Bristol Consistory Court; Calcutt Ch. 15 December 1994

A petition was brought for the installation of a Royal Air Force commemorative free-standing display including pedestal case and commemorative plaque to mark the closure of the Royal Air Force station at Hullavington and the end of a long and close association between it and the local community. The parochial church council unanimously supported the petition and approval was recommended by the DAC. Two parishioners objected to the grant of a faculty upon grounds of incompatibility and inconsistency between Christian teachings and the practice of warfare. The petitioners responded and argued that the long association and the protection given to the community by the station merited public acknowledgment. The court had to decide upon written representations as to which view prevailed. It concluded that there was a long tradition in this country of insignia, of the kind included in the petition, being displayed publicly in churches. A church was entitled to demonstrate that it wished to support "strong and consistent resistance to international aggressors" and that it was proper for the long and close association to be commemorated in the manner sought. Faculty granted.

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(1995) 3 Ecc LJ 424