(Photo: Archbishop Vincent Nichols, 21 May 2009/Kevin Coombs)

Those disaffected Anglicans in England and Wales who think they can take up Pope Benedict's offer and switch to Rome with a "pick and choose" attitude should think again, the Catholic Archbishop of Westminster, Vincent Nichols has said.

Many Anglicans unhappy with women's ordination and gay clergy cannot just convert to Roman Catholicism as a way out, but must accept Catholic doctrine  wholeheartedly, he said.

"Nothing is envisaged in this provision that the Pope has put in place is a kind of minimalist approach to picking bits of the Catholic faith that I like and then seeing myself as it were contained as a quasi-Catholic, not a real Catholic, under the umbrella of this constitution," he said, referring to a "buffet approach" to the faith that some Catholics dismiss as "cafeteria Catholicism."

It is still unclear how many Anglicans will convert, but the invitation, in the form of what's called an Apostolic Constitution, has opened up old wounds between the Vatican and Lambeth Palace.

It has also crystallised divisions within the Church of England, the Anglican mother church.

A debate is raging over whether the Pope's offer was an act of undisguised poaching, tapping into discontent among some Anglicans. or whether it was an act of generosity, responding to calls of help.

It has also raised questions about the approach adopted by Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, the head of the Church of England and spiritual leader of the Anglican Communion, towards the offer - details of which he did not know until two weeks before the announcement. Some say he has been too soft, while others say he has been judicious.

A meeting between the pope and the archbishop this weekend was said to be short but courteous - though the BBC pointed out the pope spent more time with artists visiting the Sistine Chapel than he did with Williams.

(Photo: Archbishop Williams and Pope Benedict, 21 Nov 2009/Osservatore Romano)

One thing that is clear is Nichols' call for complete devotion to the Roman Catholic Church.

"I clearly want to say unambiguously that anybody who seriously wants to perhaps take up the initiative that Pope Benedict has put in place needs to do it out of a conviction that this is the context in which they desire, long to live their Christian discipleship," he said.

"It therefore must be a positive desire in their heart, and one that centres around not questions of the ordination of women to the episcopate, not questions of sexual ethics, but must centre around an understanding of the role of the office of the Bishop of Rome...in the ongoing life of a Christian.

"So a person must be embracing of that concrete aspect of Catholic life which is the authority of the Holy See in the person if they are hoping to make this journey with integrity."

Williams seemed to say the same thing when, in an interview with Vatican Radio, he stressed that Anglicans who switch to Rome should do it because they genuinely want to become Roman Catholics, not out of protest against something in Anglicanism. "People become Roman Catholics because they want to become Roman Catholics, because their consciences are formed in a certain way and they believe this is the will of God for them. I wish them every blessing in that," he said.

Archbishop Nichols's comments came as he announced that a commission of Catholic bishops and advisers had been set up to consider in detail the next steps with regards the Apostolic Constitution. It will liaise with the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith and offer advice to diocesan bishops.

It will be interesting to see whether his comments influence the number of Anglicans wanting to switch.

Catholic bishops in England and Wales warned against people thinking they may be exempt from prosecution in assisting suicide after new guidelines were issued.

The  Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) set out the guidelines in September in an attempt to bring greater clarity to the thorny issue of prosecution, inviting comments during a consultation period.

Suicide is still against the law in Britain, but the high-profile case of multiple sclerosis sufferer Debbie Purdy, from Bradford, northern England, who has sought clarification on whether her husband would be prosecuted if he helped her go abroad to die, has been an impetus for the guidelines. 

They set out a range of factors influencing whether a person would face prosecution or not. In favour of prosecution would be if there were a financial motive involved, pressure put on the individual into committing suicide and if the person wanting to die was suffering from mental illness.

Factors against prosecution would include whether the suspect was motivated wholly by compassion and was a spouse, partner, close relative or personal friend.

But the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales said the guidance did not protect the vulnerable such as the disabled, the terminally ill and those prone to carrying out repeated suicide attempts in the form of a shout of help.

They also said it should not assume spouses and partners will always be supportive. "Indeed, crimes of violence are very commonly carried out by someone known to the victim not infrequently within the same family," they said.

While acknowledging the DPP had a difficult job, they said the word "assisting" should be reconsidered in preference for "aiding and abetting", which reflected the law.

They warned against a culture shift in which "assisted suicide" becomes partly "decriminalised" or that the DPP authorises "exceptions to the law".

"This could in turn lead to a much wider range of cases of assisted suicide, even including the facilitation of suicide within the United Kingdom by medical professionals," they said.

A similar line was adopted by the Church of England, which separately issued its response on the same day.

"The Church of England believes that every suicide is a tragedy and that a caring society ought to ensure that anyone considering suicide is able to have ready access to life-affirming and life-enhancing support, counselling and medical and nursing care," it said in a statement.

"It is essential that assisted suicide is never deemed to be acceptable or commendable. Aiding, abetting, counselling or procuring a suicide remains a crime and we are assured that the DPP's guidelines are not intended to or designed to compromise this."

Pope Benedict has made it easier for disaffected Anglicans to convert to Roman Catholicism.

Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury and spiritual head of the Anglican Church, and Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster and head of the Catholic Church in England and Wales, stressed dialogue would continue between the two churches.

They were at pains to say it was not a comment on the Anglican Communion, but a response to requests from traditional Anglicans from all over the world.

Williams said he did not see it as an act of aggression, but he had no input in the new "Apostolic Constitution" and was only told about its details two weeks before it was disclosed at the offices of the Roman Catholic Church in London. A simultaneous press conference was held at the Vatican.

The head of the Anglican Church has been trying to keep together the liberal and conservative wings of the church, divided since the consecration of openly gay U.S. Bishop Gene Robinson in 2003 and the blessing of same sex marriages in Canada.

The Church of England has also experienced disagreement over the issue of women bishops.

Details of the legal framework were limited, but the constitution allows groups to join the Roman Catholic Church while maintaining some of their own traditions.

It allows for the ordination as Catholic priests of married former Anglican clergy, but not bishops.

It would allow the appointment of leaders, usually bishops, to oversee communities of former Anglicans who become Catholics and recognise the pope as their leader.

They may be able to eventually develop their own liturgy which would have to be approved by the Holy See.

The constitution poses serious questions for both churches.

For the Anglican Church, will it weaken its status? Will it clear the way for women bishops?

For the Roman Catholic Church, will it reopen the issue of celibate priesthood?

The Church of England should shed its "booted and suited" middle-class image, a British bishop says.

"Even today I meet people who think you have to be highly educated or suited and booted to be a person who goes to church" the Reverend Stephen Cottrell, Bishop of Reading, in southern England, said.

The comments come as Christian churches throughout the UK and other parts of the world launch a week-long "back to Church Sunday" campaign, an attempt to encourage people of all social classes to go to church this Sunday.

Up to 16,000 Church of England churches as well as Churches Together in Scotland, the Church in Wales, Baptist, Methodist, United Reformed, Salvation Army and Elim Pentecostal churches will be taking part as will Anglican churches in Australia, Argentina, New Zealand and Canada.

A poll in 2007 showed the social breakdown of congregations in Britain was evenly spread, but drawing on a shopping analogy, the Bishop likened the church's image to that of middle-class Marks & Spencer rather than the more downmarket supermarkets Asda and Aldi.

"How did it come to this, that we have become known as just the Marks and Spencer option when in our heart of hearts we know that Jesus would just as likely be in the queue at Asda or Aldi? " he asked.

"That's so frustrating. Jesus got us started with church simply. Like this: sitting us down in groups on the grass and telling simple stories. Not simplistic. But certainly not complicated. All his first disciples were down-to-earth people who wanted to know what life was all about."

He said churches were places of "warmth and honesty...Not a hobby but a way of life".

"Church: it’s definitely not about how you look, what you do, how you sound, how well you sing. Just come as you are," he added.

A YouTube invitation has been posted by the Bishop of Sheffield, the Revd Steven Croft, and local radio adverts have been placed, while a Nottinghamshire bishop, the Revd Tony Porter, will be donning his biking leathers and setting off for a Territorial Army barracks to deliver the invitation.

Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the spiritual head of the Anglican Church, backed the campaign, saying the church had a responsibility to welcome all comers.