Church in Wales Christmas farce

Photo: CinW

You could be forgiven for thinking this is a lineup of hopefuls demanding a part in a Church pantomime farce. In many ways it is.

Not to be outdone by their sister group, Women and the Church (WATCH), now more popularly known as Women in the Church (WITCH) having achieved their goal of feminizing the Church of England, this group is determined to do for the Church in Wales what WATCH has done in England but with nothing in return in the form of alternative Episcopal oversight as enjoyed in England. Indeed bishops of The Anglican Mission in England are not welcome in Wales. Bizarrely, homosexuality, same sex marriage and dialogue with Imams are all more acceptable to the liberal minded Church in Wales (CinW) episcopate.

Having achieved their aim, WATCH tried to unpick the agreement which enabled women priests to become bishops. Under that agreement everyone in the Church of England was to be given the opportunity to flourish. WATCH then tried to dictate the terms of the agreement until the ombudsman stepped in and sent them packing.

In the CinW pantomime the wicked WITCH, eagerly aided by the Archbishop of Wales, scuppered the chances of everyone being given the opportunity to flourish as soon as the goal of women bishops was achieved. Contrary to the wishes of the majority of CinW members, no provision was made for members who did not support the non-Biblical innovation of women bishops.

The pantomime plot is to convince everyone that "there is a long way to go before women – lay and ordained – achieve equality in the church", a prejudiced attitude that has no evidence to support it but with the Archgenie waiting in the wings to work his magic it is a claim that will no doubt gain support among the nodding majority. The aim is based on a process of positive discrimination so that even the most abysmal female candidate is preferred over outstanding male candidates, especially men who continue to follow the Apostolic teaching of the Holy Catholic Church.

The irony in the plot is that there is discrimination in the Church in Wales but it is not against women. They are the cause of the discrimination which is against cradle Anglicans whose faith has been sidelined to accommodate entrists using Anglicanism to promote their brand of feminism.

Note the comments of the Venerable Christine Hardman who "played an important role in getting the legislation to allow women to be Bishops passed by the Church of England". Her inauguration as the new Bishop of Newcastle took place on Saturday. From a report of the event:

Growing up on a London council estate, a young Christine Hardman admits she had nothing to do with religion. Church was so far removed from her life growing up, it was guarded behind a huge fence. “Church didn’t touch our lives on that council estate,” she said. “We weren’t a church going family and the only church on the estate had a big fence so I had nothing to do with it.”

"It was devastating, I felt so sad that the picture the outside world have of the Church of England was that message, that women can’t be Bishops I didn’t want people to see the church like that,” she said. Rev Hardman worried that the church would never be able to attract young people to worship and was alienating people with an idea which many found offensive".

Perhaps she had not noticed that the outside world could not care less about the Church except when applying their secular standards to a faith that has no interest for them until a convenient opportunity for advancement is spotted by some.

Similarly the Venerable Peggy Jackson had no religion before her husband deserted her. She said, "I was at a low in my life, I thought I would give the Church a go and I found the most wonderful welcome. I was feeling desperate and it was a lifeline at a very black time." Her thanksgiving is to punish cradle Anglicans who do not accept her interpretation of the Christian faith by seeking to exclude them.

So having "given the Church a go" the women of  WITCH, WATCH, MAECymru or whatever and their sidekicks remain as determined as ever to force their agenda at any cost, even the demise of Anglicanism in Great Britain.

What a farce!