Sam Jones previews next weekend’s meeting of General Synod in The week ahead: the Church of England’s General Synod and asks “Will it be another Anglican bunfight or will new archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby hold the communion together?”
John Bingham writes in The Telegraph Church of England set to bury Synod homosexuality debate. “The Church of England is set to bury a potentially explosive debate on homosexuality at its General Synod later this week – amid claims bishops are privately considering sanctioning blessing services for gay couples.”
This refers to the Business Committee’s decision not to schedule any private members’ motions for debate this time. Their stated reason for this is in their report to Synod.
9. Two Private Members’ Motions have attracted more than 100 signatures (which is the required threshold for debate): Mrs Andrea Minichiello Williams’s PMM on the Public Doctrine of Christian Marriage and Mr John Ward’s PMM on the Registration of Civil Partnerships. The Business Committee has taken the view that it would be helpful for the two PMMs to be debated at the same group of sessions and that the July group of sessions will not be the right moment for scheduling them given both the pressure on the agenda and the sensitive nature of the other matters to be resolved.
The text of the two PMMs, and others that have not (yet) reached 100 signatures, are here.
‘Will it be another Anglican bunfight or will new archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby hold the communion together?’
Memo to Sam Jones: the Church of England’s General Synod meeting has nothing to do with keeping the Anglican Communion together.
Sam Jones piece gives the mistaken impression that the only thing Synod is considering this time round is women bishops. Unfortunately, the quantity of Christian chatter on the blogo/twittersphere does very little to correct this impression.
I feel very pessimistic about the outcome next Monday despite the apparently wide support for Option 1. Same electorate as November, but far worse protection than lost the vote last time. Why do people think this might succeed?
Because Jenny the process has to start somewhere. And if I was a cynic (surely not) the scenario could go something like this. Nothing before the final vote needs anything other than a simple majority. The final vote helpfully comes after the next synod elections when, hopefully, a more representative House of laity will have been elected. Of course while this is going on the bishops led by the ABC will talk a lot about Grace. Of course I may be wrong but….
Graeme Buttery
Thanks, Graeme, I had forgotten that the bar is set lower this time. So this is just one more weary step in the process, not a fresh start. I am not at all sure what is supposed to come out of Saturday’s groups ; we seem to have been talking for the last 15 years and are still no further on,
On a completely different subject, the Anglican Church of Canada is currently holding its General Synod jointly with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada July 3rd-7th in Ottawa.
See http://jointassembly.ca