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{{Short description|British political commentator (born 1985)}}{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2023}}

factoids

| birth_place = Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, EnglandPolitical commentatorPriest}}| rank = | religion = Old Catholicism(since 2023)FormerlyAnglicanism (until 2023)| church = Nordic Catholic Church (since 2023)FormerlyFree Church of England (2022–2023)Church of England (until 2022)| module = {{Ordination| embed = yes| denomination = Old Catholicism| ordained deacon by = Paul Hunt (Free Church of England)| date of diaconal ordination = 25 June 2022| place of diaconal ordination = Christ Church, Harlesden| ordained priest by = Roald Nikolai Flemestad (Nordic Catholic Church)| date of priestly ordination = 4 November 2023| place of priestly ordination = St Jude’s Church, Balham}}}}Calvin John Robinson (born 29 October 1985) is a British Old Catholic cleric, conservative political commentator, writer and broadcaster. Since 2023, he has been a priest in the Nordic Catholic Church, an Old Catholic denomination of high church Lutheran patrimony; from 2022 until his priestly ordination, he had been a deacon in the Free Church of England, a conservative Anglican realignment denomination.He is a regular contributor to The Daily Telegraph, the Daily Mail, Spiked, and First Things.WEB, Calvin Robinson,www.telegraph.co.uk/authors/calvin-robinson/, live, 27 April 2021, The Daily Telegraph, en-GB,web.archive.org/web/20200614025050/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/authors/calvin-robinson/, 14 June 2020, NEWS, Who is Free Speech For? Network of Alt-Right Activists Target Anti-Racist Campaigner Over Tweet,bylinetimes.com/2021/03/01/who-is-free-speech-for-network-of-alt-right-activists-target-anti-racist-campaigner-over-tweet/, Byline Times, 1 March 2021, WEB, Calvin Robinson, Author at spiked,www.spiked-online.com/author/calvin-robinson/, Spiked, WEB, Calvin Robinson,www.firstthings.com/author/calvin-robinson, First Things, 18 January 2023, en, Robinson also featured as a commentator on talkRADIO and formerly presented a regular show on GB News.Previously, Robinson had worked as a computer science teacher in a secondary school and as a video games journalist.WEB, GodisaGeek,www.godisageek.com/author/calvin-robinson/, live, 7 January 2022, GodisaGeek.com, en-GB,www.godisageek.com:80/author/calvin-robinson/," title="web.archive.org/web/20100918215056www.godisageek.com:80/author/calvin-robinson/,">web.archive.org/web/20100918215056www.godisageek.com:80/author/calvin-robinson/, 18 September 2010, WEB,www.battleofideas.org.uk/2018/speaker/calvin-robinson/, Calvin Robinson – Battle of Ideas 2018, In February 2024, Robinson moved his Common Sense Crusade, which was formerly on GB News, to The Lotus EatersWEB, Calvin Robinson {{!, Lotus Eaters |url=https://lotuseaters.com/author/calvin-robinson-07-02-2024 |access-date=2024-04-10 |website=lotuseaters.com |language=en}} and is a recurring host on their podcast.WEB, Common Sense Crusade {{!, Lotus Eaters |url=https://lotuseaters.com/category/common-sense-crusade |access-date=2024-04-10 |website=lotuseaters.com |language=en}}

Early life and education

Robinson is of mixed-race heritage. He describes his background as “half Afro-Caribbean and half English”.’The Left’s Quest to Remove Whiteness & Undermine Our Culture’ published by The New Culture Forum; 20 March 2022WEB, Robinson, Fr Calvin, 30 November 2022, Why Enoch was Right,calvinrobinson.substack.com/p/why-enoch-was-right, calvinrobinson.substack.com, en, His paternal grandparents emigrated from Jamaica as members of the Windrush generation.NEWS, Pearson, Allison, 24 May 2022, Institutionally racist? The Church of England has fallen victim to institutional cowardice, The Daily Telegraph,www.telegraph.co.uk/columnists/2022/05/24/institutionally-racist-church-england-has-fallen-victim-institutional/, He was born and grew up in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, attending High Oakham Primary School, The Brunts Academy, and later West Nottinghamshire College. He then studied at the University of Westminster where he graduated with a degree in computer games design and programming.NEWS, Topping, Andrew, 23 February 2021, Former Mansfield teacher on why he’s been called a “race traitor” for his right-wing views, Nottingham Post,www.nottinghampost.com/news/local-news/former-mansfield-teacher-hes-been-5035770, WEB,pocketmags.com/us/linux-format-magazine/august-2020/articles/782985/creating-pac-man-style-games-in-python, Creating Pac-Man style games in Python, pocketmags.com, 14 January 2022,

Career

Educational career

Robinson was employed in the technology industry before training as a teacher. He taught computer science at the St Mary’s and St John’s Church of England School in Hendon where he became head of the IT department. In 2017, Robinson was featured in a recruitment advert encouraging people to become teachers.WEB,www.battleofideas.org.uk/2018/speaker/calvin-robinson/, Calvin Robinson – Battle of Ideas 2018, WEB, Desborough, Jenny, 26 June 2017, Teacher becomes face of national recruitment campaign for teaching staff,www.times-series.co.uk/news/15372525.teacher-becomes-face-national-recruitment-campaign-teaching-staff/, Hendon & Finchley Times, He was a video games journalist and is also owner of the video games site God is a Geek.WEB, LDN Team,ldn.cm/team.html, live, 7 January 2022, LDN.cm, en-GB,ldn.cm:80/team.html," title="web.archive.org/web/20150815014422ldn.cm:80/team.html,">web.archive.org/web/20150815014422ldn.cm:80/team.html, 15 August 2015, WEB, LDN Publishing,ldn.cm/publishing.html, live, 7 January 2022, LDN.cm, en-GB,ldn.cm:80/publishing.html," title="web.archive.org/web/20150815004458ldn.cm:80/publishing.html,">web.archive.org/web/20150815004458ldn.cm:80/publishing.html, 15 August 2015, Between 2019 and 2021, he was a school governor and trustee at the Michaela School in Wembley.WEB, Calvin ROBINSON,find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/officers/FlaUdQa9Ah6YRjF4u7nVY9dYiuI/appointments, Find and update company information, Companies House, 10 February 2023, In 2020, he was appointed to the education sub-committee of the board of the Royal Academy of Dance;WEB, Annual Report and Financial Statements FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 JULY 2020,media.royalacademyofdance.org/media/2021/04/07103353/Financial-Report-2019-20-310321.pdf, Royal Academy of Dance, 10 February 2023, 15, Christian Concern reported on 1 October 2023 that Robinson had been “cancelled” from this role for opposing a drag queen storytelling session and had received an out-of-court settlement.WEB, Christian Concern, 1 October 2023, Calvin Robinson: GB News presenter wins £8,000 settlement after cancellation by dance academy for opposing ‘Drag Queen Story Hour’,christianconcern.com/ccpressreleases/calvin-robinson-gb-news-presenter-wins-8000-settlement-after-cancellation-by-dance-academy-for-opposing-drag-queen-story-hour/, Christian Concern, He also became a senior fellow responsible for education policy at the Policy Exchange, a think tank with conservative precepts, but no longer held the position by 2023.WEB, Calvin Robinson, Author at Policy Exchange,policyexchange.org.uk/author/calvinrobinson/, Policy Exchange, 10 February 2023, en,

Political career

In 2016, Robinson contested the Kilburn ward of Brent Council in by-election as the Conservative Party candidate. He was defeated by the Labour candidate. In 2018 he stood for election to Camden Council in the council’s Swiss Cottage ward. He was again defeated by Labour candidates.WEB, About Calvin,web.archive.org/web/20220315014917/https://www.calvinrobinson.org/, 15 March 2022,www.calvinrobinson.org/, 5 December 2022, Calvin Robinson, Robinson stood in the 2019 general election as the Brexit Party candidate for Broxtowe, but withdrew his candidacy to support the Conservative candidate.WEB, Lee, Simeon, 6 December 2019, A call for student Brexiteers in the ‘Battle of Broxtowe’,thetab.com/uk/nottingham/2019/12/06/a-call-for-student-brexiteers-in-the-battle-of-broxtowe-46406, live, 4 June 2021, The Tab,web.archive.org/web/20191215124700/https://thetab.com/uk/nottingham/2019/12/06/a-call-for-student-brexiteers-in-the-battle-of-broxtowe-46406, 15 December 2019, Robinson has also held various positions in right-wing political organisations and campaigns including Defund the BBC, Unite2Leave (a pro-Brexit tactical voting campaign), and Conservative Way Forward. He has contributed to Black Lives Matter UK: An Anthology, a Henry Jackson Society report opposing Black Lives Matter and “hard-left identity politics”.NEWS, Ahmed, Nafeez, 8 December 2020, Alt-Right Pseudoscience – Part 2: The Free Speech Union and Scientific Racism, Byline Times,bylinetimes.com/2020/12/08/alt-right-pseudoscience-part-2-the-free-speech-union-and-scientific-racism/, Robinson said his commentary has made him the target of racial abuse.WEB, Topping, Andrew, 23 February 2021, Former teacher called a ‘race traitor’ for his right-wing views,www.nottinghampost.com/news/local-news/former-mansfield-teacher-hes-been-5035770, Nottingham Post,

Media career

Robinson worked for talkRADIO and as a television presenter on GB News from late 2022.NEWS, Waterson, Jim, Andrew Neil outflanked by Nigel Farage in GB News culture war,www.theguardian.com/media/2021/aug/24/andrew-neil-outflanked-by-nigel-farage-in-gb-news-culture-war, The Guardian, 24 August 2021, WEB, 4 October 2022, GB News’s Calvin Robinson claims Conservative Party has been ‘infiltrated by Marxist ideology’,www.thenational.scot/news/23018310.gb-newss-calvin-robinson-claims-conservative-party-infiltrated-marxist-ideology/, The National (Scotland), The National, en, WEB, 29 October 2022, Common Sense Crusade with Calvin Robinson,theglobalherald.com/news/common-sense-crusade-with-calvin-robinson-sunday-30th-october/, The Global Herald, en-US, On 29 September 2023, Robinson was suspended from GB News after speaking out in favour of Laurence Fox, who had recently been suspended for misogynistic comments made about a female journalist.NEWS, 29 October 2022,www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-66958077, BBC News, GB News: Calvin Robinson becomes third presenter suspended, en-UK, NEWS,news.sky.com/story/third-gb-news-presenter-calvin-robinson-suspended-as-channel-boss-condemns-laurence-fox-comments-12972161, Third GB News presenter Calvin Robinson suspended - as channel boss condemns Laurence Fox comments, 29 September 2023, Sky News, Calvin Robinson’s dismissal from GB News was announced on 4 October.NEWS,www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-67009045, Laurence Fox and Calvin Robinson sacked by GB News, 4 October 2023, BBC News,

Ordained ministry

Robinson undertook a two-year course of theological studies at St Stephen’s House, Oxford, from 2020 to 2022, with the hope of being ordained a deacon in the Church of England. However, his application for a curacy within the Diocese of London was unsuccessful.NEWS, Heap, Emily-Jane, 22 May 2022, Black conservative trainee vicar ‘blocked’ from joining Church of England over ‘anti-woke views’, The Sunday Telegraph,www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/05/22/black-conservative-trainee-vicar-blocked-joining-church-england/, He subsequently submitted a subject access request to the church to understand the decision. This revealed email conversations between Jonathan Baker, the bishop of Fulham, and Rob Wickham, the bishop of Edmonton, raising concerns about Robinson’s “libertarian anti-woke, anti-identity politics, Covid-sceptical” political views and his use of social media, particularly Twitter, to disseminate them. The Diocese of London later issued a statement highlighting the “limited number of curacies available”, emphasised that vacancies were carefully “considered on a case-by-case basis” and that “in this instance, it is felt that there is no suitable” curacy available that the diocese could offer. Robinson alleged that Sarah Mullally, the bishop of London, had blocked his ordination because of his political views, a claim which Mullally denied.WEB, Martin, Francis, 27 May 2022, Calvin Robinson: I was blocked from ordination,www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2022/27-may3-june/news/uk/calvin-robinson-i-was-blocked-from-ordination, Church Times, The decision to deny ordination to Robinson attracted criticism from conservative elements of the media, and within the church, notably Angela Tilby, a canon emerita of Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford.WEB, Tilby, Angela, 10 June 2022, C of E needs conservative thinkers like Calvin Robinson,www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2022/10-june/comment/columnists/angela-tilby-c-of-e-needs-conservative-thinkers-like-calvin-robinson, Church Times, Robinson described it as a “very narrow-minded” decision that was a result of his “anti-woke” views and criticism of “bleeding-heart liberal vicars”.Robinson subsequently left the Church of England for the Free Church of England (FCE) where he was ordained as a deacon on 25 June 2022 by bishop Paul Hunt, and appointed minister-in-charge at Christ Church, Harlesden.fcofe.org.uk/2022/06/26/calvin-robinson-was-ordained-to-the-diaconate/" title="web.archive.org/web/20220703142101fcofe.org.uk/2022/06/26/calvin-robinson-was-ordained-to-the-diaconate/">Calvin Robinson was Ordained to the Diaconate. Free Church of England, 26 June 2022. Archived from the original on 3 July 2022. Retrieved 31 October 2022 On 12 October 2023 the Evening Standard published an article stating that Robinson would soon leave the Free Church of England to seek ordination in the Nordic Catholic Church (NCC), an Old Catholic denomination of high church Lutheran patrimony founded in 1999.WEB, Croft, Ethan, 13 October 2023, Sacked GB News host Calvin Robinson flies to Disney World and eyes new Church,www.msn.com/en-gb/news/newslondon/sacked-gb-news-host-calvin-robinson-flies-to-disney-world-and-eyes-new-church/ar-AA1i5NMZ, Evening Standard, On 4 November 2023, Robinson was ordained to the priesthood by bishop Roald Nikolai Flemestad of the Nordic Catholic Church at St Jude’s Church, Balham and celebrated his first Mass.WEB, Calvin Robinson Ordained to the Priesthood,nordiccatholic-uk.com/calvin-robinson-ordained-to-the-priesthood/, nordiccatholic-uk.com, 16 November 2023, 23 November 2023, He is currently incardinated in the NCC and under the jurisdiction of Flemestad, who in turn operates under the authority of prime bishop Anthony Mikovsky of the Polish National Catholic Church; both groups are part of the Union of Scranton. Despite this, he continues to serve in Christ Church, Harlesden.WEB, Robinson, Fr Calvin, 2023-11-06, Ordained to priesthood in the presbyteral order,calvinrobinson.substack.com/p/ordained-to-priesthood-in-the-presbyteral, Fr Calvin Robinson,

Views

Political views

Robinson opposes the teaching of critical race theory in British education and argues that the teaching of black history and lessons concerning black people should be taught within the context of British history and not taught separately.WEB,www.theguardian.com/education/2020/oct/03/teachers-on-black-history-in-the-curriculum, Students need to know the harrowing truth’: teachers on black history in the curriculum, TheGuardian.com, 3 October 2020, 31 January 2022, NEWS,www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/10/01/beware-critical-race-theory-divisive-ideology-infiltrating/, Beware Critical Race Theory – the divisive ideology infiltrating school history lessons, The Telegraph, October 2020, 31 January 2022, Robinson, Calvin, He has also defended colonialism and the British Empire, and has opposed reparations for slavery.WEB, Student anger at slavery comments made by Union speakers,www.varsity.co.uk/news/24597, 30 November 2022, Varsity Online, en, In July 2021, Robinson appeared in an interview on Channel 4 News with the singer and left-wing political activist Billy Bragg on the decision of England’s football team players to “take the knee” in a protest against racism.NEWS,www.channel4.com/news/euro-2020-musician-billy-bragg-and-commentator-calvin-robinson-debate-england-taking-the-knee-ahead-of-final, Euro 2020: Musician Billy Bragg and commentator Calvin Robinson debate England taking the knee ahead of final, 9 July 2021, Channel 4 News, He said the action was “disgusting” and argued that, in taking the knee, the team was promoting “Black Lives Matter”, which he described as “a neo-Marxist, anti-British, anti-family organisation”.NEWS,www.theguardian.com/football/2021/jun/10/england-fans-boos-players-take-a-knee-euro2020, England fans, how do you feel when you hear boos as players take a knee?, 10 June 2021, The Guardian, Robinson is a eurosceptic, having stood previously for election as a candidate for the Brexit Party.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

Theological views

In an interview with Premier Christianity, Robinson described himself as an Evangelical Catholic.WEB, Hailes, Sam, 1 November 2022, Calvin Robinson: ‘I’ve always struggled with organised religion…maybe that’s why I got kicked out of one’,www.premierchristianity.com/interviews/calvin-robinson-ive-always-struggled-with-organised-religionmaybe-thats-why-i-got-kicked-out-of-one/14163.article, Premier Christianity, en, The Catholic Herald described Robinson as an Evangelical Anglican, but also noted that he shares some high church positions, such as the use of the title “Father”, holding a “high” understanding of the Eucharist and of the institution of the church by Christ.WEB, Bogle, Joanna, 9 January 2023, ‘I could see the reuniting of Christians with Rome’: Interview with Calvin Robinson,catholicherald.co.uk/i-could-see-the-reuniting-of-christians-with-rome-interview-with-calvin-robinson/, Catholic Herald, en-GB, According to the Catholic Herald, Robinson considers Michael Nazir-Ali, a former bishop of the Church of England who later converted to the Catholic Church, to be a mentor. Robinson later became a founding member of the Anglo-Catholic Brotherhood of the Holy Trinity.WEB, Calvin Robinson,www.calvinrobinson.com/?fbclid=PAAaYNWOmxoBEfGArXwi9EyMtwluHICiFWlslmPLbR6qWU-NPjzz5sTB_d8hc, 1 June 2023, www.calvinrobinson.com, WEB, Evangelical Catholics,evangelicalcatholics.prophet-clan.com/, 1 June 2023, evangelicalcatholics.prophet-clan.com, en-US, After being ordained to the priesthood, Robinson described himself as an “Old Catholic with Anglican patrimony”, stating that he considers the Pope to be a primus inter pares, rejecting papal supremacy over the universal church, the First and Second Vatican Council and the dogmatic pronouncements of the Immaculate Conception and the Assumption of Mary, though he personally accepts the second as a pious devotion. He condemned the Protestant Reformation as a mistake that divided the church and stated that he is in favour of Christian unity and ecumenism among orthodox Christians.He has spoken in favour of disestablishing the Church of England in order to free it from political influence and allow Anglican realignment churches to thrive. Robinson himself was a deacon in the Free Church of England from 2022 to 2023. He is strongly critical of the leadership of the Church of England, accusing it of liberal political bias. Robinson opposes the ordination of women.

Moral views

He is also opposed to the facilitation of same-sex marriage in the Church of England and has argued that the Bible only allows marriage between a man and a woman. He argues that premarital sex is a sin.WEB, Robinson, Fr Calvin, 5 November 2022, Gay Marriage is not Marriage,calvinrobinson.substack.com/p/gay-marriage-is-not-marriage, calvinrobinson.substack.com, en, He also opposes abortion and holds pro-life positions.WEB, Robinson, Fr Calvin, 16 November 2022, A Post-Christian World,calvinrobinson.substack.com/p/a-post-christian-world, calvinrobinson.substack.com, en,

References

{{Reflist}}

External links

• {{Official websiteweb.archive.org/web/20220315014917/https://www.calvinrobinson.org/}} (archived)