It's April Fool's Day - Here are our top Christian April Fool stories

Today is April 1. It is April Fool's Day. It is also my own wedding anniversary - and that's no joke! But here are some of the best Christian April Fool stories - today being the one day in the year when people are 'allowed' to publish 'FAKE NEWS' and actually get away with it because the Date Itself tells us it is FAKE!

In fact, maybe we should rename April Fool's Day Fake News Day.

There is actually a lot to do with the church and the Christian faith around April 1, although it has nothing to do with the midwinter Christian 'Feast of Fools', when a mischievous 'Lord of Misrule' would be elected to generally behave badly in order to lighten the encircling gloom of January nights. Anyway, this feast was banned in the 15th century. 

Chaucher's Nun's Priest's Tale, from his 14th century epic Canterbury Tales, when Chanticleer is tricked by a fox, is the first recorded example of an April Fool's Joke. 

It's also the anniversary of the French Revolution, but that certainly was not an April Fool. (Disclaimer: Nor is this article in any sense an incitement to violence!)

Here are today's top Chritian April Fool stories

Pope Francis To Make Martin Luther A Saint on October 31 - the Liturgy blog

An embittered Vatican insider (many of them saw this day coming) has leaked the document that Pope Francis has been working on together with Lutheran leaders: Stultus Aprilis.

Pope Francis, always surprising people during the four years so far of his pontificate, is preparing to announce that Martin Luther is certainly in heaven. This is called equipollent canonization – where, by virtue of his position as the Vicar of Christ, Pope Francis can bypass the ordinary judicial process of canonization.

Reformation experts think that the most likely date of the proclamation of Stultus Aprilis is on October 31. This year, that date marks exactly 500 years since Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses on the church door of Wittenberg.

It is clear that, at least for Roman Catholics, Martin Luther will be able to be referred to as 'Saint Martin Luther'. This builds on the work of Pope Saint John Paul II who, in the year celebrating 500 years since Martin Luther's birth, titled Martin Luther "Doctor". Plans are also underway to commemorate Martin Luther on a Vatican stamp. 'Usually if individuals are commemorated on stamps they are saints.'

Michael Gove to be next Bishop of Sheffield - Archbishop Cranmer

Following hard upon the unlikely appointment of ex-chancellor George Osborne as editor of the Evening Standard, and the slightly less unlikely appointment of arch-republican Pete Broadbent as Bishop of London, the Crown Nominations Commission has nominated the almost unlikeliest name of Michael Gove as the next Bishop of Sheffield.

'I am simply a Christian seeking to serve the world in a spirit of humility,' he said, on receiving the news. 'Jesus Christ teaches that the first step in becoming a mature human being is to refuse to be a little god. I have now definitely stopped trying to be one,' he added. 'Jesus came in the form of a servant, and so should we, and so henceforth shall I.' 

London Underground

Not technically Christian, but as it has a 'spiritual' theme we thought our readers might like this, spotted via Twitter:

Simba will be gay in upcoming live-action Lion King remake, Disney confirms - Pink News

Everyone's favourite lion Simba will come out as gay in the upcoming live-action remake of The Lion King, Disney has confirmed.

The upcoming reboot of the beloved Disney film will closely follow the plot of the original 1994 movie, with young lion Simba forced to flee after his father Mufasa is murdered by Simba's evil uncle Scar.

 However. there will be a key twist to the plot to bring the film up to date with the modern world.

Speaking exclusively to PinkNews, a source close to the production revealed that Simba will be gay in the upcoming remake.

According to the source, Simba realises that he is gay during his teenage years after chancing upon same-sex couple Timon and Pumbaa in the wilderness.

(Pink News also 'reports' that the UK is pulling out of Eurovision....)

Why the 'Billy Graham rule' was just a 'fake news' distraction - James Ballantyne

There's been a bit of controversy around this week, someone has discovered such a thing as the 'Billy Graham Rule'. What the rule said was that a married man was not allowed to be in a private or public space with a female on their own that wasnt their wife. Now, its a bit of fake news really and distracted the conversation away from a series of other rules that have also dogged evangelical Christianity, which have gone under the radar somewhat. Image result for billy graham

For instance, have you heard of the 'Rob Bell rule' – what this means that whenever his name is mentioned there is a 5 second space in the conversation for a mournful look to be given, the 'oh he used to be my evangelical hero' type of glance....

....and....

.....In the UK, there's the Martin Saunders rule, Where not only every film, but book, building, mode of transport and plate of food has Jesus in it.

So, whilst the Billy Graham rule, has got all the headlines, its been merely a distraction to other rules that powerful evangelical church leaders and theologians all have that have been kept quiet this week about. When Twitter would have gone ape had people realised. Go on, change the calendar. 

That is actually it for now but if more appear, we will update this list. If you come across any, tweet me!