Ordering and teaching of the Church of England

 "Knowledge of the Canons by the Clergy is essential for the

right ordering and teaching of the Church of England."

ERIC KEMP (former Bishop of Chichester)

From the Church of England web site which boasts 'a Christian presence in every community'. Perhaps 'a presence in every community' would be more appropriate.

C 18 Of diocesan bishops

1. Every bishop is the chief pastor of all that are within his diocese, as well laity as clergy, and their father in God; it appertains to his office to teach and to uphold sound and wholesome doctrine, and to banish and drive away all erroneous and strange opinions; and, himself an example of righteous and godly living, it is his duty to set forward and maintain quietness, love, and peace among all men.

Given that typical congregations are aging fast, they must include many cradle Anglicans who have done their bit and more over the years but no longer sit on committees or attend synods. Leaving others to take over their work they still, mistakenly it seems, rely on their bishop to promote unity in the church while upholding sound and wholesome doctrine. Instead worshippers find themselves out of step with terkini thinking, abandoned by bishops who are more comfortable with political posturing than caring for 'all that are within his diocese'. A clear majority in the House of Bishops have sided with revisionists who demand that their opponents accept what they are given or leave their church. Even if all the bishops of the last 2,000 years were too blind to see what is now regarded as sound and wholesome doctrine, by what authority do they exclude worshippers who simply refuse to accept doctrine that is outside the teaching of the Holy Catholic Church? They claim to respect the views of their opponents but do not show it in any meaningful manner. Instead they engage in a campaign to force through unacceptable legislation not based on universally accepted theology but on the grounds that there has been 'E nough Waiting'.

In his opening statement at the press conference at Lambeth Palace following the announcement that Bishop Justin Welby was to be the next Archbishop of Canterbury he said:

"This is a time for optimism and faith in the church. I know we are facing very hard issues. In 10 days or so the General Synod will vote on the ordination of women as Bishops. I will be voting in favour, and join my voice to many others in urging the Synod to go forward with this change. In my own Diocese, and before I was a Bishop, I have always recognised and celebrated the remarkable signs of God's grace and action in the ministries of many people who cannot in conscience agree with this change. Personally I value and learn from them, and want the church to be a place where we can disagree in love, respecting each other deeply as those who belong to Christ."

But what does that mean in reality for those praying for a greater understanding of their pastoral needs?Absolutely nothing. Bishop Welby simply joins those bishops who are urging Synod to vote in favour of the measure in full knowledge thatwhat is offered to opponents is no more than a promise to provide a code of practice that has no sah force. A code that if WATCH and GRAS have anything to do with it will go the same way as the promises made to ensure that women were admitted to the priesthood.

Apart from a few honourable exceptions whatever bishops believe today falls well short of what older Anglicans expect for the right ordering and teaching of the Church of England . It may be new Anglican but it is not Christian.

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Purification

Today, dua February, the Anglican Church celebrates Candlemas, also known as the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is an opportunity for clerics to preach about impurity and the unclean as the Archbishop of Wales did in his address in St John's Church Cardiff last Sunday.

The sick, the poor and women in childbirth were mentioned when physician heal thyself would have been far more appropriate. Under a previous entry a comment was made that "the Bench is still behaving like a Medieval papacy and treating the rest of us like we don't matter". It referred to a letter to the Church Times in which it was stated: "The Church in Wales Book of Common Prayer, enacted by various canons, declares that confirmation is a rite, and its rubrics provide that confirmation is generally necessary to receive holy communion. The Church's constitution provides that alterations to rites and discipline may be made only by canon."

The bishops of the Church in Wales decided 'after receiving legal advice', perhaps from the canon lawyers sat on the bench, that the change could be implemented by pastoral letter without any authorisation by canon.

This is the latest example of how the bench of bishops in the Church in Wales are a law unto themselves. Previously clear signals have been given to the bench by church members after expensive consultations that same sex marriage in church would not be approved and that a Code of Practice should make provision for loyal members of the Church in Wales who are unable in conscience to receive the sacramental ministry of women, a matter of theology, not equality. Both were ignored. The bishops simply did as they desired.

So where does the Church in Wales go from here now that Dr Morgan has retired? The presumption is that the next archbishop will be one of the canon lawyers on the bench. While Dr Morgan has taken a great deal of stick for placing his own interpretation on scripture he has been careful to explain that his views were those of the bench making the bishops complicit.

How can the bench have any credibility in their leadership of the Church in Wales without radical changes? They can start with an act of contrition in a process of purification of themselves.

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