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A nightmare week for the Archbishop of Canterbury
Many members of the Church of England will be wondering “where do we go from here”, the morning after the church’s parliament voted down a compromise amendment put forward by its two most senior clerics.
The liberal wing of the church will probably feel the road is clear ahead for the ordination of women as bishops after the Archbishops of Canterbury and York were foiled, though there is still a long way to go. (Photo: Archbishop Rowan Williams in Canterbury Cathedral, 4 April 2010/Toby Melville)
But some among the traditionalist Anglo-Catholics and conservative evangelicals will be wondering where their spiritual home now lies. Some traditionalists may be more persuaded to take up Pope Benedict’s offer made last October to convert to Roman Catholicism, in the knowledge that they would be able to retain some of their traditions and liturgy.
They were so dismayed by the amendment’s defeat in York, northern England, that some asked the archbishop for an urgent meeting before synod resumes its debate on Monday morning, the Thinking Anglicans website said.
Rejection of gay clergyman as bishop sends CoE into spin
The Church of England has blocked the appointment of a gay clergyman to the role of Bishop of Southwark after a bitter behind-the-scenes battle which has left the conservatives and liberals at loggerheads and possibly weakened the standing of Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, media reports said.
Jeffrey John, Dean of St Albans, was rejected after it was leaked that he was on the Crown Nominations Commission shortlist for the post in south London, one of the most liberal of all the church’s dioceses, the Daily Telegraph said.
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The Wall
