Festival fatigue.

I was a good wee boy who signed up for 2 events this week to listen to Rabbi Lionel Blue (who I met years ago when he was leading a retreat in sunny Millport) at the Festival. Sadly, LB is seek & no weel and was replaced unexpectedly by Peter Tatchell!! I still toddled along and was surprised (pleasantly) by his arguments: his radicalism springs from love of fellow human being not anger, it all started as a teenager campaigning against the death penalty and the Vietnam War in Oz-land. Rather more to this controversial figure than I had expected. His dialogue at lunchtime with +Gene Robinson was very illuminating and he had a pop at the ABC (the Beard of Cantuar)for hypocrisy. Well, what do you expect, matey? The late Dom Gregory Dix said: "the sign of a Bishop is a crook and that of an Archbishop a double cross". And my old mentor Fr Donald Nicholson used to advise me: "Put not your trust in princes - especially Princes of the Church!" (Oddly, he succeeded Dom Gregory as Parish Priest of Beaconsfield!)

I heard +GR preach on the Transfiguration this morning. It was perfectly orthodox doctinally, shed a new light on a Bible passage for me (unusual in most sermons I hear!) and was evangelical in the best sense of the word (sharing personal faith and experience in a simple yet profound way). He also celebrates Mass very well - not every Bishop can! I've really become rather a fan of the wee man!

Now, I'm cream crackered and off to walk Max in the pouring rain beofre curling up in front of the telly for a bit - all this running about to Edinburgh fair tires ye oot! Then tomorrow - the Archbishop of Burma!