John Bingham The Telegraph Women bishops: I’m glad we waited until now, says Archbishop of York
The Telegraph editorial The Church of England has found unity on its own terms
The Telegraph letters Women bishops will meet opposition within the C of E laity
The Guardian letters Female bishops a birthday present for Emmeline Pankhurst
John Spence’s speech to Synod (on YouTube)
Transcript of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s speech to Synod
GRAS (the Group for Rescinding the Act of Synod) have sent us a press release which is copied below the fold.
GRAS
Group for Rescinding the Act of Synod
PRESS RELEASE
Press briefing for immediate release 14th July 2014
20 years after General Synod legislated to enable women to be priests in the Church of England it has today voted by a clear majority a legislative package enabling women to be bishops. The intention is to complete the process in November. The 1993 legislation included an Act of Synod that many in the church criticised because it appeared to be rushed through to ameliorate those who were opposed to the ordination of women as priests, but who had not expected the legislation to be passed.
The Act made extra provision for those who opposed women’s ordination, and legislated for discrimination in the church. It enabled parishes to vote not to have a bishop who supported women priests, with the implication that a bishop’s hands would be tainted by ordaining a woman. It ensured that no role in the Church of England would be closed to those who opposed women’s ordination, even roles which involved working closely with, or being responsible for, significant numbers of women clergy.
Chair of GRAS – Group for Rescinding the Act of Synod – Ruth McCurry said “We are overjoyed that we have finally seen the last of this Act. But we haven’t seen the end of discrimination against women in the Church of England. There is lots of work still to be done before women and men can truly flourish alongside each other in the church.”
NOTE TO EDITORS:
GRAS – The Group for the Rescinding of the Act of Synod and the promotion of Women as Bishops – was founded with the primary objective of campaigning to eradicate the 1993 Act of Synod.
Under the new legislation some of the provisions contained in the defunct Act of Synod are reborn in the Bishops’ Declaration, which sets out much of the detail of how the new women bishops Measure will be put into practice. Although its legal status is different, this Declaration will still restrict how women – and those who support them – will be able to minister in the church.
How interesting that one of the letters in the Telegraph asks, “How is it if the Holy Spirit made HIS mind up in 2012 “he” now appears to have changed it this week”. In my Church many of the Nigerian women commented after the failed vote in 2012 that it was the working of the Holy Spirit because the legislation was so discriminatory(something they know a great deal about) and that something far better will come along next time. Which it has. Also I thought the Holy Spirit was usually referred to as SHE – Sophia, Wisdom – for example.
John Spence’s speech is the only sermon that will be used in my churches this sunday.
Does anyone have a transcript?
To Ruth McCurry I would say we have all had to compromise on this one, some more than others. The organisation she chairs should now be kicked into the long grass! There is no further need for it, after the Church of England has reached a degree of compromise and consensus.
I was very torn about the last vote – because it seemed to be a question of ‘accept inequality for female bishops or nothing’. I think. like many ordained women, the distress I felt after that vote was not so much about the motion falling as the awful tone of the debate when speaker after speaker stood up to assert their belief that women couldn’t be ordained at any level. It felt as if the debate on a particular piece of enabling legislation had been allowed to become an attack on my existence as an ordained person – I say… Read more »
Sally, the Holy Spirit is ‘usually’ referred to as she only on Thinking Anglicans. The church globally, historically and cross-denominationally has always followed Jesus’ lead in John 14 and 16 by calling the Spirit he. The fact wisdom and spirit are both feminine nouns in Greek and Hebrew doesn’t make the thing described a she. After all, the German word for girl is a neuter noun!
I avoid the whole gender problem by simply never using pronouns when discussing the Holy Spirit.
“The church globally, historically and cross-denominationally has always followed Jesus’ lead in John 14 and 16 by calling the Spirit he.”
Sure that’s actually what Jesus said? After translations of translations of notes from remembered conversations? Messianic Jews don’t understand it that way. Aramaic doesn’t understand it that way. Your still trying to make God male, in the image of Man, huh? If God has only male principal, then He would be barren.
The simple fact is, you no longer have the argument on your side, Church! “Always and everywhere” may’ve been fine when first pronounced, but we know, now, that “always and everywhere” can be “always and everywhere wrong and bigoted.” We *know* this. So, if you want to advance traditionalist arguments, you’ve got to do better. The massive abuses of traditionalist religion for centuries means that it only has credibility for those who profit from it, in some way. The weak, angry cry of “following the secular culture!” is rendered foolish by the realities of the church having been wrong again… Read more »
“Sally, the Holy Spirit is ‘usually’ referred to as she only on Thinking Anglicans.”
Not true. There’s a lot of reference to the Holy Spirit as she in TEC. I believe I heard it elsewhere too, like on Iona. I’m wondering about the NZ Prayer Book?
It isn’t just Thinking Anglicans. In the US, when we’re reciting the Creed, you will hear plenty of people replace “he” with “she.” It is a grassroots movement of conscience.
There is a fair amount of feminine imagery for God in the OT and it is well worth including.
No the Church has not universally used male pronouns for the Holy Spirit – the East Syrian tradition used female pronouns etc for some time in antiquity.
Mark Brunson’s tirade of abuse is most unhelpful. I am still trying to work out what he is actually saying?
“rushed through to *ameliorate* those who were opposed”??
In what way, precisely, would the Act of Synod be imagined to *improve* opponents to women’s ordination?
Whether or not one wishes to use a feminine pronoun for the God the Holy Spirit, it is important to note that Sophia, Wisdom, is not a name for the God the Holy Spirit, the Third Person of the Trinity, but rather for the Second, God the Son. Hebrew Hokmah and Greek Sophia are both involved in the conceptual package of Logos, and the great church of Haghia Sophia was dedicated to Christ as the Incarnate Holy Wisdom of God: its patronal festival was December 25.