Updated Sunday afternoon and evening
The Tablet editorial Measure of compromise
ABC Religion and Ethics John Milbank Unrepresentative laity: The women bishops debacle demonstrates why bishops need more authority
Telegraph John Bingham Women bishops decision a ‘stab in the back’ to female clergy – Lord Carey
Adam Luser Reputation of Church damaged by decision on women bishops
Revising Reform Rachel Marszalek Women in Christian servant-leadership, with a look at Rev Angus Macleay’s summation speech from General Synod on Tuesday November 20th 2012
OurKingdom Charlotte Methuen Women bishops in the Church of England: No or not yet?
Guardian Catherine Bennett No to women bishops? It’s high time the Church of England was taught a lesson
Mail Online Marie-Elsa Bragg ‘I’m still proud of our history in the women’s ministry’: Melvyn Bragg’s curate daughter on how it feels to be stuck in the middle of the bishops debate
Lay Anglicana Rosemary Lain-Priestley A Very Significant Tipping Point
Modern Church Linda Woodhead It’s believing in the common good that’s got the Church of England into this mess over women bishops
Update
Anglican Ink Gerald Bray Evangelical supporters of women bishops are “liberals in disguise”
to which Peter Carrell has this response: Has Gerald Bray lost the plot?
Jody Stowell The Morning After
This morning’s Sunday programme on BBC Radio 4 included a major item on women bishops starting 20 minutes from the beginning.
Telegraph John Bingham Women bishops rejection has damaged Church, traditionalist bishop admits
Eureka Street Andrew McGowan Rejection of women bishops is not terminal
Excellent Tablet editorial which chimes with the real politik of Frank Field’s view. All those who now say ‘poor Rowan’ after the recent vote should perhaps have supported his original summer compromise. But the liberals rejected it and now face the consequences of inept political misjudgment. Same with the covenant, when the Bishops again got it wrong. Poor Rowan indeed…he now seems to have called it about right re women bishops and the sooner people like the Biahop of Gloucester realize this, this better!
Hard to know what planet John Milbank is residing in.
This afternoon, to the enthronement of the new Bishop of Chichester, one of the three diocesan Bishops who voted against the measure at the recent Synod. He was placed in his cathedra by the Archdeacon of Canterbury, the Venerable Sheila Anne Watson. I was not the only one to observe that God moves in mysterious ways.
“basis of the Anglican Settlement is a tacit agreement that no one part of it should ever push its case so far as to drive another part out into the cold.” The Tablet editorial has it wrong when it comes to the Elizabethian Settlement. The Settlement did not set up mess of little legal enclaves where Romans could worship in their way and another bunch for Protestants to do it their way. It was one Church using one Prayer Book led by one body of clergy. Each person was welcome to understand the words of worship in their own way,… Read more »
Near the close of The Tablet article ” but both the Anglo-Catholics and the Evangelicals anchor their doctrine elsewhere than in the shifting sands of public opinion or the secular equality agenda:” This sentiment speaks volumes about the lack of understanding in churches of basic human rights. The term “secular” is being used here as a code word in the attempt to keep alive a phoney distinction between the church and wider social order on the issue of equality. This argument will carry sway in Catholic (and “catholic”) circles where even the mere suggestion that women are the full equal… Read more »
I’m bemused by the Tablet article. The author does not declare his/her own position in regard to the current Roman Catholic doctrine (dubbed “infallible” by the CDF under Ratzinger) that it is impossible for women to be ordained priests much less bishops. I think we RCs have nothing to say about these Anglican dilemmas.
@Richard Ashby — The Times has a picture of the enthronement. It looks as though much was communicated, shall we say, without words.
Am I alone in finding all this hullabaloo over the failure of the Women in the Episcopate vote to be truly astonishing? We were warned beforehand that the result was on a knife edge and that it could go one way or another; it just so happened that it failed to receive the requisite majority vote in the House of Laity. Since then it’s been Hellzapoppin’ with uncharitable comments flying back and forth; which just goes to shew what a sham any pretence at the much vaunted “respect” would have been – as hollow, in fact, as the promise of… Read more »
Geez, do we really need a link, here, to the Guardian article by Catherine Bennett, when it’s basically just a full length version of every letter to the Guardian, ever? {*} “Religion is craziness for crazy people: celebrate its passing!” There’s quite enough of that one-note symphony already.
{*} Excepting the odd “The CofE should stay patriarchal as God intended!” letter. Seriously, I think in all the comments I’ve ever read on Guardian religious articles, I could count those which amount to a “Thinking Anglicans” position on the fingers of one hand! O_o
Article on the Chichester enthronement follows shortly….
I don’t normally buy the Times but have done today, to read:- Even one of the two Bishops to vote against women bishops (I thought that it was three?) seemed to be having regrets. The new Bishop of Chichester…said in his sermon at his consecration yesterday (actually it was his enthronement/installation) that the Church of England’s self confidence and reputation had been affected. ‘We now have to face some very uncomfortable facts that will implicate us all in a review of our decision making processes as a Church.’ he said. One might well retort that he should have thought about… Read more »
@Rod Gillis, Of course they believe they will be treated as badly or worse-the name calling and descriptions that say that conservatives aren’t Christian at all are already flying, in some cases the implication is that they aren’t even human. We don’t even know for sure that the vote failed because of honest conservatves voting no or if delegates who are pro-women voted no in order to cause this backlash and see their enemies out(at least 1 delegate admitted doing so). If the current legislation getting defeated was so bad, why were so many people who are pro-women bishops arguing… Read more »
@ Chris H. Hi Chris, my question was intended to be somewhat tongue in cheek. It’s based on the conjecture that the conservatives who are looking for what seems to be extraordinary guarantees are engaging in some projection of their own behaviour on their opponents. I’m just not up on the ecclesiastical nuances of the C of E, so there are some things I can’t comment upon. My interest in this issue is on the larger social, psychological and theological themes in play. Clearly one should not dismiss one’s opponents as being something less than human, or not being Christian.… Read more »
Follow-up question, are there available any interviews with or statements by women who voted “no”, outlining the rationale for doing so?
Father David,
No, you’re not alone. Among traditionalists, Benedict and Original Observer (who they? I’d like to know). Among notorious liberals, rjb (who he? virtuous chap, anyway) and my modest self have registered our puny protests. Also some other guy who didn’t like (any more than me) Giles Fraser’s bullying uncharitable posturings. Myself, I am a great fan of Father Trevor Jones, even as I fervently support women priests, women bishops, and gay marriage. But I hope there remains what might be described as ‘cross-party’ integrity. John = j.l.moles@ncl.ac.uk.
An excellent article by Professor Andrew McGowan – from an Australian perspective – and especially in the light of the fact of Swaziland’s recent ordination of it own female Bishop. Whether the African Provinces are as illiberal as Gafcon or as liberal as Swaziland and Southern Africa – it would seem that the Church of England is out of step with both tendencies in the Communion. It surely has to make its mind up whether to champion a modern perspective on human rights and justice, or to remain in the enclosed ethos of the 39 Articled 16rh century church. The… Read more »
I agree that the Tablet exhibits a misunderstanding
of the Elizabethan settlement. While Elizabeth
said “I will not make windows into men’s souls”,
signalling a degree of inward latitude, lack of
outward conformity to the rites and ceremonies
of the Church of England was punished by fines
and much worse. Catholics and the budding Puritan
movement could expect severe retribution. It was
not the big umbrella the Tablet suggests.
Bingham’s article on Martin Warner is excellent – and accompanied by a photo truly eloquent of the awkwardnesses and compromises inherent in co-existence between pro- and anti- WO people (and their respective priests). Not that I don’t think such compromises and awkwardnesses virtuous. But Warner seems far more aligned with the David Houlding view than with the FiF word-book on such matters.
Father David – You are clearly not alone in finding some of the reaction to last week’s vote over the top, but I don’t think you should be as astonished by it as you profess to be. As the established church in an increasingly secular society, we can’t expect to retain any credibility or privileges if we get too far out of line with society at large. Whilst we in the church understand that dissenters do have deeply held beliefs about this matter, most of the society we are there to serve views last week’s decision with incredulity and contempt,… Read more »
Malcolm, thank you for such a temperate and measured response but if, as you claim, we are living in “an increasingly secular society” then the Church of God must – if it is to be true to the Gospel – be increasingly “out of line with society at large”?
As I have stated before – Parliament is going to do absolutely nothing to interfere in the mess created by the General Synod. The Church of England has made its own bed and now it must lie in it.