There are reports that both Provincial Episcopal Visitors in the Province of Canterbury are to resign, and that the Archbishop of Canterbury is to make an announcement about this on Monday.
This substantiates a story first published by Rocco Palmo on Twitter on 26 October.
There is a report in today’s Times newspaper which is only available online by subscription. But the following other items are available:
Telegraph Damian Thompson Report: Archbishop of Canterbury ‘to announce conversion of two bishops to Rome on Monday’
news.com.au Anglican bishops set to resign over the ordination of women
And Ed Tomlinson has written about it over here, and Bishop Andrew Burnham has added a comment there too.
Vaya con Dios!
Bitter much?
This is dynamite. Will the RC church in Britain – already in dire trouble for all the usual reasons – be able to survive the adhesion of such gargantuan egos and professional trouble-makers as these bishops? Many principled Romanists – including most of the episcopate – want nothing to do with them. But their hand has been forced by the Vatican.
I wonder whether ++Rowan will immediately set about appointing successors, or hang on a bit until the situation stabilises to see what ought to be done next.
Arrivederci!
As a Canadian, this whole situation of non-territorial bishops whose job it is to provide “oversight” only for a special group of conservative Anglo-Catholic parishes is baffling and we now see the result of such nonsense. These bishops have never been loyal to the Church of England and they seemingly exist only to play games and uphold troublemakers while causing trouble themselves. How did such people get appointed? They are in the blogosphere and it seems mighty precious and pointless to have them traipsing around in lace and mitres trying to be more Catholic than the Pope. Now they can… Read more »
To resign your post as a bishop in The Church of England because you do not feel women should be accorded access to all ordained ministries is a shameful moment in Church history. It is telling that Rowan Williams finds it necessary to wait until Monday, to make this announcement. Earth to Rowan: Come in please!
Time to finish the whole concept of “flying” Biships!
If this is true it will make honest men out of good men. It has been very unpleasant to watch these able and good people consistently undermining the Church of their ordination (and stipend). It has not been good for any of us. The break will be, for many, a parting of friends but with some sense of ‘we hate to have to lose you but we think you ought to go’. If you haven’t read Fr. Philip Ursell’s excellent letter in last Friday’s (or was it Thursday’s?) ‘Times’, it is worth getting hold of. This man is no woolly… Read more »
Thank heavens the truth is out – flying bishops are heavier than air and have been unable to get off the ground.
Church unity is achieved when members of a church are of one mind.
‘Time to finish the whole concept of “flying” Biships!’
I agree. It looks as if the contradictions in the misguided ‘Act of Synod’ are working themselves out at last and the whole thing has become a dead letter. Of course it puts those who have depended on the ministry of ‘flying bishops’ in a bit of a spot and brings their time of decision making even nearer. I just hope that ++Rowan doesn’t appoint any successors. The experiment of legal provision for dissenters is at an end. Time to move on.
” But how fascinating that Bishop Newton, rather than an existing Catholic bishop, could be leader of the Ordinariate. He cannot be ordained a Roman Catholic bishop, as he is married, but if he were the priestly “ordinary” of the communities, he would exercise many of the legal (as opposed to sacramental) powers of a bishop” – Damian Thompson, in the Telegraph – And, of course, Damian is right here. Bp. Newton will be a sort of pretend bishop – with authority only to manage but not to ordain. He may well be allowed to wear his pontificals at local… Read more »
“Time to finish the whole concept of “flying” Biships!'”
Will the departing brethren have to turn in their wings? I, too, from the outside looking in, hope those wings are permanently retired.
‘Church unity is achieved when members of a church are of one mind. ‘
Nooo – church unity is achieved when members can listen to and respect each other despite differences in their mind. It comes down to the ability to see that those with whom you have real substantial differences are also Christians just like you.
I am saddened by the bitter, bordering on sardonic, tone of the comments published so far on this topic. Why are we not wishing these men well in their future? Why are we not thanking them for their decades of service to CoE?
Where are the offers of prayers for them?
At this historical moment in time, Jesus please remind us of your love for us all and how we are all created in God’s image and likeness to love and serve you.
“Why are we not thanking them for their decades of service to the Church of England?” Probably because a great deal of “their service” was to serve their own personal needs and grudges and not the Church of England. These so called “flying” bishops represent human beings who do not believe equal access for women and the glbt community, to ordination as priests and bishops. We are talking about misogyny and homophobia here. The healthiest thing for those who suffer from misogyny and homophobia is to leave and leave quickly. Enough accommodation has been made and it is certainly time… Read more »
As one of the non-cheerleaders, in response to Jakian, who has a good heart, but a somewhat naive one, I question what their “decades of service to the CofE” really meant to them, since, as “flying bishops”, their constituency was very much to their liking and gave them a comfortable platform. Remember that they served a select and self-selecting segment of the CofE and were give carte blanche to do very much as they wished, even if the wider CofE had to deal with the fallout. How many women, especially ordained ones, in the CofE did they serve? It seems… Read more »
“The first batch of leavers will be small as it needs both a committed priest and ready and willing congregation. It is the second wave that I think will be larger but even then it should not worry the Church of England too much.” – Fr. Ed Tomlinson – One wonders which, if any, batch of the F.i.F. followers will Ed belong to? From Evangelical to esoteric Anglican Catholic is as stretched as one can get within the compass of Anglicanism. One can see the conservatism of SAMS has stuck with Ed throughout his ministry, which no doubt is the… Read more »
Chris..whilst I am deeply sceptical about the proposed Ordinariate.. I do feel that these two fellows are genuine in their search for Catholic Truth. It is not sexism but a yearning for truth.
We should be praying for them, not mocking them.
Chris Smith, what does any priest or bishops “service” mean then? Is it useless unless they’re in a horribly divisive parish/diocese? From your description any priest or bishop whose parish is not tearing itself apart is too homogenous and the priest/bishop not doing his job. I seriously doubt that the bishops did nothing for their calling just because they and their parishioners agreed on who belongs at the altar or in the Episcopate. Do inclusive bishops who have inclusive parishes do nothing? They’re “preaching to the choir” like the flying bishops,right? Adam, Why do “liberals” always sound so condescending toward… Read more »
“It is not sexism but a yearning for truth.”
It’s an assertion that sexism IS “Truth”, RIW.
Pretty it up if you must, but it’s a DENIAL of the Imago Dei in half of humanity (“If you discern a call to holy orders BUT have two X chromosomes, you are, per se, deceived”). It is not consistent w/ Christ’s Gospel, nor Reason (Tradition is debateable at BEST). Send this Big Sexist Lie back to the Hell it came from! (By way of—sadly—Hell’s Popoid portal)
Mr. Williams wrote: “I do feel that these two fellows are genuine in their search for Catholic Truth. It is not sexism but a yearning for truth.” If that were the case, then they would have left decades ago. The reality is that some Roman Catholics remain, despite their disagreements with the Roman hierarchy, and some English Anglicans remain, despite their own disagreements with the CofE. But some RC’s reach their own point of intolerance for Rome’s decisions, and depart, and similarly some Anglicans — such as these few CofE bishops — reach their point of intolerance for CofE decisions;… Read more »
Chris H asks, ‘Adam, Why do “liberals” always sound so condescending toward those who disagree? Anyone who disagrees, and in this case is trying to get Christians to act like Christians towards their brothers and sisters is “goodhearted” but “naive?” It sounds like you’re describing a precocious seven year old.’ May I answer for myself? I think slavery is wrong. I think it is wrong to strap someone to a chair and blast them to death with electricity. I think it’s wrong to behead someone in the public square. I think withholding pain relief from women in labour is wrong,… Read more »
A couple of points: anglo catholics are not all conservative. i worship in an anglo catholic church and we are very liberal, PWB and pro gay/lesbian priests/bishops. I note also, in my meetings and dealings with more than several of the FiF community that there are quite a few priests (and dare I say it, the odd Bishop) who are gay – some openly with partners. If Christ called no women to be desciples (and this is a key argument for the Anti Women view) then I’m pretty convinced he called no gays either. Except the absences of a particular… Read more »
“Adam, Why do “liberals” always sound so condescending toward those who disagree?” I think I was making a reasonable observation and you are just trivializing my comment by calling it “condescending” and labelling me a “liberal”. I am not a “liberal” in many ways and it is much too easy to label and ignore some opinions by calling them by the “l” word. It isn’t “liberal” to treat half the human race as if they are made and by their Creator as fully human beings. It isn’t “liberal” to treat people whose sexuality is God-given as children of God. It… Read more »
Sibling, those against women/gay bishops would point out that modern bishops are supposed to take the apostles’ places in leading the Church and should be the type of people Christ would have chosen and did.
I still believe the church needs more people like Rosemary and Jakian above and that the self-righteous on both sides need to stop treating their opponents like they aren’t human beings capable of reason or thought because they come to different conclusions.
There’s a latent assumption that seems to be operative in a lot of complaints one hears about “liberals” to the effect that “liberals” are more or less relativists who believe in fuzziness for its own sake and don’t think we can ever really know anything. Thus, those who do not identify as “liberal” are perplexed when those who do fail to live down to the straw man created for them. Personally the “liberal” positions I hold on e.g. SSM and OOW, I hold on Scriptural and Patristic grounds, and I think my opponents are as wrong as they think I… Read more »
There’s also, unfortunately, a very true perception of “liberal” as one who backs down immediately, which feeds the UNtrue concept of liberal relativism.
I’ve never understood how someone can claim to have conviction which, in the last extremity, they refuse to fight and/or die for.
“I’ve never understood how someone can claim to have conviction which, in the last extremity, they refuse to fight and/or die for. – Posted by: MarkBrunson on Tuesday – Sadly, Mark, most human beings were ever thus – especially when to protest against institutional injustice or bigotry might mean the loss of one’s job or ministry in situ. I’m figuring that many people in General Synods around the world of Anglicanism will fall into line on the business of accepting the Covenant. While I sincerely believe that there are many of us who really feel the Covenant is not a… Read more »