How things have changed?

My eye was caught by the story of a Christian group in Gloucester who wanted to hold a bible class meeting in the building which was the home of their founder, but which is now a pub, and the landlord refused his permission on the grounds that "religion and pubs don't mix".  So why did this resonate with me?  Well, I remember when I was a kid that a church in a nearby village burnt down, and the local pub immediately offered their premises for them to hold their services there, and this went on for several months until the church was able to build a makeshift meeting hall for themselves. Now admittedly this was back when opening hours for pubs were very restricted, and I don't think that there was ever any clash between the building being used as a pub and as a church, but it was a generous act and well received by all those in the village and beyond.  So they can mix!