Question: ceremony vs. substance
"IN BRITAIN THE line that divides `ceremony and substance` is seldom clear. Sometimes ceremonial figures have no real power. Sometimes they have lots of it. And sometimes they can `shift quickly from the first column to the second`."

Source link: economist.com/britain/2019/01/10/john-bercow-speaker-of-the-asylum

Hey Guys, I wanna ask two questions:
1) Are "ceremony" and "substance" antonyms in normal cases?
2) Is "shift quickly from the first column to the second" a set phrase? And how to understand this expression? And what does "column" mean?

Thanks in advance.

Question

Question: ceremony vs. substance
"IN BRITAIN THE line that divides `ceremony and substance` is seldom clear. Sometimes ceremonial figures have no real power. Sometimes they have lots of it. And sometimes they can `shift quickly from the first column to the second`."

Source link: economist.com/britain/2019/01/10/john-bercow-speaker-of-the-asylum

Hey Guys, I wanna ask two questions:
1) Are "ceremony" and "substance" antonyms in normal cases? 
2) Is "shift quickly from the first column to the second" a set phrase? And how to understand this expression? And what does "column" mean?

Thanks in advance.

Answer

A ceremony is a ritual or formal observance. 
Sometimes ceremonies lose their meaning or importance becoming empty rituals. 
In this case, a ceremony would have no substance, meaning or true value. 
When this happens, the word ceremony  becomes the opposite of the word, substance. 
However, these two words do not always have opposite meanings. 
For example, a wedding ceremony does have substance and true value to the couple involved.

Answer

"ceremony" and "substance" can not be used interchangeably
The text above referres to specific actions. The intended message is not 100% clear without further context or knowledge of the subject.

In the quote above the word "column" is used in a poetic way and simply means "category". 
The word column can mean
a) a vertical division of a page or text and

b) and upright (mostly cylindrical) pillar

Perhaps "column" is used as in "pillar" to illustrate the concept of the five (or is it seven) pillars

Answers · 4

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