Posts by Vigilant Mouse

Further decimated

Interesting that a collection of people who all accept (I would think) that absolute precision is required when communicating with electronic devices in order to get the desired result, cannot get their heads round the fact that equal accuracy in spoken/written language (just another communication mechanism) is just as important when conveying precise meaning. In fact it is even more important, given the level of fuzzy logic employed by most human beings.

Useless priests?

I'm a priest.

And I work in the IT industry. (No, this is not a logical impossibility, but I suppose it might render me doubly useless.)

And I have a loud voice (no-one has yet dropped off in one of my sermons.)

It's still a good idea to have the microphones. For example:

1. They are an integral part of the loop system for people with hearing aids.

2. They allow us to do things in one part of the church (or hall, or grounds) and be heard in other parts - useful (for example) when interring ashes in the rain but not all the older people want to stand in the downpour.

And anyway, priests aren't the only people who speak in church. Ordinary people read lessons, lead prayers, make announcements, tell stories, sing..... they haven't all got loud voices.

Would you rather we paid a lot of money for new microphones, or sent a larger donation to help out in Haiti?

Showing your face

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Reminds me of the old story of the two Oxford dons sunbathing at Parson's Pleasure (part of river bank where male nudity was permitted and females in punts had to disembark and walk round a path at the back to avoid embarrassment). One day a punt-load of young ladies decide to ignore the rule and punt straight past. Flustered dons grab towels and cover selves....when women gone, one don asks why other had covered his head, while he had covered his nether regions. "What on earth did you think they'd recognise?" replies the other.