Same-sex couples can now legally marry in England and Wales. Parliament had passed the Marriage (Same-Sex Couples) Act last July, but because of various implementation deadlines, it wasn't until today that couples could actually wed. Prime minister David Cameron heralded the change by writing: "Put simply, in Britain it will no longer matter whether you are straight or gay—the State will recognize your relationship as equal." The Church of England, which was created in 1534 because King Henry VIII thought the Catholic Church was too conservative about traditional marriage, has also softened its stance.Though the church leadership had originally announced plans to forbid clergy from performing same-sex marriages,the Bishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, said Friday night that it would no longer oppose gay marriage among Anglicans. "The law's changed; we accept the situation," he told the BBC. A r ecent BBC pollfound 68% of Britons accepting of gay marriage, so the Church's shift may not be unexpected. However, the church has said that it won't allow clergy themselves to enter into same sex partnerships because"getting married to someone of the same sex would clearly be at variance with the teaching of the Church of England," which seems a bit like they're saying, "Ok, you can get gay married and be ok with your friends and family who get gay married because you like Jesus but you don'tlike likeJesus. If youlike likeJesus, you can't get gay married because gay marriage is still against God's plan."
By Strive Masiyiwa A few weeks ago I went to the doctor. I will tell you what he said about my health at the end, but first read this: Twenty years ago, I arranged to meet a well-known British international businessman who invested a lot in Africa at the time. We agreed to meet for dinner at a leading hotel in London. After a good meeting, we started to walk out of the restaurant when he suddenly collapsed in the lobby. There was total pandemonium as they rushed to get medical assistance. Being London, an ambulance arrived in minutes. I jumped in the back with him as paramedics wrestled to keep him alive. He had had a heart attack and had to have triple bypass heart surgery. Sadly he died a few weeks later. He hadn't been sick and his sudden death surprised everyone. And yet as I reflected on it, and later discussed it with a doctor friend who knew him, I realized he was very laid back about his health despite having a hectic business life. Even during our dinner...
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