Updated Monday evening and Tuesday morning
Rt Revd Libby Lane consecrated at York Minster
26 January 2015
The Rt Revd Libby Lane has been consecrated as the first female bishop in the Church of England in a packed service at York Minster today attended by more than 100 bishops from the Church of England and women bishops from across the Anglican Communion.
In a statement shortly after being consecrated, Bishop Libby said she had been encouraged by the thousands of messages of support she has received since the news of her appointment was announced. She said:
“Archbishop Sentamu has observed, “the way that we show our faith and our love for one another is with two simple things, prayer and parties.” Today is an occasion of prayer and of party – and I am thrilled that so many want to share in both. I cannot properly express how encouraged I have been in the weeks since the announcement of my nomination, by the thousands of messages I have received with words of congratulation, support and wisdom. I’ve heard from people of all ages, women and men – people I have known for years, and people I have never met; people from down the road, and people from across the world.
“Many those who have been in touch have little or no contact with the Church of England; not all have been people of faith, but every one of them has felt this moment marks something important. That all this personal – and media – attention has centred on me has been a little overwhelming: I cannot possibly live up to everyone’s expectation. And so today, at my consecration, I hold on to words of promise from the Bible, a reassurance that all this does not depend on me … ‘the God who calls you is faithful: He will do it’ (1 Thessalonians 5:24).
“My consecration service is not really about me. With echoes of practice which has been in place for hundreds of years in the church, it is a reminder that what I am about to embark on is shared by the bishops around me, by those who have gone before me and those who will come after. It places the ministry of a bishop in the context of the ministry of all God’s people. And most importantly it retells the good news of Jesus, the faithful one, who calls each of us to follow him.
“Thank you to all who are praying for me and partying with me today. Please continue to hold me in your prayers as, after the example of St Timothy and St Titus who are celebrated by the Church on this day, I share in work of proclaiming the gospel, in word and action, and bearing witness to the name of Jesus.”
Early press reports (some of which give undue prominence to the lone protester)
Andrew Brown The Guardian First female Church of England bishop consecrated in York
BBC News Libby Lane: First female Church of England bishop consecrated
John Bingham The Telegraph Vicar tries to stop Rev Libby Lane being consecrated as Church of England’s first female bishop
Roisin O’Connor The Independent Libby Lane formally appointed first woman bishop by Church Of England
Claer Barrett Financial Times Church of England ordains first woman bishop
Yorkshire Post ‘Not in my name’: Protestor heckles first female bishop at York Minster service
Dave Walker I have modified my ‘Bishops’ cartoon
Updates
Gavin Drake Church Times C of E’s first woman bishop consecrated
York Mix 12 marvellous moments from the service to ordain #BishopLibby [pictures]
Andrew Brown The Guardian Libby Lane: not quite a Viking raid, but York sees history in the Minster
Jessica Elgot Huffington Post First Woman Bishop Ordained By Church Of England As Libby Lane Made Bishop Of Stockport [pictures]
Sally Hitchener The Independent Libby Lane’s appointment as the first female bishop might have been understated, but its importance echoes around the world
Carey Lodge Christian Today First woman bishop Libby Lane: ‘Pray for me as I share in the work of proclaiming the gospel’
BBC News In pictures: Church of England’s first woman bishop consecration [pictures]
Other links
Chester diocesan website Libby Lane is now Bishop of Stockport
And one piece of trivia. This is the bible presented to the new bishop: Nicholas King’s complete translation of his Study Bible. [h/t Helen-Ann Hartley]
42 CommentsUpdated Monday morning
The Revd Libby Lane will be consecrated as Bishop of Stockport in York Minster tomorrow (Monday) morning.
The Church of England has this published this interview. “Recorded on the day her appointment was announced, it has behind the scenes footage and a previously unseen interview with Libby as she reflects on her faith journey, and looks ahead to her new challenge.”
Press previews
The Guardian leader The Guardian view on Libby Lane’s consecration as bishop of Stockport: a hands-on approach
Jamie Doward and Aduke King The Observer First female bishop: I want to be a role model for girls
Matthew Davis Manchester Evening News New Bishop of Stockport to be consecrated at York Minster on Monday
[Despite what this article says, I can find no scheduled live broadcast of the consecration.]
Update
John Bingham The Telegraph New era for Church of England as first female bishop consecrated
Women in the Church of England: a century of waiting
BBC News Libby Lane: First female bishop to be consecrated
Yorkshire Post Stage is set for the creation of first female bishop
C of E greets first woman bishop
John Sentamu: Alleluia that at last the Church shall have its women bishops
ITV News Libby Lane makes history becoming first Anglican Bishop
18 CommentsMedia reports:
Church Times Sentamu exercises ‘gracious restraint’ over traditionalist bishop’s consecration
BBC No ‘taint’ over first female bishop, archbishop says
Telegraph Sentamu rejects ‘taint’ claim in women bishops row
Christian Today John Sentamu: Hand-laying for traditionalist bishop is for ‘prayer not politics’
Blog articles:
Bosco Peters Anglo-Donatism
Oliver Coss The Suffragan See of Burnley
Earlier articles here.
49 CommentsForthcoming Consecrations
Archbishop of York
Thursday 22nd January 2015
The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu has today issued the following statement:
With great joy and thanksgiving the Church of England will, in the next two weeks, see the consecration of two fine priests, The Revd Libby Lane, and The Revd Philip North as bishops, respectively, of Stockport, in the Diocese of Chester, and of Burnley, in the Diocese of Blackburn. Nothing should be allowed to constrain our joy, our prayers and our thanksgiving, on either occasion….
Follow this link for the full text of the statement, including a version of the note sent earlier to Northern bishops, and a republication of GS Misc 1079.
38 CommentsUpdated third time Thursday morning
Yesterday, Christian Today published the following article by Ruth Gledhill: Consecration of traditionalist bishop set to highlight Church of England divisions
As the consecration of the first female bishop approaches, Christian Today has learned that at the consecration a few days later of traditionalist priest Father Philip North as Bishop of Burnley no bishop will lay hands on him who has previously laid hands on a woman bishop or priest…
And Ruth noted that:
…no-one from the Archbishop’s office, the diocesan office, the cathedral or the women’s ordination group WATCH would comment to Christian Today…
Twenty-four hours later, there has still been no comment from any of these sources. Nor from Forward in Faith or The Society under the patronage of St Wilfrid and Saint Hilda.
There have been two blog articles though:
Archdruid Eileen has published At the Multiple Episcopal Consecration
Jonathan Clatworthy has published A woman’s touch and spiritual danger
I will add links to any further official or other statements about this that I discover.
Updates
WATCH has now issued a statement:
Press Release Wednesday 21st Jan 2015
WATCH Statement on ConsecrationsNext Monday the Church of England and the nation will rejoice at the consecration of Rev Libby Lane as the first female bishop in the Church of England. That will be a great day, and nothing should detract from that moment of affirmation for all women in all walks of life.
We have known about the arrangements for the consecration of the Bishop of Burnley for some time, but have not commented publicly out of courtesy to the individuals involved. Our focus has been on the earlier consecration as the fulfillment of a long and deeply held desire by so many, and as a source of good news from the Church.
We are dismayed that it seems that the Archbishop of York will not lay hands on Philip North at his consecration as Bishop of Burnley. We believe it is unprecedented that an Archbishop should be present at a consecration in his own Province and not lay hands on a candidate, and not preside at the eucharist.
We are saddened that there will be such a powerful visual sign of a divided College and House of Bishops at the moment of consecration. The Bishop of Burnley is a suffragan bishop, and not a PEV: he is a minister for the whole Church of England in the Diocese of Blackburn and the people of that diocese are looking forward to working with him across the traditions.
We will issue a statement on the wider ramifications of this in due course.
A reader of Thinking Anglicans who had written to the Archbishop of York has received a reply from his office, which is copied in full below the fold.
Two more blog articles:
Benny Hazlehurst Apostolic Regression
Kelvin Holdsworth One step forward, two giant leaps back – the English Episcopate
Another two:
Janet Henderson Woman’s Touch Not Welcome
Peter Carrell Bishops’ magic hands: once tainted, even disinfectant cannot clean them!
According to the CofE Daily Media Digest, The Times [paywall] reports inter alia that:
92 Comments…the church has yet to confirm whether Dr Sentamu and the Bishop of Blackburn, Julian Henderson, will join the service but adds that Dr Sentamu’s most senior aide said last night that Mr North had not insisted on the arrangement himself.
The Church of England’s Faith and Order Commission has published a contribution to reflection on leadership in the life of the church. Arising out of a request from the General Synod in 2009, it addresses three major questions:
Based on work undertaken by the Commission over a five-year period, the report complements the series of documents recently published to support the Archbishops’ programme for reform and renewal of the Church of England.
In his Preface, the Bishop of Coventry notes that that the report is offered as a resource for theological reflection that can “inform the improvisations the church will continue to require in its practice of leadership and anchor them in faithfulness to the gospel…. How do the dynamics of Church life and leadership in the New Testament apply to the Church today? How might we draw faithfully and creatively on the rich traditions of the church over two millennia around authority, responsibility and service? How can we talk constructively about ambition in church life and deal with the realities of disappointment and the experience of failure? These are not just issues for those who exercise senior leadership in the Church of England. We hope this report can contribute to fostering serious thought and prayer about them.”
Professor Loveday Alexander, one of the members of the Faith and Order Commission, comments: “What we are offering, as a gift to the Church and as the result of many years of collective reflection, is a theological contribution to practical thinking about leadership development in the Church. We have tried to set out some of the deep spiritual roots of the Church’s understanding of what it means to exercise leadership within the body of Christ.”
The report is available at:
https://www.churchofengland.org/media/2145175/senior%20church
%20leadership%20faoc.pdf
One of the papers sent to General Synod members last week was the Dioceses Commission Annual Report for 2014 (GS Misc 1095). It is for information only, so will not be debated next month.
Two sections of the report might be of particular interest to readers.
The Diocese of West Yorkshire and the Dales
7. 2014 saw the historic creation of the new Diocese of Leeds (West Yorkshire and the Dales). The appointed day for the dissolution of the former Dioceses of Bradford, Ripon & Leeds and Wakefield and the creation of the new diocese was Easter Day (20 April). The new diocese was formally inaugurated in a special service in York Minster on the Feast of Pentecost (8 June) at which Bishop Nick Baines’ Election as the Bishop of Leeds was confirmed. The Archbishop of York presided and preached and a special congratulatory message from Her Majesty the Queen was read out.
8. Most of the work of implementing the provisions of the Commission’s Reorganisation Scheme fell on those in the diocese, and the Commission wishes to pay tribute to all those who have worked tirelessly to make the vision a reality. This work is, however, on-going and much inevitably remains to be done. The Commission itself had specific responsibilities concerning the designation of interim diocesan structures (such as the DBF of the new diocese) and determining compensation for some office holders who would lose their posts under the terms of the Scheme, and appointed sub-committees to handle these tasks.
9. The Commission was very conscious that its Scheme was the first of its kind and, with this in mind, it commissioned one of its number, Professor Hilary Russell, to conduct an evaluation of the process. She conducted about 50 interviews with a range of interested parties in the course of the summer and her Report was published in December – see here.
10. While it needed to be recognised that the Scheme itself was a considerable achievement – being at the maximal end of anything envisaged under the Dioceses, Pastoral and Mission Measure 2007 – the Report made a number of key recommendations for the future, including the following:
- The need for clearer articulation of the case for change; and better communication particularly to diocesan staff directly affected by the Scheme;
- The appointment of an adequately resourced facilitator early in the process, supported by a programme management board with representation from the Archbishop’s office, the dioceses, Church Commissioners and Archbishops’ Council;
- Better HR and pastoral support for individual post holders directly affected by the Scheme.
Professor Russell’s report is well worth reading in full. It should not be allowed to gather dust in Church House.
Provincial boundaries
22. The Dioceses Commission is responsible for keeping both the provincial and the diocesan structure of the Church of England under review. Following the inauguration of the Diocese of West Yorkshire & the Dales this year, the imbalance of the Provinces is now even more apparent with 12 dioceses in the Province of York and 30 in the Province of Canterbury.
23. The Commission has been encouraged by both Archbishops to review the boundary between the two provinces so as to create a more balanced archiepiscopal workload. The Commission intends to canvas the views of the House of Bishops at a future meeting.
Gavin Drake has these comments and suggestions on where the boundaries should be: Church of England considers moving the north-south divide.
5 CommentsThis bill completed all its Commons stages yesterday. First Reading was on 18 December 2014. Yesterday the Commons dealt with an allocation of time motion, the second reading, the committee stage (in a committee of the whole house) and the third reading. As no amendments were made to the bill there was no report stage.
The verbatim Hansard record of the debate is available:
Allocation of time motion
Second reading
Committee stage and Third reading
The bill now goes to the Lords.
There are links to the text of the bill, and a summary of its progress through Parliament here: Lords Spiritual (Women) Bill 2014-15.
Press report
BBC News MPs back law fast-tracking female bishops into Lords
0 CommentsQuestions at General Synod are generally allocated about an hour and a half at the end of the first day’s business. Questions must be submitted in advance, and on arrival at Synod members are given a booklet of all the questions. Each questioner also receives the answer to his/her question. Most questions are for oral answer. In the chamber these questions are not read out, but the person answering reads a pre-prepared answer, and members then have the opportunity to ask one or two supplementaries. As a general rule there is not enough time to answer all the questions.
A few copies of all the prepared answers are available to members after the questions session, and they are all published in due course in the official report of proceedings.
For next month’s meeting, the Business Committee has decided to trial a new format, described in this extract from their report (GS 1974).
Questions
21. Based on feedback received from members, the Business Committee has decided to trial a new format for Questions at this Group of Sessions. During the trial period Synod members will receive copies of all the answers to questions, in a booklet which will be emailed to them two working days prior to the start of the group of sessions. Paper copies of the booklet will be available at the Information Desk for collection on arrival by those Synod members who do not have access to email.
22. The oral delivery of pre-prepared official answers will be dispensed with. Instead of this, the person answering the question will begin simply by referring to the written answer published in the booklet. The intention is to focus the main business of Questions on the asking and answering of supplementary questions. Priority will be given to the original questioner in the usual way. It is hoped that this new format will allow greater spontaneity and enable Questions to flow more smoothly.
23. The Business Committee would welcome feedback on the trial format for Questions so that they can consider whether to continue with it in the future and promote Standing Order changes to facilitate it. All comments should be sent to the Chair, via the Clerk whose address is available at the end of this Report.
In general only two supplementaries per question are allowed. Since the usual amount of time has been allowed for questions next month it is likely that this new procedure will allow more questions to be dealt with during the question session. Perhaps for some questions the chair will feel able to use his/her discretion and allow more supplementaries.
A list of who may be asked questions is below the fold.
3 CommentsI wrote an article last week for The Tablet’s website, about the Reform and Renewal programme, which was published under the title Can the Church of England save itself?
The unpublished FAOC report mentioned in that article can still be found here.
0 CommentsThe “Green report” was reissued at the end of last week as an attachment to GS 1982 which is a covering note by the Bishop of Ely. See Discerning and Nurturing Senior Leaders.
Senior Ordained Leadership – a new approach to development of those with
potential for posts with wider responsibility and to the leadership development of
bishops and deansINTRODUCTION
1. The report “Talent Management for Future Leaders and Leadership Development for
Bishops and Deans” was commissioned by the Archbishops in January 2014. Though
theologically rooted, it was presented, as requested, as a business case to the Spending Plans Task Group who agreed to commit funding for the project through to the end of 2016. This decision was reported to the Archbishops’ Council and Church Commissioners in September 2014. The proposals were also discussed with the College of Bishops, the Deans Conference and a meeting of Directors of Ministry in autumn 2014. For ease of reference it is set out at attachment 1.2. This paper is prepared to support the presentation at General Synod on the 10th February 2015 and the subsequent hearing the following day. The Development and Appointments Group (a sub-committee of the House of Bishops) wishes to take the opportunity the Synod discussions will give to i) set the proposals in their wider context ii) connect the theological underpinning of this work with the organisational language of the proposals iii) create space to explore the various issues and concerns that have arisen and iv) provide an update on the detailed design…
The remainder of GS 1982 is well worth a read.
Other articles that appeared before this:
Janet Henderson Leadership Means Partnership
It’s been an interesting time to reflect on leadership. While I’m currently in the middle of an MA in Hospice Leadership, the Church of England has produced The Green Report (nothing to do with ecology!) about senior leadership in the church. Given the coherence and creativity of approach toward leadership training I experience among my hospice peers why, I ask myself, has the Green Report met with such an outcry and so much criticism?
Andrew Lightbown What is leadership? A short post Green reflection.
David Keen Green Shoots? Archbishops introduce CofE nose to the smell of coffee
Usefulinparts 13 key points from the @c_of_e ‘s Green Report (with page no. refs) on #Talent Management –
8 CommentsFollowing today’s publication of the agenda for next month’s meeting of the Church of England General Synod these articles have appeared.
John Bingham The Telegraph Vicars face end to job ‘for life’ culture as Church of England fights extinction
Tim Wyatt Church Times Synod to tackle raft of reports in small groups
Church Times Group wants to cut C of E’s red legislative tape
Paul Handley Church Times Don’t forget history when you fund the future, Commissioners warn
Plans unveiled day after day for C of E’s new reformation
Gavin Drake Church Times Church of England proposes halving of Synod days
[This refers to GS Misc 1094 Optimising the Roles of the NCIs which was issued to Synod members today and states “It requires no decisions by Synod at this stage but is being circulated for information.”]
Ruth Gledhill Christian Today Radical shake up of CofE urged to stop ‘terrifying’ decline
5 CommentsThe final agenda and the papers for next month’s meeting of the General Synod of the Church of England are published today, along with this press release summarising the agenda.
General Synod Group of Sessions February 2015
The General Synod of the Church of England will meet at Church House, Westminster, SW1 from 1pm on Tuesday 10 February 2015 until 5 pm on Thursday 12 February 2015.
The Agenda for the meeting is published today. The main focus of the Synod’s work will be engagement with the wide-ranging programme of reform and renewal of the Church emerging from the various Task Group Reports and the materials on Discipleship. These discussions will take up most of Wednesday 11 February and will involve group work and meetings in larger groups as well as plenary sessions on a series of motions relating to the Tak Groups.
Tuesday 10th February will feature an address by Archbishop Bashar M Warda, CSSR, the Archbishop of the Chaldean Diocese of Erbil (Eastern rite Catholic) in northern Iraq (Kurdistan). Archbishop Warda will speak further on the issues raised at the panel debate in November on violence against religious minorities in Iraq and Syria. The Archbishop of Canterbury will give a Presidential Address later that afternoon. This will be followed by a Report on Immersion Experience in India by Regional Representatives to the House of Bishops, including the Rt Revd Libby Lane, the new Suffragan Bishop of Stockport.
The Synod’s engagement with the programme for Reform and Renewal and the Task Group reports will begin on the afternoon of Tuesday 10th February with a presentation by the Chairs of the Task Groups on the reports that will be discussed on Wednesday.
On the morning of Wednesday 11 February, Synod members will start with worship in small groups before moving into group work on the Discipleship report to prepare for the discussion of the Task Group reports. Later the same morning, Synod members will move into larger groups which will be meeting in parallel to discuss the programme emerging from the Task Groups. These will take the form of four ‘ACT’ groups (Accountability, Consultation and Transparency) which will cover Resourcing Ministerial Education, Discerning and Nurturing Senior Leaders, Resourcing the Future and Inter-Generational Equity and Simplification.
The Synod will move to a sequence of debates on the Discipleship paper and each of the Task Group reports on the afternoon of Wednesday 11 February. The sequence will begin with a debate on a motion on Discipleship moved by the Bishop of Sheffield. The Synod will then move into a debate on a motion on ‘Resourcing the Future and Resourcing Ministerial Education’ introduced by Canon John Spence. The Bishop of Willesden will introduce a debate on the proposals in the Simplification Group’s report. Finally, the First Church Estates commissioner will introduce a motion on Commissioners’ Funds and Inter-Generational Equity. This will conclude the sequence of debates on the Task Groups.
The final day of Synod, Thursday 12 February, will return to more usual business. In the morning there will be a debate on the Revision Stage of the Draft Safeguarding and Clergy Discipline Measure. Synod will also be debating a Private Members’ Motion from the Revd Dr Michael Parsons on Canon B38 which calls for the introduction of legislation to amend the Canon to allow those who have taken their own life to be buried in accordance with the rites of the Church of England. Synod will be debating the Revision Committee stage of the draft Alternative Baptism Texts which are being introduced by the Liturgical Commission as an optional alternative to current baptism services in use in the Church at present.
Finally, Synod will be debating a report from the Mission and Public Affairs Council on the subject of ‘Mission and Growth in Rural Multi-Parish Benefices’.
There are two items of contingency business at this Group of Sessions. The first is a Diocesan Synod Motion from the former Diocese of Wakefield on ‘The Nature and Structure of the Church of England – National Debate’. The second item is a debate on a report fro the World Council of Churches entitled ‘The Church: Towards a Common Vision’. This will be introduced by the Chair of the Council of Christian Unity.
Synod will conclude at 5pm on Thursday 12th February.
1 CommentUpdated 23 January to add second circulation papers
Papers in the first and second circulations for next month’s meeting of General Synod on 10-12 February are now online here in agenda order. Here is a list in numerical order, with a note of the day scheduled for their consideration.
I have also included the papers that I expect to see in the second circulation, due in a week’s time. I will add links to these papers when they become available. [now done]
zip file of all first circulation papers
zip file of second circulation papers
zip file of all papers
GS 1902D – Amending Canon No.32 [Tuesday]
GS 1928A & GS 1928C – Nature and Structure of the Church of England [contingency business]
GS 1935A – Draft Naming of Dioceses Measure [Tuesday]
GS 1935Y – Report by the Revision Committee
GS 1952A – Draft Safeguarding and Clergy Discipline Measure [Thursday]
GS 1953A – Draft Amending Canon No.34 [Thursday]
GS 1952-3Y – Report by the Revision Committee
GS 1958A – Alternative Baptism Texts [Thursday]
GS 1958Y – Report of the Revision Committee
GS 1964B – Draft Amending Canon No.35 [Tuesday]
GS 1964C – Her Majesty’s Royal Assent and Licence
GS 1972A & GS 1972B – Private Members’ Motions on Canon B 38 [Thursday]
GS 1973 – Agenda
GS 1974 – Report by the Business Committee [Tuesday]
GS 1975 – General Synod Elections 2015: seat allocations [Tuesday]
GS 1976 – A programme for reform and renewal. A note from the Archbishops [Tuesday]
GS 1977 – Discipleship [Tuesday & Wednesday]
GS 1978 – Resourcing the Future Task Group Report [Tuesday & Wednesday]
GS 1979 – Resourcing Ministerial Education Task Group Report [Tuesday & Wednesday]
GS 1980 – Simplification Task Group Report [Tuesday & Wednesday]
GS 1981 – Church Commissioners’ and Inter-Generational Equity [Tuesday & Wednesday]
GS 1982 – Discerning and Nurturing Senior Leaders [Tuesday]
GS 1983 – Petition to change the names of the Suffragan Sees of Knaresborough and Pontefract [Thursday]
GS 1984 – 50th Report of the Standing Orders Committee [Thursday]
GS 1985 – Mission and Growth in Rural Multi-Parish Benefices: report from the Mission and Public Affairs Council [Thursday]
GS 1986 – The Church: Towards a Common Vision: Report from the World Council of Churches [contingency business]
Other papers
GS Misc 1092 – Released for Mission: Growing the Rural Church
GS Misc 1093 – Update on Electronic Voting
GS Misc 1094 – Optimising the role of the NCIs
GS Misc 1095 – Dioceses Commission Annual Report
GS Misc 1096 – Clergy Stipend Report
GS Misc 1097 – Archbishop’s Council – Review of Consitutions
GS Misc 1098 – The Church of England’s National Work on Education
GS Misc 1099 – Report on the Archbishops’ Council Activities
GS Misc 1100 – Report on Immersion Experience in India [Tuesday]
GS Misc 1101 – The Church of England’s National Ecumenical Relations
GS Misc 1102 – House of Bishops Summary of Decisions
Notice Paper 1 [contains proposed amendments to standing orders]
Group work – Developing Discipleship
0 CommentsUpdated
On Rock or Sand?: Firm Foundations for Britain’s Future, edited by the Archbishop of York, is published today (according to Church House Bookshop and Amazon) or next week (according to the Archbishop).
The Archbishop’s announcement states:
The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu’s book ‘On Rock or Sand?’ is to be published next week with contributions from experts in economic, political, social and religious disciplines, including Lord Adonis, Sir Philip Mawer, Oliver O Donovan, Andrew Sentance and Archbishop Justin Welby…
The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu said: “The book addresses crucial questions about the moral principles that undergird the way Britain is governed. It is about building firm foundations for Britain’s future and setting out the essential values we need to build a just, sustainable and compassionate society in which we can all participate and flourish. We need to rediscover the true meaning of the word economy – it means a household, a community whose members share responsibility for each other. The giant that must be slayed is income inequality – where some few have far too much and the many have too little.”
and includes a video introduction to the book by the Archbishop.
Press reports and comments
Ian Johnston The Independent Anglican archbishops accuse Coalition of abandoning poor amid culture of selfishness
John Bingham The Telegraph
Archbishops’ pre-election assault on ‘evil’ of inequality in Coalition Britain
Church of England’s pre-election blast revives memories of Faith in the City
Ben Riley-Smith The Telegraph David Cameron pledges to do more to help poor after Church of England criticism
BBC News Low earners are being left behind, say archbishops
Isabel Hardman The Spectator Archbishop John Sentamu on why politicians are like men arguing at a urinal
Mark Tran The Guardian UK economy is a ‘tale of two cities’ say archbishops
The Guardian Archbishops speak out on inequality: extracts from On Rock or Sand?
Andrew Brown The Guardian Archbishops try to inject Christianity into welfare state with inequality attack
Lucinda Borkett-Jones Christian Today Archbishop of York: “English Christians ain’t persecuted”
Pat Ashworth Church Times C of E’s pre-Election publication warns of lose-lose situations for many towns and cities
Updates
Financial Times editorial Lambeth’s turbulent priest utters harsh truths
Chris Giles Financial Times Church’s book stronger on morals than policy
Peter Dominiczak The Telegraph David Cameron facing row with Church as he ‘profoundly disagrees’ with Archbishops’ attack
The Telegraph editorial Selective wrath
Helen Warrell, Jim Pickard and Clear Barrett Financial Times English archbishops attack government over rising inequality
16 CommentsUpdated Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday
The Church of England Press Office today announced a series of papers, to be published each day this week, about the various Task Group reports. The first starts:
The first batch of papers for the February 2015 meeting of the General Synod will be available to download from the Church of England website on Friday 16th January.
Due to the range and volume of material being issued in relation to the various Task Group reports there will be a daily release of key documents this week ahead of the general distribution of papers.
The first paper below is from the Archbishops of Canterbury and York giving an overview of the programme for reform and renewal represented by the work of the task groups and the materials on Discipleship.
This first paper is “In Each Generation” : A programme for reform and renewal.
Paper 2 (Tuesday) is Developing Discipleship.
There is an accompanying blog and a video interview with the Bishop of Sheffield
There is an online forum to discuss this paper.
Paper 3 (Wednesday) is Report of the Simplification Task Group.
There is an accompanying blog and a video interview with the Bishop of Willesden.
There is an online forum to discuss this paper.
Paper 4 (Thursday) is Resourcing Ministerial Education in the Church of England.
There is an accompanying blog and a video interview with the Bishop of Sheffield.
There is an online forum to discuss this paper.
Paper 5 (Friday) is Resourcing the Future of the Church of England
There is an accompanying blog and a video interview with John Spence.
Paper 6 (Friday) is Church Commissioners and the work of the Task Groups.
There is a blog and a video interview with Andreas Whittam Smith.
There is an online forum to discuss the above two papers.
I will add later papers to this page as they are published. All papers have now been published.
In addition I will publish my usual list of synod papers when they are published on Friday.
Press reports
John Bingham The Telegraph Church of England cannot carry on as it is unless decline ‘urgently’ reversed – Welby and Sentamu
Madeleine Davies Church Times Archbishops unveil ‘urgent’ reform programme for CofE
Gavin Drake Church Times Discipleship is important part of C of E reform programme
Church Times Task group aims to slim down church legislation
Gavin Drake Church Times_ Report proposes big drive to attract new priests
22 CommentsUpdated three times on Tuesday and again on Friday
Lucy Kellaway writes in today’s Financial Times about a Golden Flannel award made to the Green Report:
… This year I’m awarding a special prize to an organisation that ought to have risen above jargon, but has been dragged down into it. Winner of the inaugural Fallen Angel award goes to the Church of England, which in a paper on training bishops talked of “a radical step change in our development of leaders who can shape and articulate a compelling vision and who are skilled and robust enough to create spaces of safe uncertainty in which the Kingdom grows”. Our Lord, looking down on a sentence in which His Kingdom was obliterated by a dozen dreary management clichés, must have found his genius for forgiveness sorely tested…
Updates
Another article about the Green report, this time by Anderson Jeremiah, has appeared at The Conversation: With regret, the Church of England is turning into The Apprentice.
If you never heard of this website before, it’s explained a bit here.
And Keith Elford has written The Green report: business knows best? You can read about Keith here.
And now, Andrew Lightbown returns to the attack, with this: The Green Report: Fallen Angels and Slippery Slopes.
His earlier articles are here and here.
David Keen has written In Praise of the Green Report.
49 CommentsSavi Hensman has written a research paper, entitled Better understanding of international church conflicts over sexuality. It is published by Ekklesia.
There is an abstract and table of contents here, and the full paper can be downloaded as a PDF file from this link.
Savi has also written a blog post on the topic, see How do we negotiate the global church sexuality conflict?
22 CommentsIn various denominations, debates on sexual ethics and treatment of minorities have sparked heated international controversy. This is sometimes seen as a conflict between a ‘liberal’ west and ‘conservative’ south. But the reality is more complicated.
Both acceptance of, and hostility towards, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people can be found across continents and cultures. And, while those most opposed to celebrating, or even allowing, same-sex partnerships sometimes claim to be protecting their people from the influence of the west, their actions serve to reinforce global power imbalances and western domination…
The outline timetable for the February 2015 sessions of the General Synod of the Church of England is now available to download as a pdf file, and is copied below.
GENERAL SYNOD: FEBRUARY 2015 GROUP OF SESSIONS
Timetable
Tuesday 10 February
1.00 pm – 7.15 pm
1.00 pm Worship
Formal Business
Short address by Ecumenical Guest
Report by the Business Committee
Report by the Business Committee on the Allocation of Seats in the 2015 General Elections
Presidential Address by the Archbishop of Canterbury
Report on Immersion Experience in India by Regional Representatives of House of Bishops
Legislative Business
4.15 pm Questions
5.40 pm Presentation on the Task Groups and Discipleship Report
7.00–7.15 pm Evening worship
Wednesday 11 February
(9.15 am – 11.15 am Worship followed by Group Work on Discipleship)
(11.20 am – 1.00 pm Discussion in Four Larger Groups on Task Groups)
2.30 pm – 7.15 pm
2.30 pm Discipleship:
Debate on a Motion from the Ministry Council
Resourcing the Future and Resourcing Ministerial Education
Debate on a Motion from the Archbishops’ Council
Simplification
Debate on a Motion
Debate on Inter-generational Equity
Debate on a Motion from the Church Commissioners
7.00–7.15 pm Evening worship
Thursday 12 February
9.15 am – 1.00 pm
9.15 am Holy Communion in the Assembly Hall
10.30 Legislative Business
Standing Orders Debate
Private Member’s Motion – Canon B38
2.30 pm – 5.00 pm
2.30 pm Liturgical Business
Alternative Baptism Texts – Revision Stage
Mission and Growth in Rural Multi-Parish Benefices
Take Note Debate from the Mission and Public Affairs Council
4.45 p.m Farewells
Prorogation
Contingency Business
Diocesan Synod Motion – Nature And Structure Of The Church Of England: National Debate
Debate on a motion on a Report from the World Council of Churches: ‘The Church: Towards a Common Vision’
6 CommentsUpdated again Sunday evening
Today’s Church Times has a large number of letters commenting on the Green report, and you can read them all on this page: Responses to the Green report on senior appointments in the C of E.
Earlier TA articles about this are here, here, and here.
Some further blog articles:
Lay Anglicana Training For Leadership In The Church Of England
Vic the Vicar Finding Talent: The Pool and a Plea and now also Dear Lord Green.
In addition to the letters, there is a news article: C of E leaders respond to ‘turbulence’ over Green report.
Update
Stephen Cherry has written The Green Report and the Hymnbook Test.