The votes in the elections to the Church of England General Synod will be counted this week. I will publish the names of the successful candidates here: General Synod List of members.
Please help me do this by sending election results to gs2010@peterowen.org.uk. I will only publish the names of successful candidates, so I do not need the details of the count (although you are welcome to send these to me as well).
I don’t know what the candidates’ list looked like in Oxford Diocese – but I see that one of the last Synod’s more prominent and vocal members, Canon Chris Sugden has not been returned.
No sign of Anglican Mainstream’s Chris Sugden in the Oxford diocese results. Maybe he didn’t stand for re-election.
Dr Sugden most definitely did stand for re-election in Oxford, and was not returned.
The “balance” in London House of Clergy seems much as before despite a few new faces. Fr Jonathan Clark ( Aff Cath) didnt get on but Clare Herbert who was at college with me, and more or less next door when I was in Bloomsbury did. Dont know about the laity. Good to see Mary Johnston and John Ward returned, and Mary pears from my old parish in Bedford Park on for the Abps Council.
Chris Sugden will be greatly missed,for sure.
Missed? Miffed, more like!!
He will be missed, as will those from the Catholic wing who have not been re-elected. It is important that GS is balanced and represents all traditions of the church
“I see that one of the last Synod’s more prominent and vocal members, Canon Chris Sugden has not been returned.” – Jeremy Pemberton –
Then hear what the Spirit is saying to The Church!
One might rejoice at the fact that Mr. Sugden’s
grand-standing on the issue of sexuality was one of the reasons his fellow clergy and laity did not consider him suitable to represent either them
or fellow Anglicans in the world at large.
Daniel, I couldn’t agree more. GS members should represent the people who elect them (and those electors in turn their parishes). Those didn’t want to have these people represent them any more. That is balance.
Sadly for the people who were not elected they did not have enough support to get on – despite there being nine places, and a voting system that must favour the representation of minorities, even if they come in eight or ninth. That must tell us something.
I think it interesting that the more ‘vocal’ candidates from all traditions seem to be losing out. Revd. Rose Hudson-Wilkin failed to get on in London, Chris Sugden in Oxford, I’m sure there’s more.
Whether this leads to a more co-operative synod and less of the posturing remains to be seen. One can only watch and pray.
I would say the Church is Catholic rather than this ‘wing’ or that. That is the Creed.
Neither Tim Cox (Blackburn) nor John Hartley (Bradford) seem to have been re-elected.
What’s the significance of the loss of Messrs Cox and Hartley? General view is that conservative catholic laity seem to be being relected, but fewer clergy of that constituency. A good number of women clergy and a lot of people in the top half of the alphabet (see Ely and Oxford clergy) – I wonder if there is a research project to be done on whether one puts higher preferences for those higher up the list? (And I know that Liverpool didn’t have theirs in alphabetical order).
Discuss.
What’s the significance of the loss of Messrs Cox and Hartley? They were both very vocal members of General Synod, and had served for at least two terms. Tim (a district councillor in Blackpool)was only 20 when first elected to GS and promoted a Private Members’ Motion for bibles to be readily available in every church. Is the Simon Cox (one of the clergy elected for Blackburn) Tim Cox’s father, by any chance? John, a mathematician, was very knowledgeable about standing orders, and sang and played the piano for Synod worship. I haven’t checked the voting record, but believe they… Read more »
‘It is important that GS is balanced and represents all traditions of the church’
– Posted by: Daniel D on Thursday –
Have you thought, Daniel, that GS may just be as balanced as could be – representatively. Except, perhaps, in the proportionate representation of women in the Church? This might be a cause for alarm – rather than the issue of party politics.
Yes, Perry Butler. The women certainly seemed to get their act together in London and are very well represented. I assume that the men who lost out, but who are vocal supporters of women’s ministry will be rejoicing in this regard. Replaced by women. Rejoicing too, in the case of the ambitious ones, that for a generation it will be the girls who get the hats rather than them!
Wasn’t it the Speaker of the House of Commons who said, rather offensively, that we don’t want another middle aged white man?
Wilf,
I’m interested generally as to whether voters might be more likely to vote for candidates who come nearer the top of the alphabetical list, but I have just looked through the Oxford candidates, and Hugh Lee (the furthest into the alphabet to be returned) was the 14th down the alphabetical list of 19 candidates. For some strange reason there were 6 candidates whose surnames begin with a B!!
It would seem that conservative catholic and conservative evangelicals have lost out in the House of Clergy but it looks as if both constituencies have held up in the House of Laity.I wonder how far that reflects the current composition of Diocesan Synods? I suspect neither groupings are as strong at Diocesan level.
Gosh ! Bibles in churches eh ? Radical stuff this.
Whatever next.
With a small number of clergy seats still to declare there are already 55 women in the House of Clergy, as opposed to 38 in the last synod at the point it ended.
Looking at the voting records for, e.g. the Archbishops’ amendments, it is clear that almost all the women in the House of Clergy voted against, and the amendments were lost in that house. This may, then be very significant for the next quinquennium.
John Hartley is a loss. I can’t remember voting with him often, and his mastery of points of order could get wearing, but he combined an intelligent analysis of what was before us with a genuine concern for the gospel and a commitment to the parish system of the Church of England. In Synod he stressed the importance of individual contributions and the need for careful and critical review of what would, after all, become statute law. He also had a splendid sense of humour: Syond needs a laugh every so often.
It seems to me that the General Synod is top heavy with Archdeacons – on a rough count I make it 30 – as opposed to a mere 3 Deans. The Venerables by far outnumber the Very Reverends three to one – for whom I believe there are seperate voting arrangements – i.e. Deans vote for a select number of Deans to represent them on the General Synod. In the interests of fairness and balance would it not be better if Archdeacons similarly voted for a restricted and much reduced number of Archdeacons to represent them on the General Synod?… Read more »
As you were – make that “the Venerables by far outnumber the Very Reverends ten to one”. Maths never was my strong point!
Yes, Sue Slater, Simon Cox is Tim Cox’s father