"Church in Wales takes next step towards allowing same-sex marriages"

Llandaff Cathedral                                                                                                                                Source: Church in Wales

Martin Shipton writes in Nation Cymru:

 "The Church in Wales is taking a further step towards changing its rules so same-sex weddings can take place in its churches. Since 2021 it’s been possible for gay couples who have exchanged wedding vows in a civil ceremony to have their new status blessed in a church service. But so far the necessary constitutional move has not been made to permit weddings themselves.

"According to the Church in Wales’ own rules, all three of its sections – clergy, bishops and lay members – must approve such a change, each by a two-thirds majority. But while senior figures are confident that the clergy and bishops would approve the change, they have not been sure of the lay section, a significant number of whom maintain the conservative view that marriage can only be between a man and a woman."

As previously reported, Llandaff Cathedral is to hold a national memorial service for "people who have suffered exclusion from Christian communities because of their sexuality or gender". It is organised by OneBodyOneFaith, the UK’s oldest Christian LGBT+ members’ network, in partnership with The Gathering, an LGBT+ church in Cardiff, and supported by Church in Wales bishops.

The advancement of LGBTQ+ issues now appears to be the main focus of the Church in Wales as they continue to exclude those who keep the faith.

Current Church in Wales rules provide for same-sex blessings following a Civil Ceremony of Marriage or Partnership in a five year experimental rite which expires on 30 September 2026.

The Archbishop of Wales, Andrew John, has expressed his hope that same-sex weddings will then be held in churches in Wales.

To that end the consecration of 'the youngest person ever to become a bishop in the Church in Wales' may have more to do with the fact that the new assistant bishop of Bangor is engaged to a man in a same-sex partnership.

Postscript 17.05.2024

Church Times (£): Bishop of Lancaster: I cannot judge Welsh bishop

"Provincial autonomy trumps personal convictions about sexuality for Dr Duff at the consecration of the new Assistant Bishop of Bangor."

Persecution

The above video highlights the persecution of Christians in India.

The Church Times reports how Peers were told of attacks and discrimination suffered by Christians and other religious minorities in Pakistan.  

The Bishop of Leicester, the Rt Revd Martyn Snow, said that fewer than 2% of the population of Pakistan were Christian but Christians accounted for more than 80 % of the sewerage and street-cleaning workforce, "where hazardous conditions and a lack of workplace health and safety regulations and protective equipment cause untold preventable accidents, illnesses, and deaths. The accounts of their working conditions are truly repugnant, made even more shocking by the fact that the government agencies advertise cleaning positions for Christians and other religious minorities only."

Lord Alton who introduced the topic said that 3.72 % of the 230 million people in Pakistan were from religious-minority backgrounds. He referred to evidence, found by the APPG for Pakistani Minorities, of "discrimination and persecution against minorities, entrenched in school textbooks; stigmatisation in schools and colleges; and primitive and dismal conditions in the so-called colonies where Christians live, which are often devoid of running water, sanitation and electricity."

According to the Christian Non Government Organisation Open Doors "one in seven Christians worldwide face persecution and discrimination for their faith."

Meanwhile, Letters to the Editor in the Church Times contain a response to the continuing persecution of fellow Anglicans in their own Church by Women And The Church (WATCH) who, devoid of any integrity, think it their Church alone.