Rowan Williams was interviewed for an hour (less commercial breaks) by Melvyn Bragg. This was recorded last Thursday, and was shown today, Sunday, at noon on ITV1.
No transcript of this interview is available as yet.
The following news stories have appeared:
Press Association Archbishop Threatens to Reopen Rift on Women Bishops
Observer Woman might head church, says Williams
Telegraph Homophobia is rife, says Archbishop
“While some Christians use “biblical grounds” to oppose homosexuality, said the Archbishop, it tended to be more about social prejudice and inherited ideas.”
’bout says it.
[inherited *mistaken* ideas: just so we’re clear]
Hi JCF,
What these pronouncements on women bishops and on homophobia say is that Rowan was playing to an audience in this interview.
I’d like to bet he won’t be taking the same position with the ACC this week: that unless they precede every word with a proof text they’re plain bigoted and prejudiced. 😉
Not for the first time with Rowan, we wonder whatever happened to let your yes be yes and your no be no.
The above is a selective comment. According to the article, this is what Rowan Willimas is reported to have said: “On the subject of homosexuality, the Archbishop said the Bible clearly pointed to the sanctity of marriage for the expression of sexual relationships. But he said there was pressure from some Christians to accept that homosexual relationships have elements of the same qualities associated with marriage. Dr Williams added: “And I think one of the problems we face at the moment is distinguishing between two rather different things. “One is the sort of hesitation which many people quite rightly feel… Read more »
There is a confusion here. Just because RW is a big name does not make him (as he would readily admit) a New Testament expert. It reminds me of the time when Enoch Powell and A.N. Wilson wrote books on the New Testament, confident that, even though they had not a tenth of the expertise of specialists, they would get quoted ten times more often. Simply because they were ‘big names’. One might compare the tendency to ask Big Brother ‘stars’ their views on the big issues of life. Whereas in plenty of other areas RW is very much an… Read more »
Clearly some do have visceral dislike for gay people, Akinola for one, but he doesn’t have the ability to ‘shade’ his true opinion with ‘appropriate’ language.
I still think that there are profound disagreements which are not going to be bridged. The divide is too great.
I wonder what we will all do when this is over and done. I feel that so much of my time is comsumed in this malay especially since my home parish will leave the ECUSA. I’m very sorry that after 38 years my beloved parish will excuse me (some already have) as a fallen Christian. I will find a new ECUSA church and build new relationships and have a new family in Christ. I’m grieved (a Duncanite word) that old friends will just walk away from me. Hopefully when this is over we can get back to God’s work and… Read more »
“While some Christians use “biblical grounds” to oppose homosexuality, said the Archbishop, it tended to be more about social prejudice and inherited ideas.” It meaning the divide. I respect his honesty. When the “biblical grounds” are backed up with a denial to live out the commandments and the many references to unity in scripture are ignored to further particular viewpoints on sin and divide the church, then this accusation of social prejudice and inherited ideas is honest and true. This is when tradition hits the fan. Jesus himself taught against the traditions of mankind and when we make the law… Read more »
In that case, why do none of the relevant biblical scholars (writers of commentaries on Romans and 1 Corinthians) agree?
You mean the conservatives you agree with, Christopher, none of whom have any genuine academic credibility, since they insist on analysing the Bible as some sort of ‘divine document’rather than simply words on paper, written by people, and thus as able to be seen as both fallible and culture-bound as any other text of its provenance.
If that approach was taken in any other academic discipline, it would be laughed out of court. Conservative theology is a self-serving, delusionary set of superstitions.
Mike-
I don’t understand your point. If you were correct, then there would be writers of Romans and 1 Corinthians commentaries who agreed with you.
Go ahead and name them, then. Neither I nor any other NT scholar has ever come across their work. This leads us to suspect that it does not exist?! :o(
The fullest modern critical / scholarly Romans commentaries in English (and some German) are:
Cranfield, Dunn, Fitzmyer, Moo, Nygren, Sanday & Headlam, Barrett, Dodd, Kasemann, Ziesler, Achtemeier, Edwards, Murray, Porter/Reed etc.
Those on 1 Corinthians:
Barrett, Fee, Thiselton, Conzelmann, Weiss, Zuntz, Murphy-O’Connor, Hays, Orr/Walther etc.
And you have missed the point, Christoher. The sort of analysis you talk about is utterly redundant. Any analysis whioch begins from the view you hold about the inspiration of the Bible is irrelevant. Only analysis which works from a sociological perspective, and views the Bible as 1) purely a book, 2) written by humans, and 3) limited bith by its authorship and the time in which it was written, would be of help. Looking at what the Bible says alone isn’t enough. Thereare some liberals who may think the Bible isn’t negative about gay people, but I’m not one… Read more »
Gasp! Faint! Smelling salts, please. Etc etc. Most of the above-named commentators do not hold that view of the Bible at all. I am merely naming the fullest critical commentaries on the books in question. The conclusions are conclusions of exegesis. But otherwise, Im pleased that you are one jump ahead of Abp Williams in realising the obvious: namely, that the texts in question are obviously anti-homosexual practice. One point where I dont agree: there is no possible universe where sociology is the bottom line, the most fundamental science. How come the world, the humans, and their societies are there… Read more »
Would it be possible to advise me when the text of the Rowan Williams/Melvyn Bragg interview (20/08/06) is available or even to email it please