Updated Saturday afternoon to add last two items
Laudable Practice The myopia of not propagating Anglicanism
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church Deference and Obedience – Christian Virtues?
Unadulterated Love On Being a Feral Priest
Andrew Forshew-Cain ViaMedia.News The First Signs of Spring?
Hattie Williams interviews Meg Munn, the independent chair of the National Safeguarding Panel, for Church Times No one ‘should ever stop being vigilant’ of risks
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church The Meg Munn CT interview – signs of hope for the future
0 CommentsThe agenda for next month’s meeting of the Church of England’s General Synod (released yesterday) includes an addition to the original timetable, this motion from the two archbishops:
That this Synod, knowing through the experiences of parishes across the country that social divisions feel more entrenched and intractable than for many years, and concerned at the divisions within the major political parties which are stifling the emergence of a hopeful and viable vision for the common good in our communities:
(a) call upon every diocese and parish regularly to hold in prayer their local MPs and politicians and the members of Her Majesty’s Government and civil servants, seeking God’s strength and wisdom for the responsibilities they bear;
(b) reaffirm the Christian commitment to putting the voices of the poor and marginalised at the heart of the nation’s concerns; and
(c) call upon the nation’s leaders, drawing on Christian hope and reconciliation, to work together for that common good at this time of division.
The debate will be held on the afternoon of Saturday 23 February, the closing day of the Synod meeting.
There is this official press release:
General Synod to debate call for reconciliation for divided nation
25/01/2019
The UK’s political leaders should draw on “Christian hope and reconciliation” to help steer the country through a time of seemingly “entrenched and intractable” divisions, according to the Archbishops of Canterbury and York.
The call comes in the text of a special motion on the state of the nation, tabled by the two archbishops, to be debated by the Church of England’s General Synod, which meets in London next month.
It speaks of divisions within the major political parties and calls for every parish and diocese to pray regularly for their local MPs, other politicians, the Government and civil servants.
The timetable for February’s meeting of Synod had been amended to make time for the special debate.
An updated timetable and full agenda are published today alongside the first set of papers.
A further batch of papers for Synod will be published next Friday (February 1, 2019).
Synod meets at Church House Westminster from Wednesday February 20 to Saturday February 23.
Press reports
Harriet Sherwood The Guardian C of E leaders rebuke politicians for ‘stifling’ Brexit reconciliation
Adam Becket Church Times Synod to debate the country’s ‘entrenched and intractable social divisions’
10 CommentsUpdate (1 February) Links to the second batch of papers have been added
Update (19 February) Link to Questions notice paper added
Update (20, 24 February) more notice papers etc added
The first batch of papers for next month’s meeting of the Church of England’s General Synod are now available online. The remaining papers will be issued on 1 February and I will add links when these become available.
Papers in numerical order with a note of the day scheduled for their consideration are listed below the fold. Synod meets from Wednesday 20 to Saturday 23 February in London.
The Agenda is here and the Report by the Business Committee (Guide to the February 2019 group of sessions) is here.
0 CommentsPeter Leonard ViaMedia.News The Power of Grass Roots Rebellion
Richard Peers Quodcumque – Serious Christianity The Truth About Changing the Church
Andrew Brown The Guardian Justin Welby’s speaking in tongues makes sense to his evangelical tribe
Andrew Lightbown Theore0 Speaking in praise of the elderly and the young.
Jeremy Morris ViaMedia.News IICSA – Holding the Past to Account?
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church Help required for Safeguarding incident
[If you have any advice or help for Stephen please post it on his blog and not here.]
Church of England parishes are required to prepare a new electoral roll before this year’s Annual Parochial Church Meetings. The CofE’s Parish Resources website has published the following advice on the effect of the GDPR on the electoral roll.
GDPR and Preparation of Electoral Roll 2019
We are aware that GDPR has raised some concerns regarding the renewal of the Electoral Roll. As the law currently stands, there is no need to amend the electoral roll forms, consent is not required. An informative note explaining the legal bases will be added to the forms in due course but the legal position is not dependent on this note.
The Church of England’s GDPR Team have produced guidance to clarify these issues (link below). They have also produced an electoral roll Privacy Notice which explains the GDPR issues for those individuals applying to the electoral roll. You should publish this on your website and/or give it to people who request an application form.
Download Guidance on the Electoral Roll and GDPR
Download the electoral roll Privacy Notice
[H/T to Law and Religion UK for bringing this to my attention.]
4 CommentsColin Coward Unadulterated Love Being who I am
Malcolm Doney and Martin Wroe Church Times Is Christian language to blame for falling church attendance?
Terence Handley MacMath interviews Natalie Collins, gender-justice specialist for Church Times
‘Christianity should be at the forefront of gender justice, but it isn’t’
Kelvin Holdsworth What’s in Kelvin’s Head How shall we pray for our elected representatives?
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church Survivors of Sexual Abuse in Churches – further reflections
38 CommentsJonathan Clatworthy Château Clâteau Can evangelicals evangelise?
Richard Peers Quodcumque – Serious Christianity Candlemas: for schools and homes
The Bible in a Year?: Evangelicals, lectionaries and apps
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church ‘Concerned Anglicans’ in Oxford- who are they speaking for?
and Concerned Anglicans in Oxford. Are they all Anglican?
Trevor Thurston-Smith The Pensive Pilgrim Saving the Best Wine Until Last
Laudable Practice Giving Thanks for Elizabeth I
15 CommentsAndrew Lightbown Theore0 Talking of being in Christ as the gateway to radical new inclusivity
Clare Hayns Consider the Lilies Head above the Parapet
Marcus Green The Possibility of Difference fake good news
Angela Tilby Church Times The trans guidance is not radical
Miranda Threlfall-Holmes Church Times Evangelism isn’t just for the Evangelicals
“Progressive Christians have good news to impart, not pre-packaged solutions”
Martin Sewell Archbishop Cranmer Church of England Safeguarding Guidelines: progress, regression or PR spin?
Colin Coward Unadulterated Love The mystical Jesus and non-dualism
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church Steeplejacking – subversion and schism in the local Church
0 CommentsThe Bishop of Hereford, the Rt Revd Richard Frith has announced he is to retire in the autumn. His public ministry will end with a service at Hereford Cathedral on Saturday 23 November at 11am. The diocesan press release is here.
17 CommentsFergus Butler-Gallie Archbishop Cranmer Ding-Dong Merrily Online: what can the bust-up over Greggs vegan sausage roll tell us about the Nativity?
Richard Beck Experimental Theology Everyone Already Knows All the Answers
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church 2018 Safeguarding and looking to 2019 and beyond.
5 CommentsHattie Williams writes for Church Times today: Safeguarding: PCCs must report serious incidents to Charity Commission.
PCCs, Diocesan Boards of Finance, and religious communities are now required by the House of Bishops to report any “serious incidents” — safeguarding and non-safeguarding — to the Charity Commission, under new guidance published this week.
As part of the move, the C of E will start compiling national safeguarding statistics for the first time…
The guidance from the Church of England is in these four documents.
There is a press release from the Church of England, which is copied below.
New guidance on reporting serious incidents, approved by the Charity Commission
02/01/2019
The Church of England has published today new House of Bishops’ guidance on reporting safeguarding and other Serious Incidents to the Charity Commission. This is the first time the Church of England has produced Charity Commission approved guidance.
The Charity Commission updated its guidance on Serious Incident Reporting in October 2018, with a particular focus on the reporting of safeguarding Serious Incidents following recent high-profile incidents in the charity sector. All PCCs and DBFs and most Religious Communities are charities and their trustees (eg PCC members, DBF directors) are required to report any Serious Incidents – both safeguarding and non-safeguarding – to the Charity Commission. (more…)
6 CommentsDavid Walker ViaMedia.News Hope at the Hinge of the Year – Football and Fear-filled Futures
Richard Peers Quodcumque – Serious Christianity Give us back our Benedicite! A task for General Synod?
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church Safeguarding and the Falsely Accused
3 CommentsTim Wyatt Church Times Key reports in 2018: everything you need to know
“Too many long documents to read in 2018? Tim Wyatt provides a digest”
Richard Mammana Mockingbird Popsicles and Prayer Books
Colin Coward Unadulterated Love Unconditional Love – a New Year Resolution for 2019
Kelvin Holdsworth What’s in Kelvin’s Head 10 Correct Opinions About Christmas Carols
Jayne Ozanne ViaMedia.News When “the Goodies” become “the Baddies”…
Jonathan Cooper Independent Our Anglican Christmas has been tarnished by the church’s role as an enabler of LGBT hate
36 CommentsLuke Miller Archdeacon of London Happy Anniversary
Cally Hammond Church Times Dear tokens of my passion
“Four years ago, Cally Hammond was diagnosed with breast cancer. It was Christmas.”
The Anglican Communion News Service has compiled a list of Christmas messages from Anglican Primates.
Jonathan Draper Modern Church ’tis the season
Jonathan Clatworthy Château Clâteau The meaning of the Magnificat
Sandra Palmer St Chrysostom’s Church News and Views The Ox and the Ass – inclusive nativities
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church Open Letter to Meg Munn on Safeguarding
… in response to Meg Munn Chair of the National Safeguarding Panel First reflections…
Press release from Number 10
Queen approves nomination of Suffragan Bishop of Jarrow
The Queen has approved the nomination of the Venerable Sarah Elizabeth Clark.Published 20 December 2018
From: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing StreetThe Queen has approved the nomination of the Venerable Sarah Elizabeth Clark, BA, MA, MBA, Archdeacon of Nottingham, in the Diocese of Southwell and Nottingham, to the Suffragan See of Jarrow, in the Diocese of Durham in succession to the Right Reverend Mark Watts Bryant, BA, who resigned on the 8th October 2018.
The Dioceses of Durham and of Southwell and Nottingham have also announced the appointment.
Durham: New Bishop of Jarrow Announced
Southwell and Nottingham: Archdeacon Sarah Clark to be Bishop of Jarrow
The new bishop will be consecrated by the Archbishop of York at 11am on the 27th February in York Minster.
31 CommentsPress release from Number 10
Queen approves nomination of Bishop of Derby
The Queen has approved the nomination of The Right Reverend Elizabeth (Libby) Jane Holden Lane for election as Bishop of Derby.Published 18 December 2018
From: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing StreetThe Queen has approved the nomination of The Right Reverend Elizabeth (Libby) Jane Holden Lane, MA (Oxon), Suffragan Bishop of Stockport, for election as Bishop of Derby in succession to The Right Reverend Alastair Llewellyn John Redfern, MA, PhD, following his resignation on the 31st August 2018.
More details are on the Derby diocesan website: Bishop Libby Lane named as next Bishop of Derby.
47 CommentsThe Episcopal Café Gaudete
Rosie Harper ViaMedia.News “Enjoy But Don’t Inhale!”
Mark Savage BBC Meet the godfathers of the Christmas carol
Helen King sharedconversations Out in Africa?
14 CommentsUpdate An amended timetable was issued on 25 January 2019.
The Business Committee of General Synod has today published the timetable for the February 2019 Group of Sessions in London. The timetable can be downloaded here and an abbreviated version can be found below the fold.
19 CommentsUpdated Friday, Saturday and Tuesday
This report was published yesterday; the press release is copied below.
St George’s PCC had requested, in accordance with the House of Bishops Declaration on the Ministry of Bishops and Priests, that episcopal sacramental and pastoral ministry in the parish be entrusted to a male bishop. Their requirements included this:
iii. whose marital status conforms with Apostolic teaching and practice expressed in the historic teaching and practice of the Church of England.
The PCC complained that the bishop proposed by the Bishop of London had remarried after divorce and was therefore unacceptable to them. In his report on their grievance Sir William concluded that
“the resolution making procedure set out in the House of Bishops’ Declaration concerns theological conviction in relation only to gender and ordained ministry. It does not extend to matters of marital status or indeed any other consideration. The PCC’s grievance against the decision of the Bishop of London to invite the Bishop of Fulham to provide episcopal ministry is therefore unjustified.”
Read the full report for the other parts of the PCC’s grievance.
press release
PCC of St George’s Headstone – report by Independent Reviewer Sir William Fittall
13/12/2018
The report by Sir William Fittall, Independent Reviewer in relation to the House of Bishops Declaration on the Ministry of Bishops and Priests, can be found at the link provided below.
Report
Grievance from the PCC of St George’s Headstone
Update
Madeleine Davies Church Times London PCC’s criteria for accepting a bishop went too far, Sir William Fittall decides
Anglican Mainstream Church of England’s Independent Reviewer supports Bishop of London against parish refusing the Bishop of Fulham over divorce and remarriage
David Pocklington Law & Religion UK Seven Bishops and a PCC: St George’s, Headstone
48 Comments