Updated Friday
The counts for the elections of the central members of the Crown Nominations Commission took place today. Those elected were:
House of Laity
Mr Anthony Archer (St Albans)
Ms Christina Baron (Bath and Wells)
Ms Jane Patterson (Sheffield)
House of Clergy
The Revd John Dunnett (Chelmsford)
The Very Revd David Ison (Deans)
The Revd Canon Dr Judith Maltby (Universities & TEIs)
These elected members of the CNC will serve from 1 September 2017 to 31 August 2022.
The next appointment to be considered by the CNC is the Bishop of London, with meetings on 27 Sept, 7 Nov and 28/29 Nov 2017.
These results have so far only publicly appeared on social media, but I am confident that they are correct. I have seen a copy of the result sheet for the House of Laity election. The official results, with links to the results sheets, should appear here in due course.
Update
The result sheets for these elections have now been posted here; they confirm the names of those elected as listed above.
Very happy with some of these names 🙂
Let me be so bold as to offer congratulations to Anthony Archer on behalf of all regular TA users .
With Anthony Archer on the CNC does that mean we can expect more female diocesans? Unlike the BBC, do they get paid the same as male diocesans?
With Anthony Archer on the CNC (@Fr David) does this mean we will see the best person appointed, regardless of gender or theological conviction? Will we see more prophets and fewer prefects? Will we see a more critical approach to these appointments, where the distinctive calling of the Church of England and its commitment to the people of this country takes priority over the internal neurosis of the institution? Will we see more bishops who can speak with intelligence and insight in the public sphere, and stop taking refuge in the vocabulary of the tribe? Will we see people like… Read more »
Will Richards – I would agree that there are still gifted and talented people in the Church of England whose presence would greatly enhance the Bench of Bishops. I suppose the next test will come with the appointment of Richard Chartres’ successor. My money is on the Bishop of Stepney to succeed, even though this will mean that all five senior bishoprics will be held by Evangelicals.
A fairly cursory look at the details of the voting counts, and cross-referencing to the votes on the conversion therapy and transsexual motions, suggests that to a large extent votes were cast on “political” lines rather than on the personal qualities of the candidates. Inevitable of course under the CNC system. It’s possible to track the way that transfers go when particular candidates are dropped out. The natural implication (and of course, if you agree with them, perhaps even hope) is that, to some extent, the members of the committee will themselves act “politically” rather than as “impartial” members of… Read more »
Father David—leaving Anthony Archer aside, you should note that (according to Wikipedia) one of the new members is “a supporter of same-sex marriage” and another wrote in their manifesto for election to GS “To fulfil its mission, the Church of England needs to be … a church where everyone can participate fully in … leadership, regardless of ethnicity, class or background, sexual orientation, disability or gender.” On the other hand two of the new members were in the fairly small group of people who voted against both the “conversion therapy” and the “transsexual welcome” motions.
Father David,
The Bishop of Stepney is a liberal-minded bishop who would make an excellent Bishop of London. I have huge confidence in him.
Susannah
I’ve just taken Frank Longford’s book “The Bishops” down from the bookshelf and blown off the dust. It is subtitled “A Study of Leaders in the Church Today” and it was first published in 1986, just over three decades ago and so is a fairly relatively recent publication. In addition to the two archbishops – Runcie and Habgood he includes the following colourful Anglican characters:- The Anglo-Catholics Graham Leonard Eric Kemp The Evangelicals David Shepphard Maurice Wood The Liberals Hugh Montifiore David Jenkins John Baker John Bickersteth Were Lord Longford alive at this hour he’d be hard pressed to write… Read more »
Father David wrote, “Let’s hope that the newly elected CNC can introduce a bit of colour and character, more rebels and less prefects and, please God, the odd eccentric or two.”
Oh, and how about a good academic theologian or two (or three or more). Such are conspicuous by their absence from the current House and College. Far too many MBAs and the like.
I add my congratulations to Anthony Archer, with thanks for his many valuable contributions to TA on CNC related matters. But, since Anthony’s lips will soon be sealed on any such matters, where are we going to get our informed, experienced and measured view from? Can anyone else step up to the plate?
If so Bernard then it’s two thirds”liberals”one third”conservatives”…but now the diocese has 6 members not 4, that surely have at least the power to block an appointment especially if they stick together. But then people say Caroline Boddington is the real power broker!
Yes, of course Adrian Newman is open-minded. he is also energetic and creative, as well as being a thoroughly nice person. He is an excellent Bishop of Stepney. He will doubtless make a good diocesan bishop, too. But London? He is someone who is institutionally ‘on message’; who is, by conviction, committed to the Renewal and Reform programme; and believes that current strategies for growth are ‘The Thing.’ London needs someone who can speak to wider society, has a much broader cultural vocabulary, and show that the Church of England is here for those beyond the Church as well as… Read more »
I’d agree wholeheartedly with you RPNewark on the need for Scholar Bishops. Look again at Lord Longford’s list from the mid 1980s and there you will find three outstanding academics and theologians Kemp (Chichester) Baker (Salisbury) and Jenkins (Durham). Where are their modern day equivalents – the cry goes up.
Whoever gets London – Chartres will be a hard act to follow.
My thanks to Edward Prebble, Malcolm Dixon and others for their kind comments. I assume my new role as a CNC central member on 1 September, for a five year period. Re my lips being sealed, that of course will be right, but there a difference between transparency of process and confidentiality of deliberation. @Will Richards, “does this mean we will see the best person appointed, regardless of gender or theological conviction?” Well, for the ‘best person’ read ‘the person God is calling’ to the episcopate. Discerning the mind of God by human means (not forgetting prayer) is challenging. How… Read more »
Good to see that Mr. Archer believes in vocation and that God calls a person to episcopal ministry. In which case why has God stopped calling traditional Anglo-Catholics to episcopal ministry and currently seems to be favouring Evangelicals? Did God make a mistake in calling Philip North to be Bishop of Sheffield? From what he writes it would seem that the views of the vacant diocese override and overrule the will of God. Of course, an emphasis on mission is important but so is a balanced episcopate which we had not so very many decades ago but sadly no longer,… Read more »
Thank you to Anthony, for openness and response here. I think you have been on a moving journey as an affirming evangelical, which was also very evident in your article in ‘Journeys in Grace and Truth’. May God’s grace and wisdom guide you, and may decency give you strength and courage to speak your mind in the group process. And God give you patience as well!
I would echo Father David’s call for more representation of the Catholic tradition in the leadership of the Church of England. I would also like to add that I believe there is a case for considering co-option/calling of some leaders of religious houses into the membership of the House of Bishops. While they may not have the calling or inclination to lead whole dioceses (though it’s not unthinkable) they have huge experience to contribute to Church leadership on prayer, on community, in some cases on deep-rooted Catholicism, which would enhance and enrich our journeys together as a diverse, generous, and… Read more »
Father David: I find it hard to have Eric Kemp mentioned in an exemplary way, and I am not a survivor of abuse. I can only assume that you have not read the Gibb Report on Peter Ball. It is a sobering, shocking report and he does not emerge from it well.
“If a diocese was to come to the CNC making it clear … that [a non-ordainer] could be considered, *would be acceptable to all* in the diocese, and that this was supported by the secretaries’ consultation and the views expressed in the CNC by the diocesan representatives, then such a candidate could well be invited for interview… Anthony, I can’t imagine that any candidate of any Anglican churchmanship would ever “be acceptable to all”… Is your criteria anything more than a thinly veiled means to discriminate against trad Anglo-Catholics – and a repudiation of the agreement reached to enable *mutual*… Read more »
“Anthony, I can’t imagine that any candidate of any Anglican churchmanship would ever “be acceptable to all”… Is your criteria anything more than a thinly veiled means to discriminate against trad Anglo-Catholics – and a repudiation of the agreement reached to enable *mutual* flourishing?” Categorically no, but it should be noted that the vast majority of nominations to diocesan sees are actually widely acceptable to the diocese in question, else the CNC has failed in its discernment. TA is not the place to unpack the Guiding Principles, and I for one am keen to see Sir Philip Mawer’s report on… Read more »
Dear Grumpy,
If you carefully read what I wrote you would find that I was referring to the former Bishop of Chichester as an outstanding academic and theologian and how much we need scholar bishops to add gravitas to the bench today. May I respectfully suggest that you read what Lord Longford wrote about Bishop Kemp in his book “The Bishops”.
We now all await what Lord Carlisle has to say in a forthcoming report on one of Dr. Kemp’s predecessors – Bishop George Bell.
Edmund Walters – I am intrigued by your regret that a ‘big hitter’ is unlikely to be appointed to London. You mention several names who you clearly do not consider as fitting that description, but none who does. Who do you have in mind?
Mr. Archer makes clear that if a “non ordainer” was considered to be acceptable to the vacant diocese then that person would be “invited for interview” If the Church of Wales had not been disestablished and the CNC was involved in the discernment process then it is more than likely that Jeffrey John would now be seated upon the cathedra of Llandaff rather than the former Dean of Salisbury, as he received overwhelming support from the diocesan representatives. The new Bishop of Llandaff graciously made passing reference to the little local difficulty in her Enthronement address. “Let’s be honest with… Read more »
Malcolm Dixon’s question is a fair one, and it has left me struggling, simply because we have such a lightweight and monochrome episcopacy. Anthony Archer’s statements on this thread leave me with very little confidence that this will change during the current quinqennium. As a supporter of equal ordination, I would still welcome Martin Warner as a scholar-missioner, not least because he is able to speak effectively to wider culture beyond the Church, and his theological stance would not undermine the ministry of women (indeed, in Chichester it has been enhanced). He would make a much more incisive impact in… Read more »
I may have got this terribly wrong, but I can’t help but read in Anthony Archer’s comments a thinly veiled apologia for maintaining the status quo and for pro-actively blocking people who do not fit his understanding of what the C of E’s episcopacy should be. Would Durham’s representatives have ever favoured David Jenkins (or John Habgood for that matter); and would Ely have ever wanted Stephen Sykes, or Worcester Peter Selby, or Salisbury John Baker? I am afraid the procrastinating flannel I am reading on this thread depresses me because it is precisely those people who do not ‘tick… Read more »
Hi Anthony Archer, Thank you. I will remember to always object to a liberal, a liberal catholic, an anglo-catholic or a MOR establishment type being appointed as my Diocesan.
IMHO they would be alienating to some and a risk to unity….
Dear Father David: I have read Longford’s book and am familiar with his career – may I respectfully suggest you read what was said about Eric Kemp in the Gibb Report and consider as how mentioning him as an episcopal exemplar might be heard by someone abused by Peter Ball.
There has probably never been, and there will probably never be, any satisfactory method of appointing bishops. It is simply too much to characterise the horse trading, political manoeuvering, box ticking and lobbying (however tactfully and artfully undertaken) as having anything to do with the movement of the Holy Spirit. The Church (or churches) have variously attempted acclamation, prayer (which characteristically elides conveniently with the prejudices of those praying), election, nomination (whether by committee or as a species of personal patronage) and bargaining (which may or may not involve overt simony). On occasion violence has helped clarify the outcome. My… Read more »
I agree with Froghole that “prime ministerial patronage actually worked quite well”. Harold Macmillan, for example, made some superb appointments – not least the saintly Michael Ramsey. Previously we had a much livelier, more diverse and interesting Bench than we have at present. Who would you rather oversee episcopal appointments – Anthony Archer (after what he has written above – “same old, same old”) or Mrs. Theresa May? Certainly when Jeremy Corbyn takes over he would undoubtedly have livened up the episcopate, had PMP still been the order of the day, in the same way that he has enlivened and… Read more »
Correct me if I’m wrong, but hasn’t Anthony Archer spilled much ink on TA telling us what he thinks the Five Guiding Principles are by attempting to convince us that black is white? In that sense, I guess the content of Philip Mawer’s report and recommendations will be irrelevant. I think Rev Dave and others have a point. When a member of the CNC fundamentally disagrees with the FGPs we will not see Philip North or any other traditionalist being nominated as a diocesan bishop. Cut the semantic circumlocution: minorities have no place in the leadership of the Church of… Read more »
No, Jonathan Mitchell, the Five Guiding Principles are, like much else that underpins our faith, very much open to interpretation and, as we have often been reminded, ‘need to be held in tension one with another’. Many of us think that no flourishing can be ‘mutual’ if, in order for one party to flourish, another party has to be subjected to unreasonable demands. That would be the case if all the women priests in a diocese were required to swear allegiance and canonical obedience to a diocesan bishop who did not believe that they were really and actually priests, even… Read more »
Why all the rather illiberal complaining about Anthony Archer? All members of the CNC bring their own views and prejudices with them, as is inevitable, and Anthony has been elected by Synod members who presumably know his views and want him to do this job. It’s called democracy, comrade – as Roger Moore nearly said in The Spy Who Loved Me. Anthony has articulated what many of us are struggling with vis a vis the FGP – namely how can it work in practice? We were steered away from pinning down the details in Synod and those of us who… Read more »
Thank you @Malcolm Dixon. You have confirmed the very point I was making.
One aspect of the old prime ministerial patronage system is that people were involved in appointments who weren’t active church members. For example, a good friend of mine who held a senior secular position but was a “nominal” Anglican, if that, was asked to chair an appointing committee (which, if it met at all, would have met informally and in secret, things being what they were then, and the candidates would not have known they were being considered). Whether that was a good thing or a bad thing depends on your point of view. Moving to the CNC was a… Read more »
Dear Grumpy,
Having read Lord Longford’s book you will know what a high opinion the noble Lord had of Bishop Kemp as a spiritual and scholarly bishop. I note that Rowan Williams also receives a certain amount of censure in the Gibb report. If I were to praise him for his academic ability and spirituality would I receive similar criticism from your good self?
“…deep-rooted Catholicism, which would enhance and enrich our journeys together as a diverse, generous, and spiritual Church.” I suppose everything is context, but I live in France and in close quarters with “deep-rooted Catholicism.” In its most generous guise, the term here could never refer to the kind of diversity you reflexively assume. To enclose it in that kind of diversity of practice would be to rob it of its baseline sense (“universally held”). Could you perhaps come up with another term so that those who use it to denominate who they are in the most basic sense aren’t asked… Read more »
I agree with Charles Read: I’ve been a little taken aback by the criticisms of Anthony Archer. I believe he has integrity, cares about the Church and, from an LGBT point of view, and on the issue of women priests, he is a liberal-minded person who has also been far more transparent than many people in the Church of England. In a Church where many people don’t engage, he’s come here frequently and been forthright and pretty responsive. The internet being what it is, that can go quickly pear-shaped, and he could be forgiven for taking a look at the… Read more »
@Bernard: Many thanks. I believe Mr and Mrs May are/were on the electoral roll at St Andrew’s Sonning, Berkshire (an important church – it was once adjacent to a major residence of the bishops of Salisbury). Aside from Bolingbroke (an atheist high churchman[!]) and Grafton (Unitarian), all premiers were members of the three established churches until Lloyd George; thereafter, and on a generous measure, Bonar Law, Baldwin, Eden, Macmillan, Home, Heath, Thatcher, Blair, Brown, Cameron and May have been regular or occasional churchgoers, with Baldwin, Eden, Macmillan, Home, Heath and May being genuinely committed Anglicans. Chamberlain (lapsed/hostile Unitarian) and Attlee… Read more »
In the light of Father David’s post (7.23 am on 29 July) I’ve looked again at my copy of “Believing Bishops” by Simon Lee and Peter Stanford, published by Faber & Faber in 1990. Their book considers Anglican and RC bishops. In Part III (‘Visions’) they divide bishops into three categories, Prophets, Pastors and Peacemakers, and ‘Wider Visions’. Under ‘Prophets’, they provide pen portraits of +David Jenkins (Durham), +David Sheppard and +Derek Worlock (Liverpool) and +Graham Leonard (London). Under ‘Pastors and Peacemakers’ they consider +Basil Hume (Westminster), ++Robert Runcie (Canterbury), ++John Hapgood (York) and +Cormac Murphy-O’Connor (Arundel & Brighton). Under… Read more »
My thanks for the further comments on this crucial general issue, particularly those who have supported me. All those who have supported me know me as opposed to those who have been critical of me who don’t, save that they have read my various and frequent posts on TA. I have spent a lifetime in my professional work asking people what their detractors might say about them. It is the kind of question that makes you feel quite vulnerable. Nevertheless, living in the age that we do, with all comments that would have previously have been confined to the pub… Read more »
As one of the (19) unsuccessful lay candidates for election to the CNC, I’ve been particularly interested in the various comments posted above on the likely impact of the result of the elections on future episcopal appointments, especially on the ‘Five Guiding Principles’ (FGP) and whether a ‘non ordainer’ could ever now be considered for appointment as a diocesan bishop. As someone wholly supportive of female bishops, I was, nonetheless, concerned at the reaction to the nomination of +Philip North to the see of Sheffield and his subsequent decision to withdraw: hence the Private Member’s Motion that I tabled and… Read more »
Well said, David Lamming, I do hope that you get the extra 30 signatures in order that this important matter be debated at the General Synod. I note that Philip North was virtually forced to give up Whitby but far-sighted Julian Henderson saw his worth and offered the Suffragan See of Burnley where he has been an outstanding success. Could something similar happen with regard to dioceses? Having been virtually forced to relinquish the See of Sheffield I do hope the newly elected CNC has the vision and foresight to call him for interview for the vacant See of London… Read more »
I don’t see any comments here casting doubts on Anthony Archer’s integrity. The fact is that Anthony Archer consciously decided to set out his stall on this thread, especially in relation to so-called non-ordainers. He has also made his position on the FGPs clear elsewhere, and in a way that doesn’t quite square with the way others of us read them. It is inevitable that people will draw conclusions and comment – especially as some people wasted no time in hailing Anthony’s election as some kind of panacea. Isn’t this just good disagreement, or is that now a threat to… Read more »
Will, the trouble is that by eliminating groups that you see as “a threat to diversity”, even though they have agreed to respect difference, you are rejecting objective diversity – and replacing it with the oxymoron of “diversity that agrees with us.”
Down that road lurks the “pure liberal church”!
With the passing of Bishop Michael Manktelow to greater glory I have been re-reading his excellent biography on John Moorman, Bishop of Ripon. When his appointment to that former Northern diocese was announced a certain Margaret Deansley wrote quickly with her congratulations “What a lot of sense Mr. Macmillan has! We really do need some learned bishops in the Church of England”(page 61) Elsewhere we learn of the high esteem in which Dr. Moorman held Bishop George Bell. “His admiration for George Bell was unqualified here was ‘a truly catholic bishop’, known the world over for his courage in denouncing… Read more »
Having read this morning’s Church Times, I feel that the comments on this thread, following Anthony Archer’s setting out his stall, are fully justified. Leaving aside the concerns about the ‘party’ dimension of the successful electors, it is telling that Professor Oliver O’Donovan, as Chair of the CNC Review Group, is raising questions about (a) those who have arrive at a CNC meeting with their criteria – and their minds – already fixed (‘a bishop already in their pocket’ as he puts it); and (b) the lack of attention given to the wider needs of the Church, not least the… Read more »
I wonder if the Brand-new CNC will have the grace and courtesy to call the Dean of St Albans for interview with the view to appointing him to a vacant diocese? I’ve just read the recently published Peer Review of 30th June MMXVII for the diocese of Lincoln which states “The panel recognised and affirmed the effort and progress made under the leadership of + Christopher over the past five years in the turn around of the diocese from where it had been and the difficulties it faced” I’m not sure what these difficulties were but I do know that… Read more »
As a soon to be central member of the Crown Nominations Commission as from September 2017, I have absolutely no idea who might be considered as candidates for the vacant sees of London, Bristol and Truro (and those thereafter) and look forward to being able to consider a diverse group of candidates, as my election address made clear. I won’t be coming with any ‘candidate in my pocket’ for any of them. What I do know, however, is that the only relevant considerations in the nominations are those of the diocese in question, the needs of the House of Bishops,… Read more »
“Elsewhere we learn of the high esteem in which Dr. Moorman held Bishop George Bell.” I have to confess to have not engaged with the George Bell affair, but in preparation for my (re-)appointment to the CNC I have started some summer reading. Paul Avis’ excellent book Becoming a Bishop: a theological handbook of episcopal ministry, has this to say in the context of the nomination of William Temple. ‘But Bell, who had been a vocal critic of the Allies’ aerial bombing strategy of Germany, with its huge number of civilian casualties, lacked the ability to project himself on the… Read more »