February General Synod – electronic voting results
The electronic voting results from this month’s General Synod are now available online and are linked below.
LLF voting
The proposed amendments and the original motion from the LLF debate are in Order Paper V.
Final motion (as amended by 67) Item 11
Amendments to Item 11
Item 44
Item 45
Item 51
Item 52
Item 53
Item 54
Item 55
Item 56
Item 57
Item 58
Item 59
Item 60
Item 61
Item 62
Item 64
Item 65
Item 67
Item 68
Other electronic votes
Item 10 (motion on Cost of Living)
Item 69 (amendment to motion on Governance Review)
Item 502 (final approval of Amending Canon No. 42)
Item 506 (final approval of the Diocesan Stipends Funds (Amendment) Measure)
Item 514 (amendment to the Draft Diocesan Stipends Funds (Amendment) Measure)
Item 521 (amendment to the Draft Church of England (Miscellaneous Provisions) Measure)
Item 523 (That clause 2 stand part of the Draft Church of England (Miscellaneous Provisions) Measure)
Item 530 (amendment to the Draft Church of England (Miscellaneous Provisions) Measure)
Opinion – 22 February 2023
Christopher Cocksworth (Bishop of Coventry) The Living Church Living in Love and Faith: Where do things stand? Where do we go from here?
Andrew Rumsey Down in The Effra Cold Snap
Colin Coward Unadulterated Love GSFA and CEEC persecute LGBTQIA+ people who contaminate the Church
131 CommentsSafeguarding diocesan data 2019-21
New safeguarding data from a three-year period has been published by the Church of England today. The data is for new concerns and allegations reported to the Church in 2019, 2020 and 2021 and relates to all its work, not just to Church Officers. The reports range from concerns about possible risk to direct allegations of abuse. There is more detail in the press release.
6 CommentsBishop of Edmonton to become CEO of CUF
The Rt Revd Rob Wickham, the Bishop of Edmonton, has today been appointed the new Group Chief Executive of Church Urban Fund (CUF). He will take up the role of CEO on 10 July 2023.
There are announcements on the London diocesan website and the CUF website.
4 CommentsOpinion – 18 February 2023
A Monument of Fame (Lambeth Palace Library blog) Back to the future: the Church Commissioners’ first computer
Martin Sewell Surviving Church Independent Safeguarding in the CofE. ‘When you give, let go’.
Simon Richiardi Surviving Church I kissed dating goodbye. Surviving a Church that practised ‘Biblical Marriage.’
K-Anonymous Surviving Church Innocent until proved guilty, except in the Church of England
Maggi Dawn Church Times God has many names: a solution to the inclusive-language dilemma
Andrew Nunn Looking back [at eighteen years on the General Synod]
Savitri Hensman ViaMedia.News Being Invisible While Anglicans Debate Marrying Same-Sex Couples
20 CommentsLLF voting figures
Anglican Futures have published some comments on the voting on the LLF motion and amendments at General Synod this week: They Think It’s All Over…. Is It Now?. This includes a very helpful table showing the voting figures for each item. I have copied this below; click on the table for a larger version. The full text of the amendments and the original motion are in this notice paper.
There has been comment that the House of Bishops exercised some sort of veto by having votes by houses. But in nearly every case all three houses voted the same way. In four cases (53, 56, 60, 62) the House of Laity voted in favour whilst the other two houses voted against. But in all four the amendment would have been defeated even if the vote had been of the whole synod.
Voting lists, showing how each member of Synod voted, will be published in due course, and we will then publish an article linking to them.
52 CommentsReactions to Synod vote on LLF
Church Times Synod’s same-sex vote: first reactions
English bishops
Carlisle and Penrith
Chelmsford
Exeter, Crediton and Plymouth
Gloucester
Leicester
Lichfield
Oxford
Salisbury
Truro and St Germans
Warrington
York
Archbishop of Uganda
Evangelical Fellowship in the Anglican Communion
Gafcon
Anglican Church Diocese of Sydney
The Church of England Evangelical Council
Anglican Network in Europe
Charlie Bell All About Power: General Synod and the LLF Debate
Keith Sinclair CEEC: What’s next for Evangelicals in the Church of England
EQUAL (The Campaign for Equal Marriage in the Church of England)
Ian Paul What exactly happened at Synod on the Prayers for Love and Faith?
Harriet Sherwood The Guardian Anglicans angry at same-sex blessings question Justin Welby’s ‘fitness to lead’
81 CommentsOpinion – 11 February 2023
Miranda Threlfall-Holmes No, the doctrine of marriage is not fixed
Andrew Goddard Psephizo What are the bishops claiming about marriage?
Helen King sharedconversations Would you Adam and Eve it?
Russell Dewhurst Law & Religion UK Canon B5 and the Prayers of Love and Faith
Meg Munn Chair of the National Safeguarding Panel Annual Report 2022 National Safeguarding Panel
Giles Fraser UnHerd God has no gender
Frank Cranmer Religion Media Centre Factsheet: Establishment and the Church of England
24 CommentsLiving in Love and Faith
Updated to add press reports
General Synod completed its debate on Living in Love and Faith a short time ago after eight hours of debate. It passed the following motion.
That this Synod, recognising the commitment to learning and deep listening to God and to each other of the Living in Love and Faith process, and desiring with God’s help to journey together while acknowledging the different deeply held convictions within the Church:
(a) lament and repent of the failure of the Church to be welcoming to LGBTQI+ people and the harm that LGBTQI+ people have experienced and continue to experience in the life of the Church;
(b) recommit to our shared witness to God’s love for and acceptance of every person by continuing to embed the Pastoral Principles in our life together locally and nationally;
(c) commend the continued learning together enabled by the Living in Love and Faith process and resources in relation to identity, sexuality, relationships and marriage;
(d) welcome the decision of the House of Bishops to replace Issues in Human Sexuality with new pastoral guidance;
(e) welcome the response from the College of Bishops and look forward to the House of Bishops further refining, commending and issuing the Prayers of Love and Faith described in GS 2289 and its Annexes;
(f) invite the House of Bishops to monitor the Church’s use of and response to the Prayers of Love and Faith, once they have been commended and published, and to report back to Synod in five years’ time;
(g) endorse the decision of the College and House of Bishops not to propose any change to the doctrine of marriage, and their intention that the final version of the Prayers of Love and Faith should not be contrary to or indicative of a departure from the doctrine of the Church of England.
The voting was by houses.
Bishops: 36 in favour, 4 against, 2 recorded abstentions
Clergy: 111 in favour, 85 against, 3 recorded abstentions
Laity: 103 in favour, 92 against, 5 recorded abstentions
There is an official press release: Prayers for God’s blessing for same-sex couples take step forward after Synod debate.
Press reports
Church Times Bishops’ proposals to bless same-sex couples carried by Synod, despite sustained opposition
The Guardian Church of England votes in favour of blessings for same-sex unions
Telegraph Blessings for gay couples approved by Church of England for first time
Telegraph Church of England ostracised after it backs blessings for gay couples
BBC News Church of England backs plans to bless gay couples
General Synod – 6 to 9 February 2023
See separate post for the result of the Living in Love and Faith debate
This post will be updated as the meeting proceeds.
The Church of England’s General Synod is meeting this week. The timetable is here, the agenda is here and the papers are here.
Live Video etc
All sessions are streamed live on YouTube and remain available to view afterwards.
Monday afternoon – live from 1.45 pm
Tuesday morning – live from 10.15 am
Tuesday afternoon – live from 2.00 pm
Wednesday morning – live from 9.15 am
Wednesday afternoon – live from 2.00 pm
Thursday morning – live from 9.15 am
Thursday afternoon – live from 1.45 pm
There is an official Twitter account.
Order Papers
OP I – Monday afternoon
OP II – Tuesday morning
OP III – Tuesday afternoon
OP IV – Wednesday morning
OP V – Wednesday afternoon
OP VI – Thursday morning
OP VII – Thursday afternoon
Business done
Monday 6 February
Tuesday 7 February AM
Tuesday 7 February PM
Wednesday 8 February AM
Wednesday 8 February PM
Thursday 9 February AM
Thursday 9 February PM
Official press releases
Archbishop of Canterbury’s presidential address
Bishop of London’s Living in Love and Faith Presentation [a pdf version is available here]
Archbishop delivers Loyal Address to The King
Synod: Archbishop delivers Loyal Address to The King
Archbishop of Canterbury’s speech in Living in Love and Faith debate
Safeguarding presentation to General Synod
Press reports and comment
Church Times
ISB remains off the Synod’s agenda despite members’ concerns
Synod, trust parishes to discount funeral and wedding fees when needed – this refers to this financial statement
Use language that unites not divides, Archbishop Welby asks, as the General Synod begins
Sexuality discussions opened our eyes to the harm we have done, says Bishop of London
Archbishop Welby praise’s King’s interfaith work in Loyal Address
Reforms to ordinands’ funding are welcomed by Synod, though costs are queried
General Synod: same-sex debate goes into overtime
Episcopal News Service
Church of England’s General Synod gets underway, with questions about same-sex marriage looming
The Guardian
Church of England to consider greener alternatives to burial
Church of England to consider use of gender-neutral terms for God
MPs should not influence church on same-sex marriage, says Justin Welby
Evening Standard
Too many LGBT people have heard ‘the words of rejection’ from Church of England
The Telegraph
Church of England looks at ‘human composting’
Archbishop of Canterbury: MPs won’t tell me what to do on gay marriage
Synod members’ blogs
Helen King
Forty years of foreplay: before the February 2023 General Synod
February 2023 General Synod: sex, sin and separation
Andrew Nunn
The final lap
Picking up speed
It could have been worse
Into extra time
A better story
Pre-Synod News and Opinion
Charlie Bell ViaMedia.News No More Delay: A Call to General Synod
Charlie Bell For whom the Bell tolls A response to ‘The Church of England’s Doctrine of Marriage’, +Fulham et al
Philip Jones Ecclesiastical Law Canon B5 and the Prayers of Love and Faith
Lorraine Cavanagh Modern Church What Price Unity?
Colin Coward‘s vlog – episode 2
Catherine Pepinster Religion News Service Church of England submits blessings for same-sex couples to fierce debate in Synod
Francis Martin Church Times MPs plan to put pressure on the C of E after Welby’s disestablishment remarks
Sarah Meyrick Church Times Fourteen bishops publish a defence of traditional marriage
Jayne Ozanne The Guardian One side of the C of E preaches LGBT+ acceptance, the other says I’m going to hell. This can’t go on
Andrew Davison Church Times We will bless couples, not just people
Church of England press: House of Bishops – Monday 20 January 2023
20 is clearly a misprint for 30.
Opinion – 4 February 2021
A Monument of Fame (Lambeth Palace Library blog) Partners at the Palace: the story of the wives of the Archbishops of Canterbury
Peter Reiss Surviving Church Unheard and Un-noticed but not uncommon – Why are we so bad at listening?
12 CommentsGeneral Synod Questions
The Questions (and answers) for next week’s meeting of the Church of England’s General Synod were sent to Synod members today. They are not yet online with the other Synod papers but I have put copies online. They come in four parts.
QUESTIONS Notice Paper 1 General Feb 2023
QUESTIONS Notice Paper 1 General Feb 2023 additional info
QUESTIONS Notice Paper 2 LLF February 2023
QUESTIONS Notice Paper 2 LLF Feb 2023 additional info
The first of these starts with this note.
The Business Committee has scheduled two hours for Questions at the February 2023 Group of Sessions of the General Synod. This is divided between 80 minutes on Monday 6 February and 40 minutes on Tuesday 7 February. Notice has been given of 206 questions, of which just under one third or 64 are questions of the House of Bishops relating to Living in Love and Faith and ancillary matters. The Business Committee has determined that the two questions sessions will take the following format. There are two Questions Notice Papers. This first Notice Paper contains all questions other than those relating to the Living in Love and Faith process. The second Notice Paper contains all questions to the House of Bishops on Living in Love and Faith. The first session for questions will begin at the start of the first Notice Paper and will continue until the time provided for in the agenda comes to an end. The second session will then begin at the start of the second Notice Paper and will continue until the time provided for in the agenda comes to an end.
The order in which questions are answered follows convention. The three bodies or individuals of whom questions were asked and who appeared at the bottom of the Notice Paper at the previous occasion questions were asked are taken first in this group of sessions. The remaining bodies and individuals follow in the same order as previously.
The previous occasion questions were asked was November 2022. This means questions to the Secretary General, the Clerk to the Synod and National Society Council will be taken first at this group of sessions.
Bishop David Urquhart to be the new Bishop to the Archbishops of Canterbury and York
Press release from the Archbishop of Canterbury
Bishop David Urquhart to be the new Bishop to the Archbishops of Canterbury and York
02/02/2023
Archbishop Justin Welby and Archbishop Stephen Cottrell have announced the Rt Revd David Urquhart as the new Bishop to the Archbishops of Canterbury and York. Bishop David will work directly for both Archbishops and closely with the entire College of Bishops. Bishop David takes over from Bishop Emma Ineson who has been appointed Bishop of Kensington.
As a senior member of the Archbishops’ teams, Bishop David will play a key role in supporting the Archbishops and liaising with the House and College of Bishops, as well as alongside NCI and Diocesan colleagues and other key stakeholders.
Bishop David will be part-time in this one-year interim role while continuing in his other part-time role as Assistant Priest for St Mary at Hill in the City of London. He will start in post next week.
Bishop David was ordained in York Minster in 1984 and served in parishes in Hull and Coventry. In 2000 he became Bishop of Birkenhead and in 2006 Bishop of Birmingham, succeeding John Sentamu after he became Archbishop of York, stepping down in October 2022.
He became the Convenor of the Lords Spiritual in May 2015, and was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of Saint Michael and Saint George (KCMG) for services to international relations in the Queen’s Birthday Honours 2018.
As previous chair of the West Midlands Bishops, and former member of the Assets Committee of the Church Commissioners, Bishop David has wide experience of many aspects of Church and national life.
Bishop David said: “I am looking forward to supporting the ministry of the Archbishops of Canterbury and York and to sharing with them the pastoral and practical needs and opportunities of our episcopal colleagues across the Church of England”.
Archbishop Justin Welby and Archbishop Stephen Cottrell said: “We are delighted to welcome Bishop David to this important role. We know he will bring his considerable wisdom, humour and humility to the role, as well as his wealth of experience as a bishop and leader in the Church and the national life.”
31 CommentsOpinion – 28 January 2023
David Voas British Religion in Numbers Christian decline: How it’s measured and what it means
Ted Harrison Church Times Most kind and gentle death
“Ted Harrison offers a reflection for Candlemas”
Colin Coward has started a new vlog – here is the first episode.
34 CommentsOpinion – 21 January 2023
Bosco Peters Liturgy Ordination Requirements
Rebecca Chapman Church Times General Synod should be more than a talking shop
“Its members need clarity about who is making decisions and what they are voting on”
Meg Munn Chair of the National Safeguarding Panel National Redress Scheme
7 CommentsGeneral Synod papers published
Updated 25 January to add GS Misc 1339 (Prayers of Love and Faith: a note from the Legal Office) – see Monday’s papers.
Updated 5 February to add various notice papers.
The Church of England has published the papers for next month’s meeting of its General Synod, which meets in London from 6-9 February. I have linked to them all below the fold, but these three, in different ways, give an outline of the business.
Outline of Synod Business
Agenda Feb 23 v2 (GS 2283)
Report from the Business Committee (GS 2284)
Draft prayers of thanksgiving, dedication and for God’s blessing for same-sex couples published
The Church of England issued the following press release this morning.
Draft prayers of thanksgiving, dedication and for God’s blessing for same-sex couples published
20/01/2023
Prayers asking for God’s blessing on same-sex couples as they give thanks for their civil marriage or civil partnership are published today.
The draft texts, proposed by the bishops of the Church of England, will be considered by General Synod next month alongside other proposals in response to a six-year process of listening, learning and discernment on questions of identity, sexuality, relationships and marriage known as Living in Love and Faith.
The bishops have also made a direct public apology to LGBTQI+ people for the way in which the Church has rejected or excluded them, admitting: “We have not loved you as God loves you, and that is profoundly wrong.”
The apology is set out in a pastoral letter from the bishops of the Church of England which also recognises that they disagree over same-sex marriage and proposes a way forward which could be put in action within months.
A report – Living in Love and Faith: A response from the Bishops of the Church of England about identity, sexuality, relationships and marriage – sets out the bishops’ proposals and recommends areas for further work.
There is also a book of draft worship resources – Prayers of Love and Faith. It is a range of prayers and readings which could be used in a church service, such as a Service of the Word or a Service within a Celebration of Holy Communion.
There are prayers of thanksgiving and dedication and a prayer for God’s blessing as well as prayers for use with specific elements of a service, such as a Prayer when Rings are Worn and Prayers at the lighting of a candle.
Opening the letter the bishops write: “We want to apologise for the ways in which the Church of England has treated LGBTQI+ people – both those who worship in our churches and those who do not.
“For the times we have rejected or excluded you, and those you love, we are deeply sorry.
“The occasions on which you have received a hostile and homophobic response in our churches are shameful and for this we repent.
“As we have listened, we have been told time and time again how we have failed LGBTQI+ people.
“We have not loved you as God loves you, and that is profoundly wrong. We affirm, publicly and unequivocally, that LGBTQI+ people are welcome and valued: we are all children of God.”
Describing the prayers and readings, they explain: “This resource will offer clergy a variety of flexible ways to affirm and celebrate same-sex couples in church, and will include prayers of dedication, thanksgiving and for God’s blessing.”
They continue: “This resource will represent a significant move that is intended as a loving and celebratory response to same-sex couples who are cherished and deeply valued by the Church.”
They explain that the prayers will be entirely discretionary and that the formal teaching of the Church of England as set out in the canons and authorised liturgies – that Holy Matrimony is between one man and one woman for life – would not change.
“While there is a range of convictions held by the bishops about this important matter, we have not found sufficient consensus to propose a change in doctrine at the present time,” they write.
The bishops’ proposals will be discussed in detail at General Synod which meets at Church House, Westminster, from February 6 to 9.
The Bishop of London, Sarah Mullally, who chaired the group which led the process of discernment and decision making, said: “We are so grateful to the thousands of people across the Church of England who have taken part in this unique exercise in listening and learning together.
“I would like to thank all those who took part, sharing often deeply personal experiences, with great patience and courage.
“This has shown us vividly the diverse beliefs and hopes that are found among those who call the Church of England their spiritual home.
“We have taken all of those responses to heart and they have been vital in helping shape the proposals which we are putting forward today.”
More information
- Draft Prayers of Love and Faith
- A response from the Bishops of the Church of England about identity, sexuality, relationships and marriage
- Read the full agenda for the February 2023 group of sessions
Synod will debate the Following motion on February 8:
‘That this Synod, recognising the commitment to learning and deep listening to God and to each other of the Living in Love and Faith process, and desiring with God’s help to journey together while acknowledging the different deeply held convictions within the Church:
(a) lament and repent of the failure of the Church to be welcoming to LGBTQI+ people and the harm that LGBTQI+ people have experienced and continue to experience in the life of the Church;
(b) recommit to our shared witness to God’s love for and acceptance of every person by continuing to embed the Pastoral Principles in our life together locally and nationally;
(c) commend the continued learning together enabled by the Living in Love and Faith process and resources in relation to identity, sexuality, relationships and marriage;
(d) welcome the decision of the House of Bishops to replace Issues in Human Sexuality with new pastoral guidance;
(e) welcome the response from the College of Bishops and look forward to the House of Bishops further refining, commending and issuing the Prayers of Love and Faith described in GS 2289 and its Annexes;
(f) invite the House of Bishops to monitor the Church’s use of and response to the Prayers of Love and Faith, once they have been commended and published, and to report back to Synod in five years’ time.’
Bishop of Llandaff
The Rt Revd Mary Stallard, the Assistant Bishop in Bangor, was elected Bishop of Llandaff by the Electoral College of the Church in Wales today. Details are on the news pages of the provincial website: New Bishop of Llandaff elected.
3 CommentsDean of Gloucester
Updated Friday – The press release has been updated so that the first paragraph now reads:
The King has approved the nomination of The Reverend Canon Andrew Zihni, Canon Precentor of Southwark Cathedral, to be appointed Dean of Gloucester, in succession to The Right Reverend Stephen Lake following his appointment as Bishop of Salisbury.
Press release from the Prime Minister’s Office
Appointment of the Dean of Gloucester: 19 January 2023
The King has approved the nomination of The Reverend Canon Andrew Zihni for election as Dean of Gloucester.
From: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street
Published 19 January 2023
The King has approved the nomination of The Reverend Canon Andrew Zihni, Canon Precentor of Southwark Cathedral for election as Dean of Gloucester, in succession to The Right Reverend Stephen Lake following his appointment as Bishop of Salisbury.
Andrew was educated at Merton College, Oxford, and trained for ministry at St Stephen’s House, Oxford. He served his title in the Parishes of Goldthorpe and Hickleton in the Diocese of Sheffield and was ordained priest in 2003.
In 2006 Andrew was appointed Minor Canon and School Chaplain, St George’s Chapel Windsor. In 2014 he was appointed Assistant Director of Vocations in the Diocese of Southwark and Honorary Minor Canon of Southwark Cathedral and additionally served as Priest Vicar, Westminster Abbey from 2018.
Andrew took up his current role as Canon Precentor of Southwark Cathedral and Chapter Safeguarding Lead in January 2021.
14 Comments