The Society under the patronage of St Wilfred and St Hilda has announced a process whereby priests in sympathy with the society can register. This is explained by Colin Podmore in this article, which also appears in the Advent newsletter. The following is taken from the website of the Bishop of Beverley:
Priests of The Society
Colin Podmore encourages priests to sign up and make the Society Declaration.Catholics believe that both women and men are called to different ministries in the Church. But for theological reasons, we are unable to receive the sacramental ministry of women as priests (presiding at the Eucharist) or bishops (ordaining priests to preside at the Eucharist).
So when the Church of England has women bishops, how can we know that a priest has been ordained by a bishop whose sacramental ministry of ordination we do recognise? How can we be confident that when he celebrates the Eucharist, we really do receive the sacrament of Our Lord’s Body and Blood?
The need to offer an easy answer to that question of ‘sacramental assurance’ is one of the reasons why our bishops have formed The Society. As it says on the Society website, the Society provides ‘ministry, sacraments and oversight which we can receive with confidence’.
Priests are now invited to make a Declaration which says that they:
- believe and teach the catholic faith
- are currently entitled to minister as a priest in the Church of England*
- have been ordained by a male bishop in the apostolic succession of bishops at whose ordination male bishops presided
- will themselves not receive or join in the sacramental ministry of women priests and bishops or those whom they have ordained
- will place themselves personally under the oversight of a Bishop of The Society (although they will remain under the legal jurisdiction of their diocesan bishop).
When the relevant Bishop of the Society receives a Declaration from a priest, he will welcome him as a Priest of The Society. The Welcome Letter will serve as proof that the priest is someone whose sacramental ministry we can receive with confidence.
Of course, there will still be validly ordained priests who are not Priests of The Society. Clergy (and, during vacancies, churchwardens) will need to ask some delicate questions about their orders before inviting them to say mass. With Priests of The Society, that research will not be necessary.
Catholic parishes naturally want as their priest someone who is in full communion not only with his bishop, but with all the priests whom that bishop has ordained, and who will support the resolutions passed by the PCC. When advertising for, or interviewing, potential new parish priests, asking them whether they are Priests of The Society will be an easy way of finding out where they stand.
Being a Priest of The Society costs nothing, although the bishops hope that priests and people of The Society will join Forward in Faith, because it is the membership organization which administers The Society on their behalf, and helps to pay for it. Being a priest of The Society involves only the basic obligations of relating to one of our bishops, and looking to him for sacramental ministry we can no longer find elsewhere.
So if a priest has not made the Declaration and become a Priest of The Society, why not?
There is further information on this page, which is copied below the fold.
40 CommentsUpdated again Sunday evening
The Church of England has now published the “Green report” on its own website, here.
together with A Note from the Bishop of Ely on “The Green Report”. He is described at the end of that note as:
Chair of the Development and Appointments Group (DAG) – a sub-committee of the House of Bishops with oversight of the development for senior clerical posts as well as the appointments processes to them.
Several recruitment advertisements have appeared:
Head of Senior Leadership Development
Talent Development Manager and more detail here and also here.
Updates
The Archbishop of Canterbury has issued The Green Report: A Response.
The Dean of Liverpool has written Lord Green’s Report: A reflection [f]rom a member of the Group.
Andrew Lightbown has responded to the above in this article: An open letter to advocates of the Green Report.
Al Barrett has written On ‘talent pools’ and floods…
Justin Lewis-Anthony has written A Gregorian critique of Managerialism, i
Update The full essay is now available here as a 22 page PDF.
And Oliver Coss has something to say about this in his post on another topic, see The Suffragan See of Stockport.
Archdruid Eileen offers us The Church of England / Business Translator.
The Financial Times has a news report: Church of England management courses overlook God, say critics registration required
Mark Clavier has written It shall not be among you.
20 CommentsUpdated
Several commentators have written about these proposals for business school style training programmes for selected clergy. Here are some links, and I will add more as I discover them (or as readers report them to me).
Andrew Lightbown An open letter to Lord Green et al
Richard Murphy Should the Church of England really be taking a lead from Lord Stephen Green?
Rachel Mann ‘These are not the leaders you’re looking for’ – talent pools, management & the C of E
Michael Sadgrove The Next Generation of Church Leaders: thoughts on the Green Report
Updates
“Archbishop Cranmer” Church of England to spend £2m on “new approach” to leadership
Ian Paul Should bishops come from a ‘talent pool’?
Ruth Gledhill Can business training solve CofE’s ‘toxic’ leadership problem?
“Archdruid Eileen” Infecting the Church with Mangerialism
27 CommentsIan Ellis of the Church of Ireland Gazette has interviewed Rowan Williams. You can listen to the interview here. Topics include Christian Aid and the European Union; there’s a list of contents with timings below the fold.
Kelvin Holdsworth blogs about The Peace and Unity and Order of the Church.
Rachel Mann blogs on Headship and Holiness: ‘It’s a Trap!’ or ‘Why the Bishop of Maidstone might be particularly bad news for Conservative Evangelicals’
2 CommentsThe Church Times today carries several articles about the recommendations made in a report which is titled Talent Management for Future Leaders and Leadership Development for Bishops and Deans: A New Approach.
Paul Handley has written a news report: Plan to groom ‘talent’ for high office in C of E Report of the Lord Green Steering Group.
Martyn Percy has written a highly critical review of the report: Are these the leaders that we really want? Here are two extracts:
…In terms of process, there is a problem about the composition of the group who produced the report. Not one ordained woman was on the review group – and at a time when the Church is about to welcome women bishops. This is breathtaking. Nor was there a recognised theologian, or an academic specialising in continuing professional or vocational education. And, despite the fact that the report raises secular “MBA-style” programmes to a level of apotheosis, no recognised scholar with expertise in management or leadership from the academic world formed part of the core working party.
In the actual text of the Green report, there are a couple of serious issues to wrestle with. First, it has no point of origination in theological or spiritual wisdom. Instead, on offer is a dish of basic contemporary approaches to executive management, with a little theological garnish. A total absence of ecclesiology flows from this. The report has little depth or immersion in educational literature.
A more notable absence is any self-awareness in the report: unaware of critiques of management, executive authority, and leadership which abound in academic literature, it is steeped in its own uncritical use of executive management-speak…
And this:
…Ultimately, the report is coy about the problem it is actually trying to solve: ecclesiastical preferment. No definition of leadership is ever advanced in the text. The report shows no evidence of having solicited the views of the led. Or of former church leaders. The executive managers already know what they are looking for in preferment – folk like themselves.
There is no critique offered of the expectations placed on church leaders. The text focuses on training people for management tasks that the review group take as givens. No different models of leadership are discussed, such as servanthood, collaborative ministry, or pastoral care.
Although executive managers are patently not the leaders of the Church, they none the less aspire to be in charge. If this report is put into practice, they will be. A few administrative offices either side of the Thames, based in Church House, Westminster, or at the Wash House at Lambeth Palace – secretariats that once served the Church – will become sovereign.
THIS work on leadership in the Church really needs to begin in a different place with different people, starting with deep spiritual, intellectual, and theological interlocutors. They would produce something less presumptuous, with a clearer methodology and a cogent argument rather than a set of assertions…
And there is a Church Times leader column: A pooling of talents.
…there are other models of management and leadership: ones that require a humility that is unlikely to be engendered by an invitation to join an elite leadership pool. Had Lord Green’s steering group looked at the Church’s systems rather than its individuals, they might have concluded that a pool of talent exists already in the Church, and that it is not necessary to train individual leaders to hold every skill. When diocesan bishops, say, function as part of a diocesan team, they will draw on any expertise that they lack: finance, human resources, and so on. In such a system, the concept of leadership runs counter to the alpha-male model depicted in the Green report. Here the bishop is an enabler, challenger, or encourager. It is probably notable that, while the word “leader” occurs 171 times in the report, the word “pastor” or “pastoral” does not appear once.
There is clear value in a checklist for ministerial training. It is wise stewardship to ensure that the right skills are nurtured, and that people are encouraged to apply for the right posts. The present ad hoc system, which relies too heavily on being noticed or finding favour, is inadequate. It is wise, too, to borrow best practice from secular institutions; but it needs to be applicable to an institution that, uniquely, follows a founder whose evidence-based record of leadership involved abandonment and death.
The report itself is already in quite wide circulation, although it is not yet on the CofE website, and there seems to be no page there dealing with the Development and Appointments Group, which appears to be a subcommittee of the House of Bishops.
Thinking Anglicans was shown it several weeks ago. Readers may judge the full report for themselves here.
Curiously, another document has also just appeared, which though closely related in subject matter is of a quite different character. It is from the CofE Faith and Order Commission, and entitled Senior Church Leadership A Resource for Reflection. Sadly very little of its thinking seems to have permeated the Green report. It is available here.
66 CommentsThe fibre optic cables that provide internet access to our server are going to be replaced tomorrow (Saturday 13 December 2014). The work will start at 15:00 GMT (7am California time, 10am New York time) and will continue until it is done. This is estimated to take 5 hours, but it could be longer.
This site will not be available whilst this work is carried out.
Please do not be worried…
0 CommentsThe fifth and final debate of the current Oxford series took place last Thursday. Audio recordings of the entire event are now available on this page.
Those who have been attending regularly seemed to agree that this debate was the best of the series. Do listen to it all if you can.
Links to the opening statements:
Link to the ensuing discussion.
Lorraine Cavanagh has written about the event here: What does the Church of England offer the next generation?
Update Video highlights are also now available here.
27 CommentsThe Scottish Episcopal Church has issued guidance in relation to the Marriage and Civil Partnership (Scotland) Act 2014. The substance of the guidance is very similar to that issued in February by the Church of England House of Bishops.
TO ALL CLERGY AND LAY READERS FROM THE COLLEGE OF BISHOPS
Later this month key parts of the Marriage and Civil Partnership (Scotland) Act 2014 will come into force. Conscious that the Scottish Episcopal Church is currently in a period of discussion regarding its understanding of same-sex relationships, the College of Bishops has produced guidance to support and inform clergy and lay readers in the exercise of their ministries and in their provision of pastoral care.
A copy of the Guidance is attached
Regards
John Stuart
Secretary General
Earlier statements from the Scottish Episcopal Church can be found here.
A response from Changing Attitude Scotland can be found here.
Update Changing Attitude Scotland has this digest of responses.
30 CommentsThe All Party Parliamentary Group on food poverty released its report Feeding Britain today. The Group was chaired by the Bishop of Truro, Tim Thornton, and Frank Field MP.
The Archbishop of Canterbury spoke at the launch and a copy of his speech is available here, and an article written by the Archbishop on food poverty in the Mail on Sunday is available here.
There was much media anticipation of the report overnight.
Patrick Wintour and Patrick Butler The Guardian Tories seek to avert rift with Church of England over food bank report
and Nick Clegg calls for rethink on benefits sanctions to help tackle food poverty
Andy McSmith The Independent Food banks: Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby urges politicians to face up to Britain’s hunger
Matthew Holehouse The Telegraph Families go hungry as supermarkets send millions of tonnes of food for landfill
ITV News ‘Stop food waste and speed up benefits payments to end UK hunger,’ say MPs and church in foodbank report
Hannah Richardson BBC News ‘Pay benefits faster’ to reduce hunger, MPs urge
And more since publication
Graham Riches The Guardian Food banks don’t solve food poverty. The UK must not institutionalise them
Rose Troup Buchanan The Independent Almost 50% of referrals to food banks in the UK are due to ‘issues with the welfare system’
Frank Field and John Glen New Statesman Food banks: why can’t people afford to eat in the world’s sixth richest country?
Lucinda Borkett-Jones Christian Today Britain’s hunger crisis: Bishop of Truro says benefits system doesn’t work
Keith Hebden Ekklesia Feeding Britain: A start, but much more emphasis on justice needed
Vic Van Den Bergh More than ‘Just a service’ – Funerals
Michael Sadgrove Cathedrals: a success story?
Giles Fraser The Guardian The whole point of Christianity is to create a deeper form of humanism
Madeleine Davies Church Times The Maasai – a tradition in transition
25 CommentsYesterday I published details of the forthcoming Appointment of a bishop who takes a conservative evangelical view on headship. There are already many comments on that article.
Tim Wyatt has written this for the Church Times Ground is laid for a conservative Evangelical bishop.
Kelvin Holdsworth has posed 10 questions arising from the misogyny of a “headship” bishop.
WATCH have issued this response:
WATCH Response to ‘Headship’ Bishop
WATCH is disappointed to read that the Church of England is set to appoint a Bishop based predominantly on a narrow theology of ‘Headship’ (ie. a Conservative Evangelical who believes only men should be in positions of overall leadership).
Evangelicalism has long been a much broader tradition than one defined by its position on the ordination and consecration of women. We believe that to choose a bishop based on one specific view, held by only a small group, can only serve to be divisive. It is likely to lead to the separation of parishes from one another within a local area and diocese, when the whole thrust of the legislative package for women to be bishops was that we would remain together in our work and mission.
In a separate development, we are keen to know whether the Archbishop of York will consecrate the newly appointed Bishop of Burnley, Rev Philip North, who opposes the ordination of women. It would seem to us bizarre if a suffragan bishop declined to be consecrated by his own archbishop and even his own diocesan bishop, because he did not recognise them as bishops.
Hilary Cotton, Chair of WATCH says: ‘We have never accepted the appointment of any bishop on the grounds of a particular minority belief: this is distinctly un-Anglican and unorthodox. This goes far beyond disagreement about the ordination of women: it is about bishops recognising each other as bishops. If we lose that, what kind of unity are we demonstrating as a national church?’
Church Society have sent us this:
53 CommentsChurch Society statement on the announcement regarding the appointment of a headship evangelical bishop of Maidstone
Church Society welcomes the news that a man who upholds the complementarian view of headship will soon be appointed to the vacant See of Maidstone.
The measure – recently ratified by Synod – allowing women to be appointed to the episcopate, was passed partly on the basis of five guiding principles. These principles enshrine within the legislation a commitment to the flourishing within the Church of those who hold to what we believe is the biblical view of men and women having complementary roles in church leadership, a view held by many throughout the Anglican Communion and by many other churches also.
The imminent appointment of a bishop with this conviction is an important step in realising that commitment and rebuilding trust in the family of the Church. We are particularly encouraged by the recognition that the evangelical complementarian perspective should be represented in the College of Bishops after several years without a spokesman.
We wish to stress that this is but a first step: for flourishing, rather than mere toleration and tokenism, more surely needs to be done. For example, if soon a complementarian suffragan were to be appointed in the province of York also, that would be a further positive expression of the Church’s intent that complementarians can flourish within the structures and life of the Church. There are many excellent and able conservative evangelical ministers who are willing and able to serve in Diocesan and suffragan roles for the health of the whole church. We pray that they will not be discriminated against in any future appointments process if some may be tempted to say “we will soon have one complementarian evangelical and should not have any others.” The large number of lay people in the Church with complementarian convictions evidences the appropriateness of having several more bishops to pastor, lead, and represent them in the House of Bishops.
Despite this and other remaining concerns, we wish sincerely to thank the Archbishop of Canterbury and his colleagues for keeping his promise, and for seeking to serve us in accordance with our conscience in this matter. We would welcome any opportunity to discuss with him how the arrangements regarding the Bishop of Maidstone could work, and how he can further help complementarian evangelicals to flourish within the Church of England.
Rev Dr Lee Gatiss
Director of Church Society
Revd Paul Darlington
Chairman of Church Society Council
The arrangements to allow the appointment of a Church of England bishop who takes a conservative evangelical view on headship have just been announced in this press release:
Suffragan See of Maidstone
At its meeting on 4 December the Dioceses Commission unanimously agreed with a proposal received from the Archbishop of Canterbury to fill the vacant see of Maidstone. The see, which had been vacant since 2009, had been identified by the Archbishop as one that should be filled by a bishop who takes a conservative evangelical view on headship.
This flows from the public commitment given by the Archbishops and the House of Bishops, in the run up to the final approval by the General Synod of the legislation to allow women to be admitted to the episcopate in July 2014 (see paragraph 30 of House of Bishops Declaration and the Archbishops’ note of June 2013 — GS Misc 1079).
In agreeing with the proposal to fill the see the Commission was conscious of the needs of the national church for a member of the College of Bishops to be able to act as an advocate for those who hold a conservative position on headship.
It made its decision on the understanding that the bishop would foster vocations from those taking this position; that he would undertake episcopal ministry (with the agreement of the relevant diocesan bishop) in dioceses in both Provinces where PCCs have passed the requisite resolution under the House of Bishops’ declaration; and that he would be available to act (again by invitation) as an assistant bishop in a number of dioceses.
While available to take his place in the Foundation of Canterbury Cathedral, the Commission understood that — given his potentially wide geographical remit — the bishop would not otherwise be expected to participate in the life of the Diocese of Canterbury.
The necessary steps to make the appointment will now begin.
ENDS
Notes for Editors
Part of the normal statutory process for filling suffragan sees is for the Dioceses Commission to consider, on behalf of the national church, whether to agree to a proposal from a diocesan bishop to fill such a see.
Suffragan sees are normally filled within a short time frame but the See of Maidstone was left vacant following a diocesan decision to appoint an additional archdeacon.
This conservative evangelical view on headship is summarised on pp 149-151 of Women Bishops in the Church of England? The Report of the House of Bishops’ Working Party on Women In the Episcopate 2004: [GS 1557].
The House of Bishops’ Declaration on the Ministry of Bishops and Priests of 19 May 2014 [GS Misc 1076], which includes the five guiding principles can be read in full at GS Misc 1076.
62 CommentsPress release from the Prime Minister’s Office
Suffragan Bishop of Plymouth: Nicholas McKinnel
From: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street
First published: 2 December 2014
Part of: Community and societyThe Queen has approved the nomination of the Right Reverend Nicholas Howard Paul McKinnel to the Suffragan See of Plymouth.
The Queen has approved the nomination of the Right Reverend Nicholas Howard Paul McKinnel, MA, Suffragan Bishop of Crediton, in the Diocese of Exeter, to the Suffragan See of Plymouth, in the Diocese of Exeter, in succession to the Right Reverend John Frank Ford, MA, on his resignation on 18 November 2013.
Notes for editors
The Right Reverend Nicholas McKinnel (aged 60), was educated at Queens’ College, Cambridge and trained for the ministry at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. He served his curacy at Fulham Saint Mary North End in London Diocese from 1980 to 1983.
From 1983 to 1987 he was Chaplain at Liverpool University. From 1987 to 1988 he was Priest-in-Charge at Hatherleigh in Exeter Diocese. From 1988 to 1994 he was Rector at Hatherleigh, Meeth, Exbourne and Jacobstowe. From 1994 to 1995 he was Priest-in-Charge at Plymouth Saint Andrew with Saint Paul and Saint George. From 1995 to 2012 he was Team Rector of Plymouth Saint Andrew and St Paul, Stonehouse in the Diocese of Exeter, and from 2002 to 2012 he was Prebendary of Exeter Cathedral. Since 2012 he has been Suffragan Bishop of Crediton.
Prebendary Nicholas McKinnel is married and has 4 children. His interests include sport, the arts and the countryside.
From the Exeter diocesan website: New Bishop of Plymouth to be Rt Revd Nick McKinnell
8 CommentsKelvin Holdsworth Six reasons why [some] cathedrals are doing well
and Church blogging – all may, none must, some should
Church Times leader Cathedral conundrum
Andrew Brown The Guardian Talking about fish copulation is no way to discuss the family
Kate Bottley The Guardian I’m all for a mid-week church service – at least it’ll give me a Sunday lie-in
James Croft Patheos This Atheist is Thankful for the Clergy
Paul Handley The Guardian Let us give thanks, Black Friday has nothing to do with religion
51 CommentsDebate 3 was reported here.
A press release was issued just prior to Debate 4. This was heavily criticised by Ian Paul in The state of the (Westminster) debate.
The debate took place on 20 November and the full audio recordings are now available here.
Several who were there have blogged about it:
The arrangements under which Church of England parishes can now, on grounds of theological conviction, seek the priestly or episcopal ministry of men are contained in the Declaration on the Ministry of Bishops and Priests which was made by the House of Bishops in May 2014. There is also a grievance procedure if PCCs are not satisfied with the arrangements offered. This procedure could only be officially put in place after the new Canon allowing women to become bishops was promulged at General Synod on Monday 17 November, and the House of Bishops did this that evening.
The Declaration, together with a guidance note, and the Grievance Procedure are available online.
Declaration on the Ministry of Bishops and Priests (GS Misc 1076)
Guidance Note (GS Misc 1077)
Grievance Procedure: Regulations made by the House of Bishops under Canon C 29 (GS Misc 1087)
It should be noted that drafts of the Declaration and Grievance Procedure (GS 1932) were presented to, and “welcomed” by General Synod in February 2014, so none of this was new this month.
it was also announced before the November meeting of Synod that Sir Philip Mawer would be the first Independent Reviewer for the grievance procedure (GS Misc 1090).
This is all available on the Church of England website, along with a summary of how to bring a grievance: Declaration on the Ministry of Bishops and Priests.
9 CommentsThe Church of England has issued its Cathedral Statistics 2013 today, along with this press release.
Cathedrals offer place of peace and prayer in busy lives, reveal new stats
24 November 2014
The number of people attending midweek services at cathedrals has doubled in the past 10 years, show new figures published today from the Church of England’s Research and Statistics department. One of the factors attributed is the need for a place of peace in increasingly busy lives.
Midweek attendance at cathedrals was 7,500 in 2003 rising to 15,000 in 2013 (compared to 12,400 in 2012). In a Church of England podcast published today the Dean of Lichfield, Adrian Dorber, said he has seen the need for people wanting a short snatch of peace midweek in what are now very pressurised lifestyles. “At the weekend you’ve got commitments with children doing sport, shopping, household maintenance – life’s run at the double these days and weekends are very pressurised and committed. Taking out half an hour or an hour every week is much more negotiable.”
Anecdote to Evidence research published earlier this year showed that that the highest motivating factors for Cathedral attendance were peace and contemplation, worship and music and friendly atmosphere.
The Dean of York Minster, Vivienne Faull, commented: “We do have the opportunity of allowing people to come in from the edges. If I take a eucharist at 12.30 in the middle of the week in the nave of York Minster there’ll be a lot of people who just slide in from the side. It’s not so much about anonymity, there’s the feeling there’s a journey you can travel which doesn’t require huge steps – it just requires one little step.”
Stephen Lake, Dean of Gloucester Cathedral, said: “Patterns of church attendance are different now. Cathedrals are uniquely placed to be providing greater opportunities for worship and that includes during the week.”
The Stats also show that attendance at Christmas cathedral services had increased rising from 117,200 in 2012 to 124,300 in 2013 with many cathedrals putting on new services.
Notes
More information on Lichfield Cathedral can be found here.
More information on York Minster can be found here.
More information on Gloucester Cathedral can be found here.
The following questions were put to the Archbishop of Canterbury during Questions at General Synod on Monday evening by Dr Jo Spreadbury (St Albans).
Has the Commission considered why one name consistently appears in the media as having been under consideration by it and whether, when such reports appear, the Commission might in the interests of fairness release the names of all those who were in fact on the shortlist for the appointment concerned?
The Archbishop, speaking as Chair of the Crown Nominations Commission, replied:
Those who take part in Crown Nominations Commissions or who are involved in the process for selecting suffragan bishops are bound by requirements of confidentiality, something that we repeat at each CNC at the beginning of the process. There are strong arguments both for transparency and for confidentiality. It is a question which is discussed from time to time, and the Archbishop of York and I keep it under review, as he has already said.
It is, however, precisely because selection processes are meant to be confidential – in the interests of all concerned – that it is so damaging when reports appear in the press purporting to give inside information and naming an individual. The harm is done whether these are true, false or wholly speculative. It is unkind, hurtful and unjust to the person concerned and simply should not happen.
Supplementary question:
Given the damaging reports that you refer to, what steps will be taken to revise the CNC process, both to call to account members who breach the declaration of confidentiality they make, and to prevent undue influence in the process, even say by the Archbishop of Canterbury, even say in the interests of the Anglican Communion.
The Archbishop replied:
36 CommentsWe will continue to keep the way that we operate under close review, and to ensure that it is carried out in line with the Equality Act, wherever that applies.
During the debate on the Business Committee report, Mr Tim Allen (St Edmundsbury and Ipswich) made a speech in which, while requesting further action from the archbishops in relation to the selection of women for episcopal appointments, he mentioned specifically:
…their formidable powers of process control, leadership, and forceful persuasion to ensure (I am putting it very politely) that the CNC moves boldly with all speed and determination to the appointment of as many as possible of the best of the Church of England’s excellent senior women as diocesan bishops, preferably with seats in the House of Lords…
He later continued:
5 Comments…And there is a closely related matter, on which I hope Archbishop Justin will also respond. For it is not only women who were excluded in a discriminatory and prejudiced way from the House of Bishops. So too were, and still are, those gay men who do not hide their sexuality in the closet. Those who are honest and frank enough to live openly in a civil partnership while behaving in the chaste way required by church law are it seems, from all the evidence de facto excluded from the House of Bishops, even when they are eminently qualified to be a bishop.
To make bishops of women required today’s change in the law of the church. But it is not law, it is simply prejudice which keeps out of the House of Bishops these men who are gay, chaste and honest. Such prejudice and discrimination is wrong, even when it is dressed up as a necessary tribute to certain homophobic elements of the Anglican Communion. Such prejudice and discrimination will increasingly be seen to be wrong by much of the nation which the Church of England seeks to serve, especially the younger people, who have shown for example by their sympathy for Alan Turing the gay wartime codebreaker [to] utterly reject the persecution of homosexual people.
Miranda Threlfall-Holmes 5 Things I miss about being Laity
Cathy Newman interviews Rose Hudson-Wilkin for The Telegraph Rev Rose Hudson-Wilkin: The truth? We’re all fearful for the first female bishops
Rupert Christiansen The Telegraph Why do Christmas carols make the church feel nervous?
Erasmus The Economist Hello ladies, goodbye Communion?
Lucy Ward The Guardian Una Kroll: ‘Public protest is still very important’
Sam Wells The Christian Century Dressed for the moment
Bosco Peters A Bishop is not a Priest
Isabel Berwick Financial Times From atheist teenager to lady of the parish
14 Comments