Church of England press release:
Group on human sexuality appoints advisers
29 March 2012
The group chaired by Sir Joseph Pilling to advise the House of Bishops on the Church of England’s approach to human sexuality has appointed three advisers. They are the Revd Dr Jessica Martin, Priest-in-charge of Duxford, of Hinxton and of Ickleton, Dr Robert Song, Head of Durham University’s Department of Theology and Religion, and the Ven Rachel Treweek, Archdeacon of Hackney.
Jessica Martin reflected on and wrote about the House of Bishops statement Some Issues in Human Sexuality in her former role as a Cambridge academic. Robert Song is a Senior Lecturer in Christian Ethics and President of the Society for the Study of Christian Ethics. Rachel Treweek has been an Archdeacon, first in Northolt and now in Hackney, since 2006.
The House of Bishops announced on 1 July, 2011, that it intended to draw together material from the listening process undertaken within the Church of England over recent years in the light of the 1998 Lambeth Conference resolution. It also committed itself to offering proposals on how the continuing discussion within the Church of England about these matters might best be shaped in the light of the listening process. The task of Sir Joseph’s group, announced in January, is to help the House discharge its commitment to produce a consultation document…
Right, so now they have 2 women. I know Treweek is her married name, but are the other two married? If so, then this group is still really the HoB’s advisory commission on married hets’ sexuality…
It seems rather strange that people from the glbt communities are not on the panel for this “commission”. I am curious how they justify such a discrepancy. Quite bazaar, when you think about it. Where is the “listening process” if the commission only hears from people who are not a part of the glbt community?
Dan BD: The function of this group, as I understand it, is to help the Bishops move towards a consultation document – they will not themselves be opining on questions of sexuality. To that extent I don’t see that it would be either possible or necessary for the group to reflect the full panoply of human sexuality in their own personal lives.
Robert Song is married. Not sure about the other person. But pleased to see two women advising.
Now that the pressure of Covenant-compliance is turned down, perhaps the real work of this Commission on sexuality can objectively proceed to bring enlightenment to the dark areas of hypocrisy and bigotry in areas of gender and sexuality in the Church.
Anton,
but a consultation document sets the framework for the subsequent debate. It would have much more credibility if it was arrived at by a genuine listening to every possible view. It just is no longer credible to have discussions ABOUT people without talking WITH them.
And we can definitely do without another policy process that lacks credibility right from the start.
Robert Song also co-writing a book in “honour” of Oliver O’Donovan ……. not quite my hero of the month!
Robert Song is somewhat conservative/evangelical (goes to our sister church), but he is a perfectly fair person and as a university lecturer he will meet a fair number of ‘out’ gays.
They didnt publish June Osborne’s Report for years, and left it all neglected- because they didnt like the truth it told.
Now, we’re supposed to take this biased committee seriously with its transparent card-carrying homophobes ?
Deal first with the Osborne Report- thank you.