Jeremy Haselock Catholic Herald Own goal: the Church of England and the World Cup Final
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church Will we ever find a Safe Church?
Simon Butler ViaMedia.News Dear Bishop Christopher… An Open Response to my Diocesan Bishop after his Address to Southwark Diocesan Synod
– written in response to this Presidential Address to Diocesan Synod, 19 November 2022
Press release from the Church of England
House of Bishops – 29 November 2022
29/11/2022
The House of Bishops met by Zoom for its 29 November meeting.
The Chair began the meeting by inviting the Bishop of London, Chair of the Next Steps Group, to offer reflections on Living in Love and Faith (LLF) and the recent meeting of the College of Bishops. A range of views and reflections were discussed by the House regarding both the content and the LLF process, with the Bishop of London acknowledging the complexity and depth of feeling around the issue. The Bishop of London concluded by urging the House to continue listening to God and thanked the House for its participation and contribution to LLF to date.
The House then turned outs attention to the Mission and Pastoral Measure Review and was addressed by the Third Estates Commissioner and by the Head of Mission, Pastoral and Church Property. The House was invited to comment on the general scope of the main recommendations including the approach to church buildings, patronage changes, and other changes which would support episcopal ministry in the long term. The House gave its views on a range of policy issues which will be incorporated in the recommendations of the Review as they are finalised.
The Bishop of Rochester then introduced the House to the recently appointed national Director for Safeguarding who provided a summary of his role to date, before turning the House’s attention to how it will respond to the final report of IICSA and its key recommendations.
The Bishop of Sheffield and the Executive Chair, Diocesan Secretaries and Chief Executives both introduced a paper highlighting a range of issues related to the recruitment, induction support and accountability of Diocesan Secretaries. Several proposals were discussed by the House with a view to reducing unnecessary staff turnover and ensuring that Diocesan Secretaries operate as effectively as possible. The House endorsed the development of the proposals as well as a best practice framework for Dioceses and requested an update on progress be made to the House in May 2023.
A paper relating to the process of assessing the return to ministry of respondents who have been subject to a limited prohibition under the Clergy Disciplinary Measure 2003 was then discussed by the House and presented by legal officers of the National Church Institutions. The House endorsed the refinement of current guidelines and gave comment and observation on the Draft Code of Practice on Return to Ministry.
The Bishop of Guildford updated the House on recommendations made by the National Church Governance Project Board in relation to the role of bishops in the governance arrangements of the National Church. The House discussed the recommendations and gave advisory guidance on the recommendations contained in the paper.
The Secretary General then updated the House on the distribution so far of national Church grants totalling £15 million to dioceses, to help them meet the challenge of increased energy costs.
The meeting ended in prayer.
6 CommentsStephen Parsons Surviving Church Survivor/Victim -Looking at the meanings of words in the Safeguarding World
Jessica Martin ViaMedia.News Real Presence in Sex and Sacrament
Talique Taylor Earth & Altar What is Communion?
Kelvin Holdsworth What’s in Kelvin’s Head Turning Up and Being Counted
43 CommentsPress release from the Prime Minister’s Office. There is more on the St Albans diocesan website.
Appointment of Suffragan Bishop of Hertford: 24 November 2022
The King has approved the nomination of The Venerable Dr Jane Mainwaring, Archdeacon of St Albans, in the Diocese of St Albans, to the Suffragan See of Hertford, in the Diocese of St Albans.
From: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street
Published 24 November 2022
The King has approved the nomination of The Venerable Dr Jane Mainwaring, Archdeacon of St Albans, in the Diocese of St Albans, to the Suffragan See of Hertford, in the Diocese of St Albans, in succession to The Right Reverend Dr Michael Beasley following his appointment as Bishop of Bath and Wells.
Background
Jane was educated at Leeds University and Trinity College, University of Wales, and trained for ministry on the East Anglian Ministerial Training Course. She served her title at St Gregory’s Sudbury, in the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich, and in 2001 she was ordained Priest
In 2003, Jane was appointed Team Vicar of St Mark’s Hitchin, in the Diocese of St Albans, and from 2015 she also served as Rural Dean.
Jane took up her current role as Archdeacon of St Albans in 2020.
26 CommentsBenjamin Wyatt Earth & Altar What is Fornication?
Kelvin Holdsworth What’s in Kelvin’s Head 12 Things I’ve Learned About Preaching
Colin Coward Unadulterated Love Being realistic about God
Jayne Ozanne ViaMedia.News ‘Hermetically Sealed Hermeneutics’ & an Inability to Own Up to Harm
Stephen Cottrell Archbishop of York Opening the Scriptures
The 25th, and final, Archbishop Blanch Memorial Lecture
The Very Reverend Christine Wilson, the Dean of Lincoln, recently anounced that she will retire on 31 March 2023. Her leaving service will be on 2 February. The announcement is in a chapter letter; you will have to scroll down to find it.
0 CommentsThe Rt Revd Dr Alan Winton, the suffragan Bishop of Thetford in the diocese of Norwich, has announced that he will retire in April 2023.
1 CommentThe Dean of Chelmsford, the Very Revd Nicholas Henshall, has announced that he is moving to be Parish Priest of St Thomas the Apostle, New Groombridge in the Diocese of Chichester. The Dean has written this letter about his move.
I failed to notice it at the time, but the Dean of Newcastle, the Very Revd Geoff Miller, announced his retirement some time ago, and his farewell service was last Sunday.
12 CommentsJody Stowell ViaMedia.News EvangelicAlly
Samuel Cripps The Living Church How to Internet
Rebecca Chapman Church Times There is an alternative to Vision and Strategy
“Chelmsford’s bishop is choosing not to impose plans on dioceses — will others follow this approach, asks Rebecca Chapman”
Rob Hudson Church Times Six ways to retain young people
“Teenagers often drift away, but that need not be the case, argues Rob Hudson”
Neil Patterson ViaMedia.News Ways and Means of Differentiation…
Helen King sharedconversations The wisdom of Solomon (or, that was the week, that was)
27 CommentsMartyn Percy Anglicanism.org Dear Heart-broken, Dear Confused – Agony Aunts and Problem Pages as Implicit Religion
Colin Coward Unadulterated Love Thinking about God and the challenge of evolution
Martine Oborne ViaMedia.News Thirty Years On
The Guardian Where is discrimination against women still allowed in the UK? The church
Kelvin Holdsworth What’s in Kelvin’s Head It was 30 years ago today…
100 CommentsMeg Munn Chair of the National Safeguarding Panel Consultation on Learning Lessons Case Reviews
Colin Coward Unadulterated Love Freedom from power, control and abuse in congregational life
Johanna Stiebert ViaMedia.News Toxic Theology, the Bible and LLF (Living in Love and Faith)
Mark Bennet Surviving Church What is the purpose of it all? Some reflections on Safeguarding
Tim Wyatt Religion Media Centre Made in Hull: bishops appointed for breakaway Anglican church against same sex marriage
7 CommentsStephen Parsons Surviving Church When a Church becomes Cultic
Keith Elliott Church Times A revolutionary present
“Keith Elliott pleads for the Church to be bolder in talking about death, and life beyond”
Fergus Butler-Gallie Church Times Guy Fawkes reimagined: it was all about tolerance
“Fergus Butler-Gallie goes underground to recreate the Gunpowder Plot”
John Barton Church Times There are two ways to translate the Bible, and both are right
“Accuracy and literalness in biblical translation are not the same, says John Barton”
Updated to add Graham article
Martin Sewell Surviving Church “The sky is black with chickens coming home to roost”
Martin Barnes The Observer Let there be light: England’s Anglican cathedrals at dawn
“The late Magnum photographer Peter Marlow was granted the rare opportunity to capture 42 places of worship in the early hours, the results of which are now collected in an exhibition and book”
Nathanael Hayler ViaMedia.News Faith and Generosity in the Church: The Via Media, or Transphobia?
Graham Surviving Church A ‘Reflective Exercise’ on Proposed Change to Reviews
1 CommentUpdated to include a third article by Andrew Goddard
Helen King ViaMedia.News Marry Me a Little?
Madeleine Davies Church Times The communion of saints
“For All Saints’ and All Souls’ Days, Madeleine Davies reflects on expectations of life after death”
Andrew Goddard Psephizo a series of three articles
1: Discernment and decision following Living in Love and Faith
2: What are the options after Living in Love and Faith?
3: What are the practical implications following Living in Love and Faith?
The three pieces are available together in this PDF document: LLF Discerning and Deciding Psephizo Articles.
Guli Francis-Dehqani ViaMedia.News Just Housing: A Christian Vision
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church Some reflections on the recently published Final IICSA Report
Mark Fox Reaction Will Rishi Sunak want to appoint the Bishops?
Rosie Harper Anglicanism.org Did we die without noticing it?
31 CommentsSavitri Hensman ViaMedia.News Increasing Inclusion and Respecting Conscience: Learning from Elsewhere
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church ‘The Victim must be believed’. Some reflections on the Henriques (2016) Report
Looking down the wrong end of a Telescope. Further thoughts on PCR2
Jonathan Romain Church Times Standing on common ground
“Jonathan Romain finds clerical parallels in different faith traditions”
Editor’s note: The college at Oxford is, of course, Christ Church and not Christchurch. I have not corrected this error in the ISB’s statement.
The website of the Church of England’s Independent Safeguarding Board (ISB) was finally launched yesterday.
Today the ISB has published a statement saying that it was pausing its review into the quality of earlier safeguarding investigations at Christ Church. This is copied below.
Christchurch review
A statement from the ISB
The ISB has upon invitation from the Diocese of Oxford and the Archbishops Council agreed to undertake a review into the quality of earlier safeguarding investigations at Christchurch. A copy of the published TOR is available here. A call for evidence has gone out and a timetable published. To date ISB has not started a qualitative review of the submitted evidence. The current constitution of the ISB, with the Chair currently stood down, places considerable additional capacity restraints on the limited resources of the ISB. The wider ISB work undertaken to date is in part set out in the newly launched website.
The question of independence is quite rightly a regular challenge to the ISB. The ISB does not currently operate as a stand-alone separate legal entity and this is something actively under consideration ahead of embarking upon the second phase of the ISB’s work in developing a pathway to embedding long lasting independent scrutiny and oversight of safeguarding within the COE.
The ISB is aware that other independent Reviews into Christ Church have been concluded and as such the ISB wishes to analyse those reviews to determine whether the ISB can usefully add to the body of independent work completed to date when weighed against the ISB’s finite resources and its current workload particularly directed towards the survivor community.
For these reasons the ISB has decided to pause the work on the Review pending consideration of other ISB priorities and the extent to which the ISB can usefully add to the work carried out by others and recommendations made.
One of the very clear functions of the ISB is to hold the COE to account for implementation of safeguarding best practice. To the extent the ISB endorses the recommendations made independently by other responsible bodies relating to Christ Church, they will seek assurance that those recommendations are implemented.
Survivor Advocate
Independent Safeguarding Board
[The review’s terms of reference are attached to the statement.]
10 CommentsPress Release from the Prime Minister’s Office. There is more on the Newcastle diocesan website.
Appointment of Bishop of Newcastle: 20 October 2022
Her Late Majesty The Queen approved the nomination of The Right Reverend Dr Helen-Ann Hartley, Suffragan Bishop of Ripon, for election as Bishop of Newcastle.
From: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street
Published 20 October 2022
Her Late Majesty The Queen approved the nomination of The Right Reverend Dr Helen-Ann Hartley, Suffragan Bishop of Ripon, for election as Bishop of Newcastle, in succession to The Right Reverend Christine Hardman following her retirement.
Helen-Ann Hartley was educated at the University of St. Andrews and Worcester College, Oxford. She trained for ministry on the St Albans & Oxford Ministry Course and was ordained Priest in 2006. She served her title at St Mary the Virgin, Wheatley, in the Diocese of Oxford, and was appointed Curate at St Mary the Virgin and St Nicholas, Littlemore, in 2007. During this time she was also Director of Biblical Studies and Tutor in New Testament at Ripon College, Cuddesdon.
In 2012, Helen-Ann moved to New Zealand where she was Dean for the New Zealand Dioceses at the College of St John the Evangelist, Auckland, and in 2014 she was consecrated Bishop of Waikato, Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia.
Helen-Ann returned to the UK in 2018 when she was appointed to her current role as Suffragan Bishop of Ripon in the Diocese of Leeds.
16 CommentsMeg Munn Chair of the National Safeguarding Panel Publication of Past Cases Review 2
William Lamb ViaMedia.News A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life: A Reprise
1 CommentPress release from the Prime Minister’s Office. There is more on the Liverpool diocesan website.
Appointment of Bishop of Liverpool: 18 October 2022
Her Late Majesty The Queen approved the nomination of The Right Reverend Dr John Perumbalath, Area Bishop of Bradwell, for election as Bishop of Liverpool.
From: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street
Published 18 October 2022
Her Late Majesty The Queen approved the nomination of The Right Reverend Dr John Perumbalath, Area Bishop of Bradwell, for election as Bishop of Liverpool, in succession to The Right Reverend Paul Bayes following his retirement.
Background
John hails from the ancient Syrian Christian community in Kerala, India, and trained for ministry at Union Biblical Seminary, Pune. He worked as a youth worker for university students and as a theological educator before his ordination in the Diocese of Calcutta, Church of North India.
He was Curate at St John’s Church, Calcutta, from 1994 and was appointed Vicar at St James’ Church in 1995. John then served as Vicar of St Thomas’ Church in 2000, as well as Chaplain at St Thomas’ Secondary School.
In 2002, John moved to the UK and was appointed Associate Rector at St George’s Church, Beckenham, in the Diocese of Rochester. He then served as Team Vicar of Northfleet and Rosherville in addition to Diocesan Advisor for Thames Gateway Regeneration. In 2008, he was appointed Vicar at All Saints Perry Street and served also as Diocesan Urban Officer.
John was appointed Archdeacon of Barking in 2013, in the Diocese of Chelmsford, and took up his current role as Area Bishop of Bradwell in 2018. He chairs the Churches Refugee Network for Britain and Ireland and is the Church of England’s lead bishop for Churches Together in Britain and Ireland.
9 Comments