Paul Bayes ViaMedia.News “Welcome to My Church!”
Andrew Lightbown Theore0 Speaking of sexuality, continence and pretense
Colin Coward Unadulterated Love Was Jesus heterosexual?
15 CommentsStephen Parsons Surviving Church Church Safeguarding and the Needs of Survivors
[This post refers to the document: Key Roles and Responsibilities of Church Office Holders and Bodies Practice Guidance.]
Giles Goddard ViaMedia.News Bishops – Please Show Us Your Workings
Richard Peers has published a series of four posts on mission on his blog Quodcumque – Serious Christianity.
(1): Mindfulness for Mission – there is no God Shaped Hole
(2): Learning for Mission – it’s all about memory
(3): Seriousness for Mission – the easier we make it the less attractive it is
(4): Morality for Mission: why people think the church is immoral
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church Morale of the Clergy of the Church of England
Richard Peers Quodcumque – Serious Christianity Sex, flags and the Bishop of Ely
Andrew Lightbown Theore0 Talking of God to the church and in the public square
Jayne Ozanne ViaMedia.News Is Good Disagreement Possible?
5 CommentsGreg Smith and Linda Woodhead have published research on “Religion and Brexit: populism and the Church of England”. The article, in the journal Religion, State and Society, is here. They have also published a summary on the LSE Brexit blog: How Anglicans tipped the Brexit vote. It starts:
Two-thirds of Anglicans voted for Brexit, a much higher proportion than in the country as a whole. Greg Smith (William Temple Foundation) and Linda Woodhead (Lancaster University) look at the reasons for the disparity and note that the divergence between the beliefs of UK evangelicals – including the Archbishop of Canterbury – and ‘normal’ Anglicans.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has been busy again attacking the markets and calling for more welfare. His views are at variance with those of ordinary Anglicans, two-thirds of whom think that welfare spending is too high.
Research we have just published reveals an equally significant ‘values gap’ when it comes to the EU. ‘In the run up to the referendum of 2016 Welby was against Brexit but in the vote Anglicans strongly supported it…
The Economist has also published a related article: The Church of England’s views rankle with the laity.
“The clergy is more left-wing than its flock on politics–but more conservative on social matters”
This week, the Church Times has a major feature on Brexit, with articles from a range of experts, spread over ten pages.
The following (related) items have been published on the website in advance:
The whole set is now published. The Church Times has a leader: Second thoughts on Brexit.
And Dave Walker has this Brexit cartoon.
Ten further articles are currently linked from this page.
26 CommentsWe reported previously on developments within TEC concerning the implementation of resolution B012:
TEC adopts compromise solution on same-sex marriage
Diocese of Albany considers same-sex marriages
There was an earlier ENS report which we missed: Diocesan bishops who blocked same-sex marriages take reluctant first steps toward allowing ceremonies.
Now, Communion Partners has issued this:
This includes a comparison between the position of Communion Partners and The Society.
1 CommentThere was an ecumenical conversation on the Eucharist, organised by Liverpool Parish Church, on 8 September with introductory contributions from the Anglican Bishop of Liverpool, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Liverpool and the Chair of the Liverpool Methodist District. The texts of their talks are available here. The Bishop of Liverpool has also published his contribution on his own website: The presence of Jesus.
Jo Kershaw Church Times Keeping the Catholic flame burning
“Let’s not lose the gift of laughter”
Kelvin Holdsworth Who would true valour sing?
Jeremy Morris Viamedia.News Time for “A New Evangelism”?
8 CommentsThe Church of England has announced the appointment of the first independent chair for its National Safeguarding Panel with this press release:
Meg Munn, former MP and Government Minister, with a professional background in child and adult safeguarding issues, has been appointed as the first independent chair of the Church of England’s National Safeguarding Panel (NSP). Meg attended her first Panel today where she was officially installed as Chair, taking over from Bishop Peter Hancock, the Church’s lead safeguarding bishop.
Meg Munn is a qualified social worker with 20 years’ experience and led children’s social services in York before being elected as a Member of Parliament in 2001. She spent 14 years in Parliament and was a government minister; in 2010 she established and chaired the All-Party Child Protection Parliamentary Group having previously chaired the All-Party Voice Parliamentary Group which worked for the prevention of abuse of vulnerable adults. Stepping down from parliament in 2015, Meg became an independent governance consultant and non-executive director. She has been a member of the Methodist Church since her teenage years and lives in Yorkshire…
Press report
Harriet Sherwood The Guardian C of E appoints first independent chair of safeguarding
“Meg Munn insists apologies for past wrongs will mean nothing without deep cultural change”
Neil Patterson ViaMedia.News Sex, Lies & Voting Records
and in response
Jeremy Pemberton From the Choir Stalls Sex, hypocrisy and the body
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church Tales of Unhappiness in Anglican Parishes
Andrew Lightbown Theore0 Talking of the future and Archbishop Justin’s potential legacy
The Archbishop of Canterbury addressed the Trades Union Congress earlier this week. You can watch or read his speech here.
For a summary read Hattie Williams in Church Times: Five years ago, Welby shamed Wonga. Now he names Amazon…
“Archbishop of Canterbury launches a scathing attack on the tax system in the UK”
The Archbishop’s speech provoked a lot of comment. Here is a very small sample.
Archbishop Cranmer Curate’s egg or Archbishop’s omelette? Welby tells TUC: gig economy is “reincarnation of an ancient evil”
Anoosh Chakelian New Statesman No, Archbishop Justin Welby isn’t “parroting” Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour
Nick Spencer Theos Arguments against Archbishops
Leader comment The Telegraph The Archbishop of Canterbury should stick to religion and stay out of politics
Tom Harris The Telegraph The church thinks dabbling in politics is cool, but it only hastens its decline
And here’s something the Archbishop wrote earlier this year for Huffington Post: Is Mixing Faith And Politics Worth The Risk?
21 CommentsThe Bishops of the Church in Wales have been given the go-ahead to explore formal provision for same-sex couples in church.
Members of the Church’s Governing Body agreed with the bishops that the current situation of no formal provision was “pastorally unsustainable”. They voted with a clear majority in favour of the bishops looking at new approaches which could be brought back to the Governing Body for approval at a later date.
The private ballot followed a presentation to the meeting from the Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church, Bishop Mark Strange, on the process that church went through before it decided to accept same-sex marriage. There was then a question session with Bishop Mark and an open discussion on the bishops’ request.
The Archbishop of Wales, John Davies, said, “The bishops are united in the belief that it is pastorally unsustainable and unjust for the Church to continue to make no formal provision for those in committed same-sex relationships. Although today’s outcome does not change the present doctrine or practice of the Church in Wales on marriage, I am pleased that it provides an important steer to the bishops in exercising our ministry of pastoral care and spiritual leadership.”
Background paper signed by the Archbishop of Wales
An extract from this: (more…)
15 CommentsThe Church of England issued the very brief press release below this evening. There was an earlier press release on the adoption of a definition of antisemitism which we reported here.
College of Bishops
12/09/2018
The College of Bishops met in Oxford from 10th to 12th September 2018.
The meeting provided an opportunity for the bishops to engage with the work of the Pastoral Advisory Group and review progress of {italicise}Living in Love and Faith, the Church of England’s teaching resource on relationships, marriage, identity and sexuality, which is currently under development.
The bishops voted formally to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) definition of antisemitism, including all its examples, on behalf of the Church, and issued a call to everyone in public life to reject any language or action which could cause prejudice, stigma or hatred towards people on the grounds of their religion, culture, origins, identity or beliefs.
Time was also spent in meditative retreat.
4 CommentsPress release from Church of England
Bishops adopt international definition of antisemitism
During the annual residential meeting of the College of Bishops, which is taking place in Oxford, they agreed a joint statement endorsing the IHRA definition of antisemitism – including all of its examples – on behalf of the Church.
They also issued a call to everyone in public life to reject any language or actions which could cause “prejudice, stigma or hatred towards people on the grounds of their religion, culture, origins, identity or beliefs”.
The Church of England’s interfaith team and national advisers already use the IHRA’s definition of antisemitism as the benchmark in their work and ministry.
However, the bishops noted the “necessity of making explicit” the Church’s adoption of and adherence to the definition without qualification or exemption.
Last week the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, also spoke of the need for the Church of England to adopt the definition formally.
The Bishop of Manchester, David Walker, said: “The Jewish community, among whom I live in Salford, carry with them the vivid memory and scars of the Holocaust; they know all too well that antisemitism is never far below the surface of our society.
“Today’s statement from the Church of England bishops assures them that we will continue to reject such prejudice and bigotry firmly, in line with our practice over 75 years.
“At the same time we will continue to speak out critically when governments here and elsewhere act in ways that our faith calls us to challenge.”
The full statement adopted by the College of Bishops reads:
“In the context of 75 years of friendship marked by the establishment of the Council of Christians and Jews, the Church of England’s College of Bishops now notes the necessity of making explicit its adoption of and adherence to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism, including all examples, without qualification or exemption.
“We urge anyone involved in our political, spiritual and national life to reject all language and activity that leads to prejudice, stigma or hatred towards people on the grounds of their religion, culture, origins, identity or beliefs.”
11 CommentsHarriet Sherwood reports in the Guardian: Muslim group calls for preacher linked to Trump to be denied UK visa:
Britain’s leading Muslim organisation has called on the Home Office to refuse a UK visa to a prominent US evangelical preacher with links to Donald Trump and a track record of Islamophobic and homophobic statements.
Franklin Graham, the son of the evangelist Billy Graham, has been invited to preach at a Christian festival in Blackpool this month.
The preacher, who said Trump’s election victory was evidence that “God’s hand” was at work, has called Islam “evil” and “wicked”, claimed Barack Obama’s “problem is that he was born a Muslim” and said Satan was the architect of same-sex marriage and LGBT rights.
The Muslim Council of Britain has joined three MPs, including a government whip, in demanding the Home Office apply its criteria on hate speech to Graham’s visa request…
Meanwhile, other Christians in Blackpool have issued this press release.
INCLUSIVE CHRISTIANS TO RESIST FRANKLIN GRAHAM
Christians in Blackpool are planning a series of inclusive services to protest against the visit of a controversial preacher.
Coinciding with the Festival of Hope at which American evangelist Franklin Graham will be principal speaker, the Rainbow Weekend aims to stand in solidarity with LGBT people of faith and resist what they believe to be a message of intolerance.
Mr Graham has previously courted controversy for his views on Islam, transgender people, women’s rights, and same-sex relationships – claiming Satan is behind same-sex marriage. He is also an outspoken defender of Donald Trump.
Mr Graham’s visit has led to local MPs Gordon Marsden and Paul Maynard expressing concerns about the Festival of Hope, with Mr Marsden suggesting Mr Graham’s views constituted hate speech and were “incompatible with what Jesus said in the Bible”. A petition asking that Mr Graham is not granted a visa gained more than 8,000 signatures.
The Rainbow Weekend, a series of inclusive services and a prayer meeting on 22nd and 23rd September, is a collaboration between inclusive churches in the town and Open Table, a network of LGBT-affirming churches across England and Wales. During the weekend ‘Big Jesus’, a 4-metre high representation of Jesus wearing a rainbow sash, will be on walkabout in the town centre with a message of Jesus’ love for all people including LGBT people. ‘Big Jesus’ has walked in Pride parades throughout the UK from Brighton to Glasgow with the message that Jesus always spent time with marginalised people and would welcome and embrace the LGBT community.
In addition to affirming LGBT people, the Rainbow Weekend will also represent a Christian act of solidarity with Lancashire’s Muslim communities in the face of Mr Graham’s dangerous anti-Islamic prejudice.
Andrew Page, an elder in the United Reformed Church and one of the organisers, said: “Inevitably there have been calls for Mr Graham not to be allowed to preach in Blackpool. No doubt there will be people loudly protesting Franklin Graham and the Festival of Hope. Some of us as Christians wanted to send out a positive message that Mr Graham does not speak in our name. We are countering Mr Graham’s toxic rhetoric by welcoming and affirming LGBT people and others excluded by his version of Christianity.
“And so we have the Rainbow Weekend. We’re welcoming and including those who Mr Graham would marginalise. It’s going to be a great time of faith, celebration and affirmation.”
Nina Parker, the pastor of Blackpool’s Liberty Church, said: “As a Christian and as a leader of a church that particularly welcomes LGBT people, I’m horrified that other local churches are inviting someone with this record of hate speech.” She added that Mr Graham’s presence would be “extremely destructive in the area” especially in relation to interfaith relationships.
The disappointment with local churches was echoed by Claire Fox, a Christian who lives in Blackpool. She explained: “The disappointment for me isn’t that Franklin Graham is coming to Blackpool but that churches in Blackpool have invited him. They have not withdrawn their invitation despite knowing what damage they are doing. Much work was done to build bridges, and it seems that the organisers of the Festival of Hope have treated all these efforts with contempt.”
Tracy Charnock, the vicar of Holy Trinity South Shore, said: “I would like to make known my deep disappoint in local Christians and senior leaders of the Church, who have shown support (often through their silence) towards a man who has, on many occasions, preached hate. I rejoice in the diversity of this town of Blackpool and I hold the utmost respect for peoples of any faith or no faith. It’s also wonderful to celebrate the strong LGBT presence in Blackpool that makes this town so vibrant. I thank God that he has created us and loves us for who we are. I pray that this will be the resounding message of the Rainbow Weekend.”
Andrew Sage, the vicar of St Stephen’s on the Cliffs, added: “We are so nervous about this visit and the damage it will do. We cannot stay silent in the face of such dangerous and outspoken prejudice. To be clear. we are not against the Mission, but we are opposed to Franklin Graham leading it. To our minds, remaining silent is not to remain neutral, and is not an option. We wish to make it clear that the invitation to Franklin Graham to come to Blackpool is ‘Not in our name.’ How else would we be able to look our Muslim and LGBT brothers and sisters in the eye?”
Kieran Bohan, one of the co-ordinator of the Open Table network, said: “We are happy to support this and see such good partnership in solidarity against a divisive message from the mis-named Festival of Hope. We believe that the affirming celebration of the Rainbow Weekend is a perfect act of non-violent resistance.”
The Rainbow Weekend will begin on Saturday 22nd September with an inclusive communion service at Holy Trinity Church in South Shore (at 5pm), followed by an evening prayer meeting at North Shore Methodist Church (from 7pm). Sunday 23rd September sees a Songs of Praise event hosted by St Stephen’s on the Cliffs Church, including a thanksgiving service for people working in theatre and entertainment (at 3pm). The weekend culminates with a celebration service of informal, contemporary worship at Liberty Church (on Sunday at 6.30pm).
Blackpool Tower will fly the Rainbow Flag and be lit in rainbow colours throughout the weekend to show support for the LGBT community. The Rainbow Weekend organisers are delighted the Council have clearly demonstrated their support on one of Blackpool’s busiest Illuminations weekends, when thousands of people will come to the resort for the World Fireworks Championships on the Friday evening.
13 CommentsThe Commission on Religious Education has published its final report.
The Final Report of the Commission on Religious Education, Religion and Worldviews: the way forward. A national plan for RE, has been published. It sets out a National Plan for RE comprising of 11 recommendations, and calls on the Government to consider and adopt it.
The National Plan is built around a National Entitlement which sets out what all pupils up to the end of Year 11, in all publicly funded schools, should be entitled to be taught. The National Entitlement reflects a new and inclusive vision for the subject, fully embracing the diversity and richness of religious and non-religious worldviews. It will ensure a strong academic basis for the subject in all schools. The National Plan provides for flexibility of approach in the translation of the National Entitlement into programmes of study in schools, ensuring that Headteachers are able to choose the approach that is most appropriate for their pupils.
There is a lengthy Press Release which gives all the background information.
There is both the Full Report and an Executive Summary.
The Church of England has responded with a press release.
The Church Times reports: Commission calls for overhaul of Religious Education in final report
Other media reports include:
Observer: Call for atheism to be included in religious education
BBC: ‘Teach religion and worldviews instead of RE’
TES: Call to change RE to ‘religion and world views’
The National Secular Society has given it only a qualified welcome: Replace RE with ‘religion and worldviews’, says commission. Humanists UK were much more generous: Humanists UK welcomes landmark Commission on RE recommending new subject ‘Religion and Worldviews’.
0 CommentsMartin Sewell has written another article at Archbishop Cranmer entitled It is pointless pouring the new wine of safeguarding into the old wineskins of arcane ecclesiology.
The Church of England media report on Monday told us that “a senior church figure” had been invited by the police to discuss an alleged failure to report a serious sexual offence. Following the case of Sir Cliff Richard, official police hesitance and revised guidelines apparently prevented further identification of who was involved and that ought to be respected, even though this particular genie was well out of the bottle. The controversy is a longstanding one, pre-dating the Cliff Richard case, and many know what this is all about, but let us do what Lord Carlile suggested when he reviewed the mistakes made in the case of Bishop George Bell.
Interestingly, the Church of England originally immediately repudiated that Carlile recommendation, yet in Monday’s media announcement they coyly adopted the police reticence and applied the principle in this case, though whether this is an official embracing of the wisdom of Carlile’s proposition or a ‘one off’ exception is unclear. This matters.
We need a debate on the principles of these cases in the abstract, because tainted by excessive sympathy or disapprobation of any individual or set of circumstances may well lead us astray.
While following this aspect of the debate amongst colleagues with a special interest in Safeguarding policy, a simple question arose: ‘Do the same rules apply to the most junior of deacons as to an archbishop?’ Essentially: ‘Is there equality under the law within the ecclesiastical community?’
It seems to me that the answer to that question may not be quite as simple as one may think, and we need to grapple with the complexity of the debate without being bogged down by unique contexts and individual circumstances…
The whole article is well worth reading.
Stephen Parsons has published an article, containing a huge amount of detail on the case which underlies the arguments made above, titled The Matt Ineson story continued. There is even more information in the comments to that article.
The Telegraph news report mentioned is here (registration required): Bishop of Oxford to face police questioning over allegations of sex abuse cover-up. The Oxford Mail report of the diocesan response is here: Abuse claims were not ignored insists Oxford Diocese.
6 CommentsDavid Runcorn The gift of tears
“Suppressed, hidden, apologised for, writer and speaker David Runcorn asks us to look again at how God can use our tears”
The article refers to photographs of tears by Rose-Lynn Fisher; you can see some of them here.
Rachel Mann The Limits of Sex: The C of E, priggishness, and its violence against LGBT couples
Justin Welby Church Times Religious communities — a work in progress
“They face serious challenges — but there are signs of hope and renewal, says the Archbishop of Canterbury”
The British Social Attitudes survey has today released a summary of some figures from its latest survey:
Church of England numbers at record low
The most recent British Social Attitudes survey reveals that the number of Brits who identify as Church of England has more than halved in the last fifteen years.
The proportion of Brits who describe themselves as ‘belonging to the Church of England’ is at a record low, halving in the last fifteen years, with the sharpest decline among 45 to 54 year olds.
The most recent British Social Attitudes survey reveals that the number of Brits who identify as Church of England has more than halved since 2002, falling from 31% to 14%.The sharpest decline happened among 45 to 54 year olds (35% in 2002 vs 11% in 2017). The proportion of people who describe themselves as Roman Catholic (8%), belonging to ‘other Christian affiliations’ (10%) and ‘of non-Christian faiths’ (8%) have remained fairly stable. 52% of people now say they have no religion, compared with 41% in 2002. Men are more inclined to say they follow no religion than women (57% compared with 48%)…
This has attracted the attention of the press.
Tim Wyatt Church Times British Social Attitudes finds ‘C of E’ respondents halved in 15 years
Harriet Sherwood The Guardian Church in crisis as only 2% of young adults identify as C of E
Olivia Rudgard The Telegraph Fears for Church of England’s future as people no longer turn to God in old age
Christian Today CofE facing ‘unrelenting decline’ as number of Brits identifying as Anglican halves in 15 years
There is also this press release from the Church of England.
British Social Attitudes survey
Dave Male, the Church of England’s director of Evangelism and Discipleship, has commented on the latest figures from the British Social Attitudes survey, showing a fall in the number of people self-identifying as Anglican.
He said: “The headline figure here only gives us part of the picture.
“It has been clear for some time that we have moved from an era of people automatically, and perhaps unthinkingly, classifying themselves as Church of England or Anglican to one in which identifying with a faith is an active choice.
“We also know from research that people, particularly younger people, are less aware of denominations.
“Yet Research, especially amongst young people, shows an increase in willingness to engage in faith.
“Our experience is that people – of all ages – haven’t stopped searching for meaning and answers in their life.
“Ultimately the Church exists to share the good news of Jesus Christ.
“That was never meant to be easy and that work goes on whatever the figures may say.”
29 CommentsUpdated to include further letter from Bishop Love
The Albany Times-Union reported earlier this week, following extended interviews with Bishop William Love and other members of the Albany diocese: Facing a schism: A bishop, gay marriage and the Episcopal diocese of Albany.
… this past July, the General Convention of the Episcopal Church issued Resolution B012, a compromise aimed at allowing gay couples to marry at their home churches in the eight dissenting dioceses across the country – Albany among them – where gay marriage remained forbidden. In response, Albany Bishop William Love issued a soberly worded letter calling the resolution “problematic and potentially damaging,” adding, “The vast majority of the clergy and people of the Diocese, to include myself, are greatly troubled by it.”
He called for a special meeting of clergy – scheduled for Thursday at the Christ the King Spiritual Life Center in Greenwich. What may come of it, no one knows – not clergy, not laypeople, not Love himself, who sat for a two-hour-and-15-minute interview one Friday morning in August. From his standpoint he’s the one now trapped in canonical limbo, “where our diocesan canons state one thing, and the General Convention says something else. And we have to figure out how to deal with that tension.”
But no matter what their role in the church or where they stand on the issue of gay marriage, nearly all of the 19 people who commented for this story by phone or email described a diocese in the thick of complex, ongoing and difficult change. Love was blunt in his own assessment: “We’re in the midst of a major schism.”
Before the meeting yesterday, Leander Harding wrote an article for Covenant, titled Being Disarmed in which he said:
Bishop Bill Love and the clergy of the Diocese of Albany will meet today (Sep. 6) to discuss our response to the actions of the latest General Convention. The choices seem rather straightforward to me. Either we make our peace with serving in a church that endorses same-sex marriage as part of its normative teaching, and we make an accommodation for those parishes in favor of such rites. Or we leave individually or in some corporate sense, as has been the case with Fort Worth, Pittsburgh, Quincy, San Joaquin, and South Carolina.
In the time I have been in the diocese I have never heard the bishop or any of the leading clergy counsel secession. Anything like that would in my view be an institutional disaster. We are a diocese primarily made up of struggling small-town churches. We are part of the Rust Belt, and the economic turnaround has yet to appear in most of our communities. The major regional export is young people. A healthy dose of bitter controversy would be just the thing to sink our little fleet of ships already struggling to stay afloat.
Overall, I think our diocese is strong in faith and spiritual vitality, but institutionally we are fragile and weak. We don’t have many people, we don’t have much money, our missionary context is a combination of dying rural communities and the see city, which ranks as one of the most secular in the country. The theological convictions of the bishop and a majority of the clergy in the diocese are vastly out of sync with the majority of the Episcopal Church in theology, ethos, and style…
So far there is no substantive report of the meeting, though a press release is promised soon. The Albany Times-Union had only this: Albany Episcopal Diocese discusses resolution on same-sex marriages.
…Albany Bishop William Love, who spoke with The Times Union following the meeting, said the time was used to pray, worship and converse in private.
“Today was a chance for us to come together and for me to be able to hear from the clergy of the diocese and for them to be able to hear from me,” Love said. “It gave us an opportunity to come together as brothers and sisters of Christ and just say, ‘OK, this is what was put before us,’ and to figure out how best to be faithful to the lord and work through these issues.”
Love said the meeting was held in an executive session but a press release on the generalities of the discussion will be put out soon…
Update
Episcopal Café has published the full text of a letter from Bishop Love: Albany clergy meet… no defined path forward yet.
32 Comments…As I mentioned in my letter of invitation to the clergy, the purpose of the meeting was NOT for me to issue a proclamation at that time on how B012 will be carried out in the Diocese of Albany, but rather for me to share with them some of my thoughts regarding B012; to clarify my understanding of what it does and doesn’t say; and to give me a chance to listen to the thoughts and concerns of the clergy.
Ultimately, as the Bishop, I will make a decision regarding my response to B012 and how it will be dealt with in the Diocese of Albany. That decision will be made thoughtfully and prayerfully and will be openly shared with the whole Diocese prior to December 2 nd .
While, I know there are some who would like me to simply say today what I am going to do, it is not simply a matter of being for or against same-sex marriage. As a result of the complexity of B012, there are a multitude of implications not only for same-sex couples wishing to be married in their home parish, but also for the clergy and parishes involved; for my role and ministry as Bishop; for the Diocese of Albany and its relationship with the wider Anglican Communion and body of Christ.
Whatever decision I and or the rest of the Church make regarding B012, there will be consequences. There is no escaping that. My ultimate desire as your Bishop, is to be faithful and obedient to our Lord Jesus Christ, discerning not my will, but His will in knowing how best to lead the Diocese of Albany in such a way that He will be glorified and His Church and people be blessed. Please keep me and our Diocese in your prayers.
Updated to add the Jeremy Pemberton article
Richard Peers Quodcumque – Serious Christianity Sex, Lies and Honesty in the Church: An Anglican Response to James Alison
Jeremy Pemberton From the Choir Stalls Honest to God: responding to James Alison and Richard Peers
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church Church Teams – What are they?
Richard Kew The Living Church Living with Cranmer’s Lectionary
Ian Paul Psephizo Why we all need printed Bibles
11 CommentsThe Bishop of Reading, the Rt Revd Andrew Proud, has announced that he will retire next year. His last official engagement will be on Easter Sunday. The Bishop of Reading is one of three area bishops in the diocese of Oxford.
1 Comment