Living with Diversity

From left to right: The Rt Revd Gregory Cameron (Bishop of St Asaph); The Rt Revd Rachel Treweek (Bishop of Gloucester);

The Revd Canon Jeffrey Gainer (Chairman, Credo Cymru) The Rt Revd Philip North (Bishop of Burnley); The Rt Revd Jonathan Goodall

(Bishop of Ebbsfleet) and The Most Revd Barry Morgan (Archbishop of Wales). Source: Credo Cymru

'The English Experience of Living with Diversity' was the title of an address given by the Bishop of Gloucester, the Rt Rev'd Rachel Treweek, to the Credo Cymru conference held in Cardiff on 21-22 September under the heading 'That Nothing Be Lost: A Conference to Preserve the Breadth of Welsh Anglicanism'.

Book ending participants in the above photograph are the Bishop of St Asaph and the Archbishop of Wales who chose not to live with diversity when the Governing Body of the Church in Wales agreed that women could be made bishops in Wales. In consequence many devout Christians have since left the Church in Wales with catastrophic effects on attendance figures and consequent finances. For those who have remained in hope, the current dialogue represents the best opportunity for something to be salvaged from a Code of Practice which not only lacks charity but smacks of vindictiveness.

In his address the Bishop of Ebbsfleet, the Rt Rev'd Jonathan Goodall, quoted the then Archbishop of Canterbury replying to a Church of England debate on the same subject. Abp Rowan Williams said,

?People have talked at times about differences of opinion and how the Church

can live with differences of opinion. I think that the dilema is for those who

are not content with the idea that we should go forward along the line of

ordaining women as bishops, the persoalan is not one of opinion, it?S rather of

obedience. It?S one of obedience to scripture, or obedience to the consensus of

the Church Catholic. And, while that?S not a view I wholly share, I think we

ought to recognise that that?S where it comes from, that those who hold that are

not just thinking this is a matter of opinion, and therefore it is rightly and

understandably a lot harder to deal with dissent if you?Re talking what

fundamentally comes down to a question of whether you obey God or human

authority. That?S why it?S serious, that?S why it's difficult. More than opinion.?

The Credo Cymru Media Release (here) quotes the Bishop of St Asaph, the Rt Rev'd Gregory Cameron, asking ‘hard questions’ in his keynote address:

Did the Church in Wales really mean what it said in the canon enabling women to be bishops ? That traditionalists should be given ?A sense of security in their accepted and valued place within the Church in Wales?? Did traditionalists really want to be in communion with the Bench of Bishops? He thought it ?Very, very unlikely? That the Church in Wales would establish any form of supplemental episcopal ministry, but recognized that traditionalists needed a corporate life. He encouraged them to explore ?Double belonging?: loyal both to the fellowship of their diocese (with canonical obedience to the diocesan bishop) and to their own (non-political) fellowship (with ?Affective loyalty? To a bishop, whose friendship, trust and relationships with the Bench of Bishops would be crucial).

Obedience is the key. Conscience, or, as Abp Rowan put it, the problem of 'obedience' rather than 'opinion', whether you obey God or human authority. Thiscannot simply be superseded by loyalty to "the fellowship of their diocese (with canonical obedience to the diocesan bishop)". There has to be give and take on both sides, 'transformation of conflict' as Bishop Rachel Treweek succinctly put it.

I have heard differing interpretations of what Bishop Gregory said, some more cynical than others. In my view it would have been the height of cruelty for the bishops of the Church in Wales to enter into discussions offering no hope. If 'double belonging' means anything it must surely mean living with diversity, something that the Anglican Communion is well accustomed to as a broad church.

On 23 September the Church Times published an article under the headline,‘Your Grace’ receives farewell tributes. The report was followed byanother, 'Traditionalists try to build bridges', referring to the Credo Cymru conference. It reminded readers of the final straw for many of the only significant minority not to be favoured by the current Archbishop - closing the door to any meaningful pastoral and sacramental integrity: "Any attempt to approach another bishop elsewhere to provide episcopal ministry would have 'very serious implications' ", a threat one hopes is regretted if the Church in Wales is to live with diversity.

In the absence of a separate structure for Wales along the lines of the Church of England model, the simplest way forward is for visiting bishops from The Society to provide an additional episcopal ministry, the‘double belonging’ as Bishop Gregory put it, for mutual flourishing.

Update [28.09.2016]

Two further papers delivered at the "That Nothing Be Lostdanquot; Conference last week have been added to those previously posted (here).

Update [04.10.2016]

The keynote Address by the Rt Rev'd Gregory Cameron, Bishop of St Asaph has been added to the Credo Cymru web site. You can read it here.

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Something fishy?

The assembled throng outside the West Door of St Davids Cathedral, Pembrokeshire                                  Source: Twitter @DavidGrundy

As far West from the great West Door as they could manage without joining the rest of the tiddlers in River Alun, the Canon Residentiary at St Davids Cathedral appears to have been delegated to lead the applause in appreciation of Archbishop Barry Morgan's 'historic' announcement that the bishop elect of St Davids is the first woman to be made bishop in Wales, Canon Joanna Penberthy.

A video of this damp squib of an occasion can be seen on Twitter and on the Anglican Communion News Service (ACNS) website.  While small in size the number of people gathered is the same size as many dwindling congregations in the Church in Wales but clearly a great embarrassment to the Archbishop as the video link in the Press Release has been edited so that only the applause is heard after the Dr Morgan gives the nod.

Most of the news coverage followed the same theme: First woman bishop Joanna Penberthy 'faced prejudice', a strategy used to stain orthodox views as being negative. This theme is often used to condemn anyone who disagrees with the latest liberal fashion and was much used by the Movement for the Ordination of Women (MOW) which has been superseded by Women and the Church  (WATCH), a feminist organisation currently insisting that God should to be referred to as female. In a similar vein, opponents of gay marriage are condemned as homophobic while anyone searching for the truth about Islam's attitude to non-Muslims is regarded as Islamophobic.

After the announcement of her election Canon Penberthy commented: "As someone who in the early years was at the receiving end of prejudice and discrimination, I have absolutely no intention of dishing that out so I think it's important that everybody feels free to be honest about their opinions and about their misgivings." That is a welcome change from the view of the bench of bishops as currently constituted and a welcome change of heart from her Newnham days when as a young evangelical student she was more inclined to the view that Anglo Catholics should leave the Church of England because they were not real Anglicans.

When interviewed a BBC Reporter put the question to Canon Penberthy,Ordaining women is still controversial to some people. How do you reach out to those who are not happy with the idea? Her reply was far more encouraging than the Archbishop's 'over my dead body' policy. She said:

"I was very encouraged to be on a conference recently organised by Credo Cymru, which is an organisation for people who don?T wish to receive the sacramental ministry of women. It was a very positive gathering of how we can learn to live together in a world where women are priests and at that point where women might take episcopal ministry. It was about how do we live together in honesty, kindness and out of the values of that one shared gospel."

Following theLiving with Diversity conference it was refreshing to hear from the bishop elect that everyone should "feel free to be honest". Since Bishop David Thomas retired there has been no place in the Church in Wales for people who remain unable to recognise the sacramental ministry of women as bishops and priests on grounds of theological conviction and conscience although officially remaining "within the spectrum of teaching and tradition within the Anglican Communion". Credo Cymru's statement can be readhere.

With such lavish praise heaped upon her by the Archbishop and the bishop of Swansea and Brecon one wonders why Canon Penberthy had not previously joined the ranks of senior clergy as Dean or Archdeacon. Is it merely a coincidence that the bishop elect happens to be the right age as specified by the former bishop, Wyn Evans, to complete the work he started as Dean? Some fishy business on the Alun!

Fishy or not, this episode has all the appearance of a jigsaw puzzle coming into place except for one piece which just does not fit but he will be retiring soon when all should be much clearer, hopefully putting an end to prejudice and discrimination in the Church in Wales.

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Whatever happened to Auntie?

In a statement on the BBC's website, Tunde Ogungbesan (pictured), head of diversity,

inclusion  and succession at the BBC, said: 'The BBC is a diverse organisation,

whichever way you look at it'. Source: Mail Online

From theMail Online: "One in six BBC stars 'must be gay or lesbian or disabled' by 2020 says new staff-hiring guidelines at the corporation".

Long gone are the days of 'Auntie knew best' when every fad, fiction and fantasy takes precedence over journalistic excellence and quality of production.

"A statement from a BBC spokesperson said: 'We are making good progress in our work to make the BBC a truly diverse organisation, but there's more to do and we're always keen to improve. 'Almost half of our workforce is made up of women and the proportion of our workforce who are black, Asian and other ethnic minorities is at an all-time high. 'We'll continue doing what works but also develop new and innovative ideas to do even better, and we'll set this out in our new diversity strategy shortly'."

So that is what is happening to BBC programmes. Instead of concentrating excellence in production no matter what colour, race or gender, first priority is given to a politically correct ticking box mix.

How does this work in practice? If all are treated equal, how do the staff-hiring guidelines work? While a disability may be obvious on interview, it would appear to defeat equality objectives if one has to declare one's sexuality on an application form.

How many future 'straight' stars may we be deprived of because the BBC insists on a quota of 'gay, lesbian or disabled' folk. How long before someone like the Head of Diversity, Inclusion and Succession decides that all manner of minorities must be represented to ensure the Corporation appeals to the diverse BBC audience?

The British public would be better served if the Beeb looks to content regardless of gender and ethnicity. Come back Auntie, we need you.

Postscript [28.04.2016]

From BBC News under Arts and Entertainment: BBC to quiz recruits on family background.

Staff joining the BBC will be asked about their socio-economic background, as part of a bid to increase diversity at the corporation.

Candidates will be asked if they were entitled to free school meals, and if their parents attended university.

Anonymised job applications will also be extended for core roles.

The plans come after the BBC faced pressure from ministers to increase numbers of staff from under-represented backgrounds.

Read all about it here

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May Day!

Source: Twitter @stpetercarms

It is fitting that the Eucharist service advertised on the left is to be held on 1st May given the intention and pagan origins of May Day.

Victimisation is implicit in praying for equality while celebrating diversity. There are others far less equal who are never mentioned apart from being told to find somewhere else to worship.

The bishop of St Davids again identifies her ministry most closely with advancing homosexuality in the church while pursuing her policy of gender parity.

The bishops of Llandaff and St Asaph have similar agendas so at least half the bench is closely allied with the aspirations of Changing Attitudes.

The former Archbishop Barry Morgan liked to remind anyone who had to listen to him that the bench spoke with one voice so the Church in Wales is off course travelling in the wrong direction.

May Day!

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Diversity!

Dr Who used to provide regular family viewing many years ago when the children were growing up.

They now have children of their own. Accustomed to advanced computer graphics they are not easily upset by such as the Daleks.

Asking one of my grandchildren if he found a particular computer game too gory after seeing blood being splattered everywhere he looked at me in astonishment and explained that it was not real.

After reading that the new Dr Who played by Jodie Whittaker was 'a triumph for diversity' I thought I should take a look so watched the new series on Sunday evening.

The current Dr Who is far removed from William Hartnell, the original doctor. I was reminded of a youthful-looking Emily Thornberry. The word that came to mind was not diversity but tokenism.

Gender swapping is not diverse, it is perverse. Sex is determined by chromosomes, XX for a female or XY for a male, yet people born in New York City are to be allowed to have their sex recorded as 'X' in another nod to LGBT rights.

The NYC Mayor signed the provision into law with the words, "We want to make sure that people are not dependent on the subjective judgement of anybody else including a doctor"! That will be no comfort for the women prisoners sexually assaulted by a fellow inmate who self-identified as a woman and had previously raped two women.

In the next episode Dr Who meets 'civil rights icon' Rosa Parks.

When William Hartnell played Dr Who entertainment was entertainment, not political posturing.

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The journey

Yesterday saw the twentieth anniversaryPride Cymru parade through Cardiff streets, supporting the LGBT community on the pretext of raising awareness of equality and diversity,

Away from the hype the reality is different. LGBT fully permeates Church and State.

The last bastion of Christianity in the media, the BBC's Songs of Praise, has been eased out of prime time viewing to a short lunch time slot. It has further alienated viewers after it featured a same-sex wedding.

This is pure propaganda in a process turning this

into this

After 20 years of 'being proud and together', the LGBT community still insists on raising "awareness of equality and diversity" as if they have not noticed the rainbow flags on government buildings and in shop windows.

The rainbow flag is displayed everywhere from the

vote catching First Minister of Wales

university chaplaincy

police

and Church

culminating in a full circle preparing the next generation

aided by the Church, 'where love matters', allegedly.

Equality and diversity? Pull the other one.

Images from Wales on Line, Church in Wales and Twitter

Postscript [29.08.2019]

Question put down for Church in Wales Governing Body meeting 11 - 12 September 2019:

"During August the Diocese of Llandaff and the Church in Wales actively supported and promoted the Faith Tent at Pride Cymru via social media, various press releases and the presence of a number of clerics at the event. As part of the event there were three sessions of "drag queen storytime". The drag queen in question has YouTube videos entitled "Good Christian bitches" and "the most underrated type of gay sexdanquot; as well as a number of other videos containing explicit material contrary to the Christian faith. Despite this speaker being a "third partydanquot; - the Church in Wales support for the entire event was unequivocal. Does the Church in Wales affirm the lifestyle this speaker promotes or is the Church prepared to simply overlook the usual high moral standards expected of speakers at events it promotes?"

Thank God somebody is prepared to stand up for the Church at GB saying what needs to be said to defend the Christian faith instead of simply 'going along to get on'.

Postscript [11.09.2019]

This bland response from the bishop of Llandaff tweeted from Governing Body:

@ChurchinWales @BishopJuno of @LlandaffDio answers a question about @PrideCymru, saying the Church had a duty to minister to the whole community and support such major  events. "We are seeking to engage with a section of society which the Church has not always treated well in the past" #govbody

If that is all she said she evaded the question put.

I have seen no evidence that the Church has treated the gay community badly in the past. Quite the contrary. By contrast traditionalist Anglicans have been treated abysmally with encouragement from the bench.

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Second-class Christians

Preparations are underway to celebrate what has become one of the major festivals in the Church in Wales, Gay Pride week, 'giving a voice' to those who claim to be persecuted.

As Archbishop Barry Morgan said way back in 2008: "There are a huge number of gay clergy and gay partnered clergydanquot; adding that "there?S no reason why they shouldn?T be bishops and they will be. We?Re not arguing about if, we?Re just arguing about when."

Now that the Church in Wales has appointed an openly lesbian bishop, claiming to be persecuted while running the show has a hollow ring. It is more about tactical advantage than persecution as outlined in Would I Lie to You?

As part of their 2020 LGBT campaign thediocese of Llandaff is launching their first ever LGBT prayer writing competition to celebrate LGBT History Month 2020: "We?Re inviting you to write an original prayer based around the theme Power of Prayer. Your prayer could feature in our forthcoming LGBT prayer book and may be spoken at the Faith Tent Eucharist at Pride Cymru."

The diocesan press release invites readers who may be looking for inspiration to watch the above Prayer for Pride video. In fact it is another propaganda tool claiming discrimination while twisting the meaning of love.

News from Wales has announced a special service in North Wales "celebrating diversity and the legendary Ladies of Llangollen" which takes place at St Collen’s Church in Llangollen on Saturday 22nd February, including a blessing of the tomb of the Ladies of Llangollen.

According to the report: "The service is timely following a recent report issued by the bishops of the Church of England on same-sex marriages. This report has hurt, disappointed and discouraged many LGBT Christians...This service will send out a powerful message of inclusion, hope and welcome to all LGBT people across the land."

That is, inclusion, hope and welcome for an alleged oppressed minority but exclusion, no hope and goodbye to Anglicans who are among the majority of Christians who remain faithful to the teaching of the Apostolic Church.

Following the statement by the Church of England's House of Bishops that for Christians marriage is the lifelong union between a man and a woman and remains the proper context for sexual activity, trendy bishops started to break ranks, distancing themselves from the guidance.

Quick off the mark, the bishop of Gloucester, Rachel Treweek, issued a statement saying that she was ?Deeply frustrated and saddened? At the guidance. "I recognise that it has fanned into flame unnecessary pain and distress and I wish to acknowledge my part in thatdanquot;, she said.

Again using love to justify her stance Treweek added, "The word ?Love? Emanating from the generous love of God is one that needs to be heard and lived, and I am extremely sorry that it has not been heard in the publication of the House of Bishops".

In the House of Commons civil partnered vicar's son Ben Bradshaw questioned the Second Church Estates Commissioner on the guidance. Alleging that the Church "still treats its LGBT members as second-class Christiansdanquot;, he told the House that "serious questionsdanquot; will be asked about the Church of England's established status if it stands by its position on opposite-sex civil partnerships.

Justifying her enthronement as the first openly gay bishop in the Church in Wales the bishop of Monmouth, Cherry Vann, said, “God has given us a world teeming with difference and diversity".

That is their own diversity, soon to be enshrined in the forthcoming Church in Wales LGBT+ prayer book.

It is not difficult to identify the real second-class Christians in the Anglican Church.

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