordinations and same sex blessings.
4) Er…that’s probably about it. It may call for Bishop Gene Robinson to resign, but that happening is unlikely and I think the Commission, recognising that, will refrain.
I believe that the American and Canadian churches will not go back on their actions: in fact, the American Episcopal Church will find it quite difficult to do so since its canons state that no benefits or position in the church, including ordination, can be denied for reasons of sexual orientation.
So what will the reaction in New York and Toronto be? I believe that these Churches will “prayerfully” consider the results of the commission, and then continue doing exactly what they are doing. However, this will force the Communion to react to their non-reaction. Either the Communion will have to expel them from the Anglican Communion (and thus lose more than 30% of their funding) or the African and Southern tier churches will leave (effectively). It’s Hobson’s Choice, and the Archbishop of Canterbury will have to choose one. Rowan Williams is on course for being the worst Archbishop of Canterbury in 100 years (perhaps excepting Cosmo Gordon Lang of the “kick ’em when they’re down” radio speech after the Abdication). He must be going through difficult mental states: it can’t be good for your mind or your soul when you privately believe one set of things (such as the equality before God of all people, sexual orientation and all manner of other items notwithstanding) and have to publicly support another set of things diametrically opposed to the first set. I think that, if this continues, he really should resign for the good of his soul and his mental state.
I have a job interview tomorrow. Very quick on my part, very slow on theirs. I answered the ad about 2 weeks ago, thinking that if they were interested they would get in touch soon and we could arrange interviews (as I now have Mondays and Fridays free). Instead, they call me today, leaving me no free time to go to an interview during the day. I have to go at 6 pm. The job looks good, challenging, and calling on a lot of the facets of my experience. I shall keep the contracting and consulting up my sleeve, so to speak…