The Schleswig-Holstein question was a complex 19th century controversy between Austria, Denmark and Prussia over borders and the status of those two states, with roots delving back into the 13th century. So tangled and incomprehensible was it that Lord Palmerston is believed to have said that The Schleswig-Holstein question is so complicated, only three men in Europe have ever understood it. One was Prince Albert, who is now dead. The second was a German professor who went mad. I am the third, and I have forgotten all about it.
Maybe one day someone will say something similar about the tangled, convoluted, incomprehensible and utterly chaotic mess which is Brexit, and, for the past few weeks, all the wranglings and votes taking place in parliament. (The machinations and jostlings within the Tory party are clearer, unless you try to view them with anything approaching common sense and logic).
So today was the day when we were supposed to leave the EU, in an orderly, managed manner with a deal nobody except Theresa May wanted. Except that we haven't: through some last-minute manoeuvrings and by the skin of our teeth we are still here; still citizens of the EU, albeit still on a cliff edge; and nobody quite knows how or why, let alone what might happen between now and the next deadline. Our news outlets report on the convoluted facts, then present us with speculations which are out of date almost as soon as they've been typed, because X makes an unexpected declaration or Y thing happens. It is simultaneously wearying to try and keep up with, depressing to digest and utterly compelling.
So we're still, amazingly, here, still part of Europe, though increasingly unstable, insecure, weakened, cynical and angrily, bitterly divided. We also still have growing levels of poverty and under-funding, which urgently need our government's attention. And for me all this is an increasingly compelling call to root myself - especially in prayer - in the One who is all stability and certainty; the One who is ever faithful, and whose constant love is strong in its tenderness; the One who scoops up the forgotten and marginalised, and whose open Heart transcends all borders and welcomes all nations. The One who is the source of my hope, and who will endure in my life, in Europe and in our world, long after today's news has become history.
Oh, and in case you haven't yet guessed - I'm delighted to still be here... long may it be so...
Maybe one day someone will say something similar about the tangled, convoluted, incomprehensible and utterly chaotic mess which is Brexit, and, for the past few weeks, all the wranglings and votes taking place in parliament. (The machinations and jostlings within the Tory party are clearer, unless you try to view them with anything approaching common sense and logic).
So today was the day when we were supposed to leave the EU, in an orderly, managed manner with a deal nobody except Theresa May wanted. Except that we haven't: through some last-minute manoeuvrings and by the skin of our teeth we are still here; still citizens of the EU, albeit still on a cliff edge; and nobody quite knows how or why, let alone what might happen between now and the next deadline. Our news outlets report on the convoluted facts, then present us with speculations which are out of date almost as soon as they've been typed, because X makes an unexpected declaration or Y thing happens. It is simultaneously wearying to try and keep up with, depressing to digest and utterly compelling.
So we're still, amazingly, here, still part of Europe, though increasingly unstable, insecure, weakened, cynical and angrily, bitterly divided. We also still have growing levels of poverty and under-funding, which urgently need our government's attention. And for me all this is an increasingly compelling call to root myself - especially in prayer - in the One who is all stability and certainty; the One who is ever faithful, and whose constant love is strong in its tenderness; the One who scoops up the forgotten and marginalised, and whose open Heart transcends all borders and welcomes all nations. The One who is the source of my hope, and who will endure in my life, in Europe and in our world, long after today's news has become history.Oh, and in case you haven't yet guessed - I'm delighted to still be here... long may it be so...
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