“For the first time in more than 250 years, children will not be allowed to carry candles at a cathedral service in case their hair catches fire. There is no record of a child going up in flames since the Christingle service began at Chelmsford Cathedral in 1747. However, children this year will carry fluorescent glow sticks rather than the traditional candles set in oranges.” (David Sapsted, Telegraph, Dec. 12).
UK: “Cathedral puts out the flames of Christingle”
“For the first time in more than 250 years, children will not be allowed to carry candles at a cathedral service in case their hair catches fire. There is no record of a child going up in flames since the Christingle service began at Chelmsford Cathedral in 1747. However, children this year will carry fluorescent […]
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What a dreadful message this conveys to these children: “You’re so stupid, you can’t even hold a little candle in your hand without setting your hair on fire.”
In 1940, Britain stood virtually alone against a Nazified Europe. If this sort of thing continues to go on, by 2040, it won’t have the backbone to defend itself against an invasion of new-born kittens.
–Mike Perry, author of Untangling Tolkien
The rest of the article makes it sound like the real problem is overcrowding. Maybe they should just split up the kids and do the ceremony twice. That seems much more friendly to tradition than substituting rave sticks for the candles.
Will they be stabbing the glowsticks into oranges this year? If they had had a fire in previous years, was/is there anything to stop them from suing Big Citrus?