Updated Thursday morning
The Governing Body of the Church in Wales is meeting today (Wednesday) and tomorrow. The agenda, with links to the papers, is online here.
There are already two press releases
Be inspired by two great Welsh clerics, Archbishop tells Church
Archbishop calls on parishioners to invest in credit unions
with links to speeches by the Archbishop of Wales.
The main item of business tomorrow is the Bill to Enable Women to be Consecrated as Bishop. The meeting is scheduled to continue into Thursday afternoon.
Wales Online yesterday previewed the debate with Women bishops vote could be derailed again.
The chair of WATCH has sent this Message to the Church in Wales.
Update
BBC Church in Wales to vote on women bishops
4 CommentsThe Rt Revd John Packer, the Bishop of Ripon and Leeds, has announced that he will retire on 31 January 2014. His final duties as bishop of the diocese will be on 31 December 2013.
Since his diocese will cease to exist at Easter 2014 with the creation of the new Diocese of Leeds, Bishop Packer will not be replaced.
3 CommentsThe Most Revd Ignatius Kattey, the Archbishop of the Niger Delta, has been kidnapped in Nigeria. David Hamid, the suffragan bishop in Europe, has this report: Nigerian Archbishop with links to our Diocese has been kidnapped.
A Nigerian Anglican Archbishop, one of two who visited our diocese earlier this year, has been kidnapped by armed men on Friday 6 September. The Most Revd Ignatius Kattey and his wife Beatrice were kidnapped near their residence at Eleme, Port Harcourt, last Friday 6 September.
Archbishop Ignatius is the Dean of the Nigerian Church, and Archbishop of the Niger Delta Province, and the second most senior Anglican bishop in the country. According to reports, the kidnappers abandoned the Archbishop’s car containing Mrs Kattey after a police chase. The Archbishop is still missing.
Archbishop Ignatius accompanied Archdeacon of Italy and Malta Jonathan Boardman on visits to Turin and Padua last April, and along with his colleague Archbishop Joseph Akinfenwa came to my office afterwards to report on their visit and explore with me how our partnership and cooperation might be deepened.
Apparently, no group has claimed responsibility and no ransom demand has been made.
Please pray for the safe release of the Archbishop.
The Church of Nigeria Anglican Communion has a brief statement on its website.
There are many reports in the Nigerian press including these.
This Day Live Anglican Archbishop Kattey Kidnapped in Rivers
Nigerian Tribune Anglican Arch-Bishop kidnapped in Rivers State •Police begin manhunt
The Guardian Anglican Bishop Kidnapped In Rivers
PM News Archbishop Kattey kidnapped by gunmen
Other reports include:
6 CommentsAnglican Communion News Service Nigeria Archbishop and wife kidnapped
Anglican Ink Anglican Archbishop kidnapped in Nigeria
Ian Paul blogs about What we should do about Syria.
Andreas Whittam Smith (the First Church Estates Commissioner) writes for The Independent about Here’s how a ‘good’ bank could operate.
Thom S Rainer blogs about Eight Areas Where Many Ministers Are Unprepared for Ministry.
Ted Olsen writes for Christianity Today about The Wars Over Christian Beards.
Jonathan Clatworthy writes for Modern Church about Greenbelt as a churchmanship.
Vicky Beeching has interviewed Steve Holmes for Faith in Feminism: Christian, feminist & conservative on sexuality?
Earlier in the week she interviewed Rachel Mann: Meet Rachel: a trans-woman, gay, feminist priest.
Jon Kuhrt writes for Fulcrum about The Secularisation of Martin Luther King.
2 CommentsPress release from the Church of England today.
First meeting of Women Bishops steering committee
06 September 2013The first meeting of the women Bishops steering committee set up after the General Synod debate in July 2013 took place on 5th and 6th September in Coventry.
The committee considered a first draft of the Measure and amending canon as requested by Synod and also looked at the possible shape of a declaration from the House of Bishops and a mandatory grievance procedure. The discussions were serious, honest and constructive.
The committee is due to meet again on 11th and 12th of October 2013.
We listed the members of the steering committee here.
15 CommentsThe Second Church Estates Commissioner answered a written question in the House of Commons yesterday on the Church Commissioners’ ethical investment policy.
16 CommentsCHURCH COMMISSIONERS
Investment
Helen Goodman: To ask the hon. Member for Banbury, representing the Church Commissioners, what the category limits are of the Church Commissioners’ ethical investment policy.
Sir Tony Baldry: The Church Commissioners are advised on ethical investment policy by the Church of England’s Ethical Investment Advisory Group. In directly held investments, the Church Commissioners avoid investment in companies involved in indiscriminate weaponry and, if their strategic military supplies exceed 10% of turnover, in companies involved in conventional weapons. The Church Commissioners do not invest in companies that derive more than 3% of revenues from the production or distribution of pornography, nor companies a major part of whose business activity or focus (defined as more than 25% of group revenues) is tobacco, gambling, alcoholic drinks, high interest rate lending or human embryonic cloning. Where the Church Commissioners are not able to invest in an asset class directly they do so indirectly (in pooled funds). In indirectly held investments, where the Church Commissioners usually cannot fully implement their ethical restrictions, exposure to businesses operating in excluded sectors is monitored. If the level or nature of exposure to excluded sectors in any one fund becomes unacceptable, the Church Commissioners review the options for remedial action.
Updated
The Diocese of Waikato and Taranaki in New Zealand has announced the election of the Revd Dr Helen-Ann Hartley as the next bishop of Waikato.
The Rev Dr Helen-Ann Hartley has been elected the next Anglican Bishop of Waikato.
Helen-Ann, who is 40, will become the 7th Bishop of Waikato – and the first woman to hold the office. She succeeds Archbishop David Moxon, who is now the Anglican Communion’s ambassador to Rome.
Bishop-elect Helen-Ann is at present Dean of Tikanga Pakeha students at St John’s College in Auckland.
She was born in Edinburgh and grew up in north-east England. She is the fourth generation of her family to be ordained, and was priested in 2005 in the Diocese of Oxford…
The Bishop of Taranaki has issued this letter.
ACNS reports that Church of England female priest elected as NZ bishop.
Dr Hartley was featured in an article published by The New Yorker in 2010 before she moved to New Zealand – A Canterbury Tale: The battle within the Church of England to allow women to be bishops by Jane Kramer.
Update
Bosco Peters writes about having two co-equal Diocesan Bishops in Waikato and Taranaki: New Bishop of Waikato.
31 CommentsJoseph Bottum writes for Commonweal Magazine about The Things We Share: A Catholic’s Case for Same-Sex Marriage.
Kelvin Holdsworth blogs about Atonement theory and the Naughty Step.
The Church Times has a comprehensive review of Greenbelt: Greenbelt 2013 – Life begins…
12 CommentsUpdated thursday, twice
The Archbishop of Canterbury opened the new headquarters of the Evangelical Alliance today, and made some interesting remarks while he was there as these reports show.
Andrew Brown in The Guardian Justin Welby gets real on homophobia
…First, he admitted that the church was “deeply and profoundly divided” over the issue [gay marriage]. This is not at all what he said in the House of Lords at the time, when he claimed that all the major denominations opposed the bill. Yet there is very clear polling evidence from the Westminster Faith debates, to show that Christians, even evangelical Christians, are very conflicted about this, and the opinions of the lay members of the church much more resemble the opinions of unbelievers than they do their own leadership.
Second, he used the term “homophobia” in an honest way. There are still some evangelicals who claim it is a made-up term that refers to nothing in particular. Not so Welby. Gay marriage was, he said, an attempt to deal with issues of homophobia. “The church has not been good at dealing with it. We have implicitly and even explicitly supported [homophobia] and that demands repentance.”…
John Bingham in The Telegraph Archbishop urges Christians to ‘repent’ over ‘wicked’ attitude to homosexuality
The Most Rev Justin Welby told an audience of traditional born-again Christians that they must “repent” over the way gay and lesbian people have been treated in the past and said most young people viewed Christians as no better than racists on the issue.
Archbishop Welby, who as a young priest once opposed allowing gay couples to adopt children, said the church now had to face up to what amounted to one of the most rapid changes in public attitudes ever.
While insisting that he did not regret voting against same-sex marriage in the House of Lords, he admitted that his own mind was not yet “clear” on the wider issues which he was continuing to think about….
The Guardian also has this report from the Press Association: Young people think opposition to gay marriage is wicked, says archbishop.
The archbishop of Canterbury has said his stance against gay marriage could be seen as “wicked”. Justin Welby said he stood by his decision to vote against same-sex marriage legislation, but said opposing the move could be seen by some as akin to “racism and other forms of gross and atrocious injustice”…
The Evangelical Alliance itself has reported the event, but does not appear to have heard what the Archbishop said about homophobia: Welby calls on Church to model racial unity.
The Archbishop of Canterbury has called on the UK Church to re-commit to unity across ethnic divides, 50 years after Martin Luther King’s famous ‘I have a dream’ speech…
Update
Paul Bignall in The Independent Archbishop of Canterbury: My gay marriage view can be seen as ‘akin to racism’
The Evangelical Alliance has now published this, Official opening with the Archbishop of Canterbury, with links to a video of the Archbishop’s address, and to audio from the official opening (Q&A session starts at 36:55).
72 CommentsRichard Beck blogs that Blessed are the Tricksters.
John Martin writes for Fulcrum about Ten Things a Vicar Needs To Hear…often.
Peter Harrison writes for ABC Religion and Ethics about Setting the record straight: Christianity and the rise of modern science.
Anthony Woollard writes for Modern Church about The wrath of God.
Christopher Howse of The Telegraph has been to Ely Cathedral: Eight oak trees suspended in air.
1 CommentBenjamin Myers writes for ABC Religion and Ethics about Reflected glory: Imitation, biography and moral formation in early Christianity.
Kenan Malik writes about What do Believers Believe? (not what you might expect).
Matthew Reisz has interviewed Sarah Coakley for Times Higher Education: What’s God got to do with evolution?
Rob Williams writes in The Independent that Religious people are less intelligent than atheists, according to analysis of scores of scientific studies stretching back over decades.
Frank Furedi responds with Atheists are more intelligent than religious people? That’s ‘sciencism’ at its worst.
James Fodor writes for Bible Society Australia: An atheist’s point of view: why Christians aren’t being heard.
7 CommentsUpdated Monday morning
Rowan Williams, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, spoke at the Edinburgh international book festival today.
Charlotte Higgins has a comprehensive report in The Guardian: Rowan Williams tells ‘persecuted’ western Christians to grow up.
Christians in Britain and the US who claim that they are persecuted should “grow up” and not exaggerate what amounts to feeling “mildly uncomfortable”, according to Rowan Williams, who last year stepped down as archbishop of Canterbury after an often turbulent decade.
“When you’ve had any contact with real persecuted minorities you learn to use the word very chastely,” he said. “Persecution is not being made to feel mildly uncomfortable. ‘For goodness sake, grow up,’ I want to say.” …
Asked if he had let down gay and lesbian people, he said after a pause: “I know that a very great many of my gay and lesbian friends would say that I did. The best thing I can say is that is a question that I ask myself really rather a lot and I don’t quite know the answer.” …
Other papers concentrate on just one topic each.
Hannah Furness in The Telegraph ‘Persecuted’ British Christians need to ‘grow up’, says former Archbishop Rowan Williams
Scott Roberts in Pink News Rowan Williams: My gay friends think I let them down as Archbishop of Canterbury
Ekklesia Ex-archbishop feels he may have let down LGBT people
Update 1
Catriona Webster in the Cambridge News Western Christians who feel persecuted should ‘grow up’, says former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams
Update 2
Rowan Williams has clarified some of his remarks in a letter to The Guardian.
77 CommentsThe Governing Body of the Church in Wales will be meeting next month. On the agenda is a bill to allow women to be bishops. The Church has issued this press release today.
14 CommentsChurch to vote on women bishops
The Church in Wales will decide next month whether or not to allow women priests to be ordained as bishops.
A Bill, proposed by the six diocesan bishops of the Church, will be voted on by the 144 members of the Church’s legislative arm, the Governing Body, at the University of Wales, Trinity Saint David, at Lampeter, on Thursday, September 12.
The Bill will need a two-thirds majority in each of the three sections of the Governing Body in order to be passed – the House of Bishops, the House of Clergy and the House of Laity. However, if it is passed, it will not come into effect until a second Bill, outlining a scheme of provision for those who cannot accept women bishops, is written and passed.
The process will start with a vote on three proposed amendments to the Bill.
The Archbishop of Wales, Dr Barry Morgan, says, “Since we ordain women as deacons and priests it makes no theological sense not to ordain them as bishops since we believe in the three fold order of ministry. That is why I and my fellow bishops will be asking members of the Governing Body to vote in favour of the Bill. It would not be able to come into effect immediately but at least we would have established the principle to which I believe most people in the Church assent.”
This will be the Bishops’ second attempt to pass a Bill to ordain women as bishops. Their first Bill was defeated in April 2008 when it failed, by three votes, to secure a two-thirds majority in the House of Clergy.
The two-day Governing Body meeting begins on Wednesday at 1.30pm with an address by the President, the Archbishop of Wales. The Bill to enable the Consecration of Women as Bishops will be introduced on Thursday at 9.30am.
Also on the Agenda are:
- Church in Wales Review – a progress report on the Review which will include a motion to support a framework for setting up “Ministry Areas” across Wales. A Ministry Area is a large group of churches led by a team of clergy and lay people. They are designed to replace the traditional parish system as a more effective structure for ministry for today’s society.
- Schools – the launch of a bond to strengthen the relationship between church schools in Wales and the National Society for Promoting Religious Education. The Revd Janina Ainsworth, the General Secretary of the National Society, will address the Governing Body, before she joins the Archbishop to sign a Memorandum of Understanding between the NS and the Church in Wales. The Memorandum marks a restatement of common purpose and shared commitment to the 25,000 pupils, staff and communities of the 165 Church in Wales schools.
The Bill and its proposed amendments, as well as the full Agenda of the Governing Body meeting, will be on the Church in Wales website after August 28 here.
The Church of England has released Cathedral Statistics 2012 today and this press release.
Growing decade for cathedral congregations, show latest stats
The number of worshippers at Church of England cathedrals increased in 2012, continuing the growing trend seen since the Millennium. Total weekly attendance at the 43* cathedrals grew to 35,800, according to Cathedral Statistics 2012, an increase of 35% since 2002.
Along with occasional and special services, the regular worshipping life of cathedrals has proved more popular than ever over the past decade with cathedrals pointing to stronger community links attracting more people (see case studies below).
Easter 2012 saw the highest attendance in the last decade, at 54,700. Attendance at midweek services has grown most, from 8,900 in 2002 to 16,800, while Sunday attendance has grown from 17,500 to 19,100.
The numbers of children and young people attending educational events is the highest for 10 years (306,800 in 2012 compared to 265,100 in 2002).
The number of volunteers serving cathedrals continued to rise, reaching 15,570, 30% up on the 11,930 in 2002. Between them, they fulfil a range of 860 voluntary roles across the country.
Other regular services, run at least once a month, attracted a further 1,639,300 worshippers. Around one million attended more than 5000 public/civil events in the cathedrals, down from a peak in 2010 but still nearly twice as many as in 2002. 2,900 specially arranged services, such as annual festivals and school leavers’ services attracted a further 930,000.
Dr Bev Botting, Head of Research and Statistics for the Archbishops’ Council said: “Cathedrals continue to flourish as worshipping communities while offering a valuable insight into our nation’s heritage. The statistics show people of all ages are increasingly drawn to cathedrals for worship, to attend educational and civic events, and to volunteer to ensure our cathedrals are open to all those who are drawn to visit and worship in these wonderful buildings”
Notes
*There are 43 cathedrals in the Church of England, 44 including the Cathedral Church of Holy Trinity, Gibraltar in the Diocese in Europe
There are three case studies below the fold.
20 CommentsGraelyn Brashear writes for C-Ville about The rite stuff: What the Episcopal Church’s position on gay marriage can teach us about the middle ground.
Savi Hensman writes for Ekklesia in response to the article by Andrew Goddard that we linked to last week: Church of England: Is error really better than uncertainty?
Kelvin Holdsworth writes for The Herald: I shall express anger and frustration as I march with Pride.
Tiffany Gee Lewis writes for The Guardian about Where the godless don’t go.
Christopher Howse writes in The Telegraph about Onward, Christian Soldiers: Arthur Sullivan’s greatest hit.
6 CommentsThe Revd Canon Sue Booys has been elected Chair of the Business Committee of the General Synod of the Church of England, it was announced today. The detailed election results are here.
Canon Booys is team rector of the Dorchester Team of Churches in the diocese of Oxford.
2 CommentsRachel Held Evans writes for CNN about Why millennials are leaving the church.
John Flowers and Karen Vannoy write for Ministry Matters Why Worship Shouldn’t Feel Like Family.
Some of our readers may find this new blog helpful: The Low Churchman’s Guide to the Solemn High Mass.
Stanley Hauerwas asks Does Anglicanism have a future? The priority of the local and the inevitability of conflict at ABC Religion and Ethics.
Benny Hazlehurst writes for the Church of England Newspaper about Demythologising Pride.
Linda Woodhead writes for the OUP blog that Wonga-bashing won’t save the Church of England.
Giles Fraser argues in The Guardian that Far from confining itself to matters spiritual, the church has a duty to get involved in politics.
Andrew Goddard writes for Fulcrum about Sexual Revolution: Responding Reasonably and Faithfully.
15 Comments10 Downing Street has announced:
The Queen has approved the nomination of the Venerable Martyn James Snow, BSc, BTh, MA, Archdeacon of Sheffield and Rotherham in the diocese of Sheffield to the Suffragan See of Tewkesbury, in the Diocese of Gloucester, in succession to the Right Reverend John Stewart Went, MA, on his resignation on 16 April 2013…
The Diocese of Gloucester has The New Bishop of Tewkesbury has been announced.
The Diocese of Sheffield has Archdeacon Martyn Snow appointed as The New Bishop of Tewkesbury.
121 CommentsI reported on this on Friday here, and there are two links to articles in yesterday’s opinion.
Press reports have referred to the Church of England’s “pension fund”. There are in fact two clergy pensions funds. For service prior to 1998 clergy pensions are paid by the Church Commissioners from their assets. More recent service is financed by the Church of England Pensions Board. It may not be clear from many of the press reports, but the indirect investment in Wonga is held by the Church Commissioners, and not by the Pensions Board. Both bodies take advice from the Ethical Investment Advisory Group.
Channel 4 News has this helpful FactCheck: What else does the Church of England invest in?.
Many more articles have appeared in the last couple of days. Here are some.
The Guardian
Rupert Neate Justin Welby says Wonga revelations will not divert him
William Taylor The church must be an activist: fight for the poor and expose the corrupt
Marina Hyde I’ve got a crush on the archbishop of Canterbury
The Telegraph
Cole Moreton Justin Welby’s Wonga revelation
Jenny McCartney Archbishop Justin Welby is on the money over Wonga
Financial Times
Sharlene Goff and Brooke Masters Archbishop orders inquiry into Wonga funding
The Independent
Editorial Payday lenders? The Church should keep to matters spiritual
Simon Read Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby rows back on war on Wonga: ‘Loan sharks are worse’
Ian Birrell Politics and religion do mix well after all
BBC Radio 4
There was a discussion on ethical investments in this morning’s Sunday programme, starting at 38 minutes.
Nick Baines writes on his blog about Same world, different worlds.
Yesterday I linked to Sam Macrory’s interview with the Archbishop of Canterbury for Total Politics: Archbishop’s Move: Can Welby restore faith in the church?. But it wasn’t just about payday lenders; do read it all.
Ian Ellis of the Church of Ireland Gazette interviewed Bishop Nigel Stock on the subject of Women in the Episcopate legislation, during the July 2013 York meeting of the Church of England General Synod.
Andrew Brown writes in The Guardian about Welby, Wonga and the moral dilemma of financial investments.
Giles Fraser writes in The Guardian: Thank God we have an archbishop who views Wonga’s loans as modern slavery.
5 Comments