Mutual flourishing

Former archbishop of Wales Barry Morgan in his empty cathedral

The Church of England is taking steps to safeguard 'mutual flourishing', a concept dropped by the  bench of bishops of the Church in Wales at the earliest opportunity after securing the vote to allow women bishops.  

From the Church Times - Twelve Church of England people of "varying backgrounds" have been appointed members of the Standing Commission on the House of Bishops’ Declaration and the Five Guiding Principles:

"The setting up of the Commission was recommended by the Implementation and Dialogue Group (IDG), established in 2018 in response to the Independent Reviewer’s report of matters surrounding the nomination — and subsequent withdrawal — of the Rt Revd Philip North as Bishop of Sheffield (News, 9 February 2018). It was tasked with reviewing how the House of Bishops’ Declaration and the Five Guiding Principles — part of the settlement that made possible the admission of women to the episcopate — are understood, implemented, and received in the Church.

"Last year, the General Synod took note of a report from the IDG on whether the Five Guiding Principles, established in 2014 to enable those unable to receive the ministry of female bishops or priests to flourish within the Church’s life and structures, were still “fit for purpose” (News, 16 July 2021).

"The Church House statement says: “Members have been chosen by the House of Bishops, in consultation with the Prolocutors of the House of Clergy and the Chair and Vice Chair of the House of Laity, because of their experience and varying backgrounds.

"The membership has been carefully balanced to ensure there is fair representation of theological viewpoints and a commitment from all to the Five Guiding Principles and mutual flourishing."

While becoming increasingly secularised, as has the Church in Wales, to their credit the Church of England has remained true to its promise to enable those unable to receive the ministry of female bishops or priests to flourish within the Church’s life and structures.

The Church in Wales has not despite implied promises. 

From their Code of Practice: "Since the Church in Wales continues to share the historic episcopate with other Churches, including other Churches of the Anglican Communion, the Roman Catholic and the Orthodox Churches, which continue to ordain only men as priests or bishops, the Bench of Bishops acknowledges that this decision on ministry and gender is set within a broader process of discernment and reception within the Anglican Communion and the whole Church of God.

"Within the Church in Wales, those who on grounds of theological conviction and conscience are unable to receive the sacramental ministry of women bishops or priests continue to be within the spectrum of teaching and tradition of the Anglican Communion. The Church in Wales therefore remains committed to enabling all its members to flourish within its life and structures as accepted and valued. Appropriate provision for them will be made in a way intended to maintain the highest possible degree of communion and contributes to mutual flourishing across the whole Church in Wales."

The Code implied provision for mutual flourishing but it soon became clear that the bishops had no intention of honouring their commitment, frustrating mutual flourishing at every turn.

Sir William Fittall the Independent Reviewer wrote of the situation in England, "To expect someone whose theological conviction does not enable him to receive the sacramental ministry of women routinely to turn up to a celebration of Holy Communion when he cannot discover in advance whether he will be able to receive Holy Communion seems to me to be asking too much."

That is exactly what archbishop Barry Morgan did. From a previous entry  Welsh Primate abandons twin integrity:
"In his newly created role of Acting Dean of his own Cathedral, the dictatorial Archbishop of Wales and Bishop of Llandaff, Dr Barry Morgan, has decreed that the Cathedral Office is not to publish the names of officiants at each of the Cathedral services. The intention is to put a further barrier in the way of those who, for theological reasons, are uncomfortable with a woman presiding at the altar. Rather than being able to plan ahead to avoid unfortunate pastoral situations, it would appear that the only way of knowing who is celebrating the Eucharist at Llandaff is to see who appears at the entrance procession."

The Church in Wales prides itself on being inclusive - but on their own terms. It does not extend to making provision for faithful Anglicans whose only desire is to keep the faith with appropriate sacramental and pastoral provision.

Rather than expand The Kingdom the bench chose secularism for the Church in Wales, as the emptying pews testify.

Thank you - for what?

A voice from below!
Archdeacon Peggy Jackson (right) retires   Source: Church in Wales/Twitter

Llandaff diocese, Twitter: Join us this #NationalThankYouDay as we say DIOLCH - THANK YOU to all our Priests and Deacons whose dedication to serving God and their community is utterly inspiring! You folks are amazing!

Do the people in Llandaff know or understand anything about the Church in Wales? Or are they simply perpetuating the bench of bishops' strategy of marginalising any faithful Anglicans who do not fit the new, secularised profile of the Church in Wales. If Archdeacon Jackson had had her way, the Church in Wales would have barred from ordination anyone who objected, on grounds of conscience, to women clergy thus making a mockery of the promises made to allow the ordination of women.

At Governing Body in 2019 the mean spirited Archdeacon of Llandaff introduced a private members motion asking Church in Wales bishops to refuse to ordain anyone who objected to women clergy, reneging on the twin integrity formula which allowed Jackson to enjoy the privileges conferred on her by archbishop Barry Morgan as his chief hatchet woman.

Jackson was supported in her endeavour by the now disgraced bishop of St Davids, Joanna Penberthy, and the current senior Church in Wales bishop, Andy John, bishop of Bangor, whose private life attracted much speculation before his divorce and re-marriage. 

The two other bishops present, John Davies (Swansea & Brecon) and June Osborne (Landaff), signalled their lack of opposition to the measure by abstaining.

What amazing folks!

Responding to the debate the Archdeacon of Llandaff said that those who entered the priesthood were clear that the Church was not “in two minds” about women’s ministry. Those who found themselves “at odds” with a particular aspect of what the Church believed must “protect and operate their own arrangements and conscience how best they may.” 

Her aim as a former member of GRAS was clear despite her disingenuous claim after losing the vote that it was not her intent to drive conservatives or Anglo-Catholics out of the Church.

Others saw it differently: "Having won the battle she was intent on shooting the prisoners."

Archdeacon Jackson along with her co-conspirator, Canon Jenny Wigley, had already been successful in amending the Bill proposed by the bench of bishops to enable women to be consecrated as bishops. Their amendment substituted a meaningless, voluntary code of practice for the statutory provisions contained in the bishops' bill.

Illustrating the bench of bishops complicity, the Church of England Newspaper reported at the time: "The Bishops had backed a two-stage process with a first vote to establish the principle and a second bill to amend the constitution to make provision for traditionalists. When an amendment allowing women bishops to be appointed one year after a single bill was proposed by Archdeacon Peggy Jackson the bishops made it clear that they would not regard a vote in favour of the amendment as ‘disloyal’."

The archdeacon's private members motion was to be the coup de grâce but even some of her most loyal supporters could not stomach her mean, vindictive attitude to their fellow Anglicans. 

In the debate she complained it was 'hurtful' for her when she experienced 'denial or worse' from those who could not accept her calling. But for her, the only acceptable Anglicans are those whose vision of Anglicanism matches hers in a Church which, at 0.03% of the Anglican Communion and falling is way out of step with the vast majority of its 85 million Anglicans. Such is the conceit of these entrists.

The many faithful Anglicans who have been effectively un-churched by archdeacon Jackson's brutal implementation of the policies of 'His Darkness' are entitled to ask: Thank you for what?

Postscript [12.07.2021]

Bosom pals             Source: Youtube

From the Choral Evensong to mark the retirement of the Venerable Peggy Jackson. 

Captions welcome.

Archiepiscopal duplicity is no recommendation

Archbishop Justin Welby, C of E (right), with Archbishop John Davies, Church in Wales, Primus Mark Strange,
Scottish Episcopal Church and Archbishop Richard Clarke, Church of Ireland, outside St Patrick’s Cathedral 
in Armagh at the close of the 2019 European Regional Primates’ Meeting. Photo Credit: Church of Ireland.

Archbishops Welby and Davies with Primus Mark Strange, plus the Archbishop of Armagh and the new Archbishop of York wrote to the Financial Times recently warning the government that its new Brexit bill could set a "disastrous precedent". 

Anglican archbishops are well placed to speak about disasters given their performance, bringing the Anglican Church in these Isles to the brink of collapse.

Promises made to secure the ordination of women and their subsequent admission to the episcopate quickly evaporated after their goal had been reached. 

Not only have the unchurched lost their spiritual base but those going along with the notion that faith follows secular fads will also find themselves unchurched when Anglicanism collapses, probably within a generation.

Archbishop of Wales, Barry Morgan refused to appoint another Provincial Assistant Bishop after the retirement of bishop David Thomas so orthodox Anglicans have been left without spiritual oversight, contrary to promises implied in the Code of Practice, cunningly crafted by Barry Morgan's misandrist placement, Archdeacon Peggy Jackson.

Principle 4 states: 

• The Church in Wales therefore remains committed to enabling all its members to flourish within its life and structures as accepted and valued. 
• Appropriate provision for them will be made in a way intended to maintain the highest possible degree of communion and contributes to mutual flourishing across the whole Church in Wales.

'Traditionalist' Anglicans were betrayed. 

There is no mutual flourishing. All Anglican churches in the South Wales dioceses of St Davids, Llandaff and Monmouth are now headed by women bishops. Society bishops are barred from entering Welsh dioceses so traditionalists seeking sacramental assurance are forced to travel to England for the Chrism Mass.

Many of the disowned faithful Anglicans are committed Christians who gave gladly of their time and money, helping to maintain parish communities. As extinction looms, their loss to the Church in Wales is not mourned by the bishops. Instead, extra senior staff are employed to enforce unwelcome change while clergy going along to get on take to social media to maintain a presence with Twitter trivia.

In the Church of England the House of Bishops made a similar declaration:

• Since those within the Church of England who, on grounds of theological conviction, are unable to receive the ministry of women bishops or priests continue to be within the spectrum of teaching and tradition of the Anglican Communion, the Church of England remains committed to enabling them to flourish within its life and structures; and
•  Pastoral and sacramental provision for the minority within the Church of England will be made without specifying a limit of time and in a way that maintains the highest possible degree of communion and contributes to mutual flourishing across the whole Church of England. 

Unlike the Church in Wales, the Church of England has maintained episcopal provision for traditionalists through The Society but it stretches the imagination to regard such provision as 'mutual flourishing'. 

Women and the Church (WATCH) and their supporters constantly undermine attempts at mutual flourishing, as illustrated by the treatment of Bishop Philip North who was pressed to withdraw after being appointed Bishop of Sheffield. It was said his opposition to female priests would “cause significant pastoral and public damage to the church”. 

Such hypocrisy. Promises made at Synod and by the Church in Wales as a means of securing the necessary votes were false yet the Archbishop of Canterbury has the nerve to lecture others on justice and honesty. 

To a thinly populated House of Lords Justin Welby said: 

"What above all we are called to do in this country deeply embedded in our Christian culture and history is to act justly and honestly. We cannot do so if we openly speak of breaking a treaty under international law reached properly, on which peace in part of the UK relies....Politics, if it is to draw out the best of us, must be more than just the exercise of binaries, of raw majority power unleashed. It exists to seek truth, to bring diverse peoples together in healthy relationships.....In the Church of England, my Lords, we are all too clearly aware of the shame that comes with failing morally. Let us not make the same mistake at National level."  

Given their duplicity the archbishops are the last people who should be offering advice to others while making such a mess of the Anglican Church.

Northern Ireland politician, David Burnside wrote to the News Letter: The archbishop does not speak for Church of Ireland members like me when he attacks the UK internal market bill.

Eurosceptic MP Steve Baker said that Boris Johnson should consider cutting ties with the Church of England after the Brexit bill was criticised by senior figures of the church.

Sir John Redwood MP claimed that the five Anglican leaders were "misusing their position" in going against the wishes of the nation for the UK to be independent.

There will be many Anglican who share such sentiments.

More rank hypocrisy from the Bench

"The Archbishop of Wales and the Church in Wales’s four serving diocesan bishops are calling on the UK’s political leaders to commit to the rule of law and work together to secure the prosperity of our country." 

- Provincial press release

Full statement HERE.

It is a bit rich when the Bishops of the Church in Wales place on record their "evident concern for the well-being of our democratic processes and constitution in the United Kingdom" when the Bench of bishops regularly ignores democratic processes.

Consultations in the Church in Wales have been regularly ignored when the results have not accorded with the wishes of the Bench. 

Extract from an entry on 9 August 2016:

"Diocesan meetings were organised at considerable expense to discuss a Code of Practice designed to cater for faithful Anglicans who, on theological grounds, were unable to accept the ministry of women bishops. The wishes of the majority were ignored, see True to his word: "Over my dead body!". Then there was the farcical taking of opinions about allowing same sex marriages and/or blessings in church, see Marriage: Dodgy discipleship?. Barry and his bench sitters simply did what they wanted when the result did not fit their secular agenda, see Bishops' rank hypocrisy. So why should anyone expect other than a predetermined outcome this time?" 

Physicians, heal thyselves springs to mind again.

MAE Cymru's misandry

St Davids Bishop-Elect Joanna Penberthy at the 2016 AGM of MAE Cymru                                                                                                      Source: Pobl Dewi

" While we, as bishops, welcome the decision that women can now be ordained as bishops in Wales, we recognise that there are some people who do not. We want to make sure that adequate provision is made for them so that they will still feel valued and accepted in the Church and will continue to worship and minister alongside us." 

- Archbishop Barry Morgan

MAE Cymru's latest Newsletter contains this highly prejudiced piece of misandry from its Llandaff division:

This from an organisations that claims: "We are a group of people with a vision of the Church in Wales as a community of God’s people where, regardless of gender, justice and equality prevail." 

The obvious conclusion is that MAE Cymru is a sexist organisation which has no intention of honouring the Code of Practice which was drawn up after the admission of women to the episcopate. - See Acceptable pastoral and sacramental ministry.

Under the Code [2.] "Individual members of the Church in Wales who, on grounds of conscience, are unable to receive the sacramental ministry of a woman diocesan bishop, shall not be required to do so against their conscience, and alternative provision shall be made."

MAE Cymru's Llandaff Link, Jenny Wigley, was co-conspirator with Peggy Jackson in designing the voluntary code that replaced the statutory provisions proposed by the bench of bishops.

Taken with Archdeacon Peggy Jackson's 'divisive' motion [page 9 of the link] at the Governing Body of the Church in Wales that bishops no longer hold separate ordinations for those who refuse the sacramental ministry of women, it is clear that there was never any intention of carrying out the archbishop's pledge to make acceptable provision for loyal Anglicans who are unable on grounds of conscience to accept the sacramental ministry of women.

The Jackson/Wigley Morgan partnership                         Photos: Church in Wales

Not one of the bishops voted against Peggy Jackson's divisive motion. Two, Joanna Penberthy and Andy John, actually voted in favour of it!

None of  the male bishops in the Church in Wales has shown any sympathy for Anglicans who are unable in conscience to accept the sacramental ministry of women. Bishop Philip North does and pays a heavy price for his faith. Jenny Wigley's attack is the latest of many, particularly from Women and the Church, MAE Cymru's affiliate.

Canon Wigley and her companions show no understanding of Anglican orthodoxy which binds together most of the Anglican Communion. The Church in Wales is among its smallest of provinces. A province that has chosen, unilaterally, to be guided not by scripture and tradition but by the spirit of the age.

Their message is for love and understanding, welcoming the marginalised but strictly on their own terms. Their vision of justice and equality for the Church in Wales is perverse. They accuse others of discrimination while displaying it themselves. 

Recently the Archbishop of Wales, John Davies, was ‘honoured and humbled’ to be awarded an honorary doctorate  (Doctor of Divinity) by the University of Wales Trinity Saint David in recognition of his services to the Church in Wales and of his leadership across faith communities.

That is all except orthodox Anglicans who keep the faith.

The Church in Wales is watching

Church in Wales bishops of Llandaff, Bangor, St Davids, St Asaph Swansea & Brecon and Monmouth 

Archdeacon Peggy Jackson has attracted much criticism over her brutal treatment of faithful women and men who look to scripture and tradition rather than to her to decide what it takes to be an Anglican as accepted by 85 million members of the Anglican Communion of which the Church in Wales comprises 0.03%.

In her latest move she requests the Church's Governing Body to endorse her Motion that "all Bishops, consonant with previous undertakings, agree not to hold in future separate ordination services for any candidates, on the grounds of the candidates’ views on gender."

That is to deny ordination to men who are unable to accept the sacramental ministry of women and who rely upon the conscience clauses of the Code of Practice as intended.

In Jackson's book God calls women regardless but He calls men only if they enjoy the archdeacon's stamp of approval.

She is not alone in seeking to rid the Church of men who are not governed by the spirit of the age.

Canon Emma Percy, Chair of Women and the Church (WATCH) is quoted in The Times as saying “People are baffled that you can have senior bishops yet there are parts of the church which won’t accept women’s ministry.”

If people are baffled it is as a result of feminist propaganda which avoids theology, comparing instead secular standards of equality of opportunity in the workplace.

MAE Cymru, the WATCH sister organisation in Wales supposedly stands for ‘Ministry and Equality’. In practice it is about advancing the ministry of women in the Church regardless of ability and suitability under the guise of equality with emphasis on LGBT rights.

Anyone who gets in their way is expendable. Ignoring solemn pledges made to achieve their objective of women bishops the revisionists employ a form of taqiyya, using any means at their disposal to achieve their objective regardless of the truth.

When the bench of bishops meekly accepted the Jackson/Wigley amendment which substituted a voluntary Code of Practice for the statutory provision they became complicit in the MAE Cymry/WATCH agenda.

The BBC reported at the time:
"There were huge cheers in the hall as the result was announced....The Church in Wales' bishops wanted a second bill to allow the Church's constitution to be rewritten for traditionalist priests who do not want to be led by a woman. But reformers successfully put forward an amendment earlier in the day to avoid delays in adopting the change during a meeting at Lampeter, Ceredigion. Their amendment led to the straight yes-no vote."

If the bench supports Jackson's coup they will be hastening the end of the Church in Wales, turning it into a sexualised organisation dominated by priestesses as in pagan times.

The hypocrisy of it

The Archbishop of Wales, the Most Revd John Davies, makes the case for changing the Church in
Wales’s position on same-sex relationships at the recent meeting of its Governing Body, in Lampeter
Source: Church Times/Picture credit Church in Wales

From Church Times

Addressing their Governing Body the Archbishop of Wales claimed that the status quo on same-sex relationships was unsustainable.

"For him and the bench, it was simply a question of 'justice', he said. 'We have people in our congregations in committed same-sex relationships who can be baptised, confirmed, admitted to holy communion, and even be ordained in the case of civil partnerships. To say to them that, when it comes to formally affirming [and] recognising your relationship in some form, we can’t do that, and you must retreat into the shadows at the moment. . . I don’t think it’s any longer fair or sustainable'."

The bench have traditionalists in their congregations who have been baptised, confirmed and admitted to holy communion but they are also committed to the teaching of Christ through scripture and tradition.

They have been rejected so are unlikely to be ordained despite pledges in the Code of Practice.

That is unsustainable by normal standards but acceptable in the Church in Wales.

The stench of hypocrisy is overwhelming.

The faithless face of feminism in the Anglican Church

Bishop Rachel Treweek has said the Church of England should not call God 'he'
Source: Express/GettyImages

Christianity is about Christ. For feminists Christianity is about using Christ to promote their own agenda which distorts the nature of love and equality to accommodate their self promoting views on faith and religion.

The Express reports: 'God is NOT a man: First female bishop says calling God “He” is a growing problem'.

It may be a growing problem for bishop Treweek and her trendy feminist supporters but not for the majority of Christians or for Christ Himself who taught His disciples to pray: Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name...

Hallowed means nothing to these Entryists who lacked the integrity to form their own church. Instead they have politicised Western Anglicanism. They have mercilessly used the Anglican Church as a playing field on which only they can win.

So deep has the rot become that they have the support of limp bishops who have sacrificed spirituality on the altar of secularism.

In 2015 the BBC News Magazine published an article Why is God not female? The question keeps coming back. As with the ordination of woman and same sex marriage in church, the arguments are constantly regurgitated, pressing people outside the church who have no understanding of the theological implications of their actions to force change  inside the church.

Is it any surprise that people get fed up, leaving the Church in crisis as only 2% of young adults identify as C of E.

The Church in Wales too has become a leaking bucket, rusted by feminists. Their duplicity in getting the Governing Body to agree a Code of Practice which furthered the feminist cause while shutting out many faithful, cradle Anglicans can be judged by its fruits. The two women bishops appointed have proved to be a complete waste of spiritual space as they constantly drive forward their feminist agenda.

The ugly face of feminism in the church owes much of its success to Women and the Church (WATCH).

From my entry Women in the Church:

"Women bishops would humanise the priesthood" said the then Archbishop of Canterbury in 2011. Dr Rowan Williams warned the Church hierarchy to prepare for the “culture change” that would come with the “full inclusion” of women. Not the full inclusion the Archbishop would have expected. Instead it is inclusion to the exclusion of anyone with views not in accord with Women and the Church (WATCH) and their fellow travellers as highlighted by the "Sheffield controversy".

A culture change indeed. and not for the better so far as mother Church is concerned.

Women bishops defy Governing Body

Jolly June          Source: Twitter@LlandaffDio

Within the Church in Wales, those who on grounds of theological conviction and conscience are unable to receive the sacramental ministry of women bishops or priests continue to be within the spectrum of teaching and tradition of the Anglican Communion. The Church in Wales therefore remains committed to enabling all its members to flourish within its life and structures as accepted and valued. Appropriate provision for them will be made in a way intended to maintain the highest possible degree of communion and contributes to mutual flourishing across the whole Church in Wales. (Principles. Women Bishops Code of Practice) 

It appears that the newly appointed women bishops in the Church in Wales are happy to defy their Governing Body in an act which can only be described as a visible sign of disunity, showing no regard for the procedure which enabled them to be appointed bishops.

At ordinations presided over by the first female bishop of Llandaff, as a mere gesture towards the agreed Code of Practice, arrangements have been made for a male bishop to step forward for the laying on of hands if the ordinand, on grounds of conscience, is unable to receive the sacramental ministry of a woman diocesan bishop.

I understand that similar arrangements have been made for ordinations carried out by the bishop of St Davids. The gesture is clear.

The rules were changed unilaterally by the Church in Wales to grant the wish of women who claimed to be 'called to ministry', even though the Church in Wales claimed to share the historic episcopate with other Churches, 'including other Churches of the Anglican Communion, the Roman Catholic and the Orthodox Churches, which continue to ordain only men as priests or bishops'.

No provision was made for those, who on grounds of theological conviction and conscience, are unable to receive the sacramental ministry of women bishops or priests. Instead the Governing Body voted for a Code of Practice.

Under the Code, "Individual members of the Church in Wales who, on grounds of conscience, are unable to receive the sacramental ministry of a woman diocesan bishop, shall not be required to do so against their conscience, and alternative provision shall be made".

For the Code of Practice to have any meaning it must be seen to satisfy the consciences of those for whom it was intended but I understand that the new female bishops are making their own arrangements, thus placing orthodox ordinands in an impossible position.

The procedure has become so far removed from when the Provincial Assistant Bishop presided at ordinations that it lacks any integrity whatsoever.

The minister in the Sacrament of Ordination is the Bishop. The celebrant presides over the whole service – the interrogation of the candidates, the laying-on-of-hands (assisted by other priests who are symbolically receiving the new priests into the presbyterium) and the celebration of the Eucharist.  Importing another bishop (solely because he is male) to step in and lay hands on any candidates who have conscientious objections to the sacramental ministry of women, far from being a gesture of accommodation, turns the whole business into a charade of misogyny.

The curious arrangements proposed in Llandaff and St Davids do nothing to solve the basic problem of conscience either, since it is a requirement in the ordination service that those being ordained receive Holy Communion from the bishop who is the celebrant.

It has been said over and again that we do not have a problem with women; our problem remains the unilateral departure from the practice of the undivided church and by far the greater part of Christendom whose orders we have always claimed to have shared.

Traditionalist Anglicans in Wales are not alone in their struggle to survive. In the Church of England specific provision was made for men and women who in conscience are unable to receive the sacramental ministry of women bishops or priests but there has been a constant chipping away at the agreement. For the latest developments see the Forward in Faith document Nomination to the See of Sheffield: Lessons Learned.

When it comes to women's ordained ministry there seems to be far more of the old Eve than the new.

"A noble task"

The bishops of the Church in Wales, Llandudno 2012

 ‘The saying is sure: If any one aspires to the office of bishop, he  desires a noble task.’  I  Timothy 3

In his Theology Wales paper 'A Noble Task' Bishop David Thomas reflected on his experience of ministry as Provincial Assistant Bishop and how this might change if the episcopate in Wales were opened to women.

Bishop David died suddenly last week in the knowledge that the first woman bishop had been enthroned in St Davids and the imported bishop-designate of Llandaff is to be consecrated in Brecon Cathedral next month. Neither of the women bishops is a Welsh speaker, a language dear to +David's heart.

One can imagine the pain and the hurt felt by this faithful priest, bishop and pastor as his noble task was pushed aside to make the Church more relevant to society, principally by prioritising sexual minorities and gender issues. 

Bishop David's paper makes interesting reading in retrospect. Listed alongside it on the Church in Wales site are back papers including one by the Rev’d Joanna Penberthy, now bishop of St Davids, 'Learn from the past and build for the future', illustrating just how much theology has been replaced by politics in the Church in Wales.

It remains to be seen if loyal Anglicans who have been encouraged against the odds to 'Be joyful and keep the faith' can any longer survive in the Church in Wales. There has been a deathly silence since the Credo Cymru 'Conference to Preserve the Breadth of Anglicanism in Wales'. The divisive 'Code of Practice in relation to the Ministry of Bishops following the Canon to enable the Ordination of Women as Bishops' has yet to be tested. 

This will be the ultimate test of sincerity by a bench of bishops who "unanimously committed to securing a continuing place in the life of the  Church for those who cannot in conscience accept the new situation created by  the ordination of women to the priesthood." For others it is already over.

"People sometimes ask me how I imagine my ministry as PAB might change in the event of women being admitted to the episcopate in the Church in Wales. The only honest answer I can give is that it would not change; it would be over."  - 'A Noble Task'.

+David Thomas RIP

The cheek of it

Martyn Percy, who said a ‘substantial amount of resistance’ to the appointment was building.
Photograph: Luke Mazziotti/George Fox Evangelical Seminary

Reported in the Guardian:

"A senior Church of England theologian has called on the newly appointed bishop of Sheffield to stand aside ahead of his consecration, saying his opposition to female priests will “cause significant pastoral and public damage to the church”.

Martyn Percy, the dean of Christ Church, Oxford, urged Philip North to either renounce his membership of the Society, a C of E organisation that rejects female priests, or decline his nomination as bishop of Sheffield, which was announced last month.

Percy claims there is a “substantial amount of resistance building up” to North’s appointment, which he says would “represent the toleration of gender-based sectarianism”..."

In May 2014 the House of Bishops made its Declaration on the Ministry of Bishops and Priests (GS Misc 1076) in the context of the impending legislation enabling the consecration of women to the episcopate which received final approval by the General Synod in July 2014:

"Since those within the Church of England who, on grounds of theological
conviction, are unable to receive the ministry of women bishops or
priests continue to be within the spectrum of teaching and tradition of
the Anglican Communion, the Church of England remains committed to
enabling them to flourish within its life and structures; and

Pastoral and sacramental provision for the minority within the Church
of England will be made without specifying a limit of time and in a way
that maintains the highest possible degree of communion and
contributes to mutual flourishing across the whole Church of England."

It is Martyn Percy who should stand aside. The cause of 'significant pastoral and public damage to the church' both in England and in Wales is the feminist movement which puts secular, women's issues before all else.

Postscripts

The Rt Rev Philip North as Bishop of Burnley has already been consecrated. He is to be translated to become Bishop of Sheffield.
Read the Church of England’s Communication office response to an enquiry from The Guardian here. [24.02.2017]

Church Comes Out Fighting For Conservative Bishop In Row Over Women's Ordination here. [25.02.2017]

Calls grow for new Sheffield bishop to ease ‘distress and anxiety’ here [01.03.2017]
"Rev Sue Hammersley... one of the organisers of the SAME group, said there were ‘subtleties’ to the debate. 'This is not an attack on Bishop Philip – he is part of the system that we’re all part of,' she said. Before Rev North was picked, a ‘statement of needs’ was created for the diocese, with different candidates’ names put forward as the best fit for Sheffield. 'In this situation, something has gone wrong, and it’s unfortunate that it’s coming across that the fault is with Bishop Philip'.”

In the interests of equality I look forward to this group campaigning for the resignation of the non-Welsh speaking bishop of St Davids who is not the "best fit" for the diocese.

It's such a laugh being a bench sitter

The bishop of St Asaph, an ecstatic Archbishop of Wales, the bishop of Monmouth and the bishop of Swansea and Brecon with Joanna Penberthy,
a monoglot in the conservative, bilingual diocese of St Davids but claimed by the Archbishop to be "the best person to be a bishop"! 

Archbishop Barry Morgan is seen in the above BBC clip preparing for his crowning glory, his consecration of the first woman bishop in the Church in Wales. Not that her election had anything to do with her being a woman he insists, something believed only by his fawning functionaries. The blanket coverage of the event confirmed that it has everything to do with the 129th bishop of St Davids being a woman putting politics before religion.

Making his place in history regardless of the consequences has been Morgan's mission. After the ceremony he admitted that the occasion had been "a particular honour for him as he ends his ministry". It was "the icing on the cake".

Reminiscent of the absurd claim by the Ass Bishop of Llandaff that 'the ordination of women will rid the world of homophobia, misogyny, brutalisation of women in all situations including those in war zones', in this video Dr Morgan links violence against women with Crossing the Threshold, the St Deiniol’s Group campaign for promoting women bishops.

Ironically it is these same women who have caused so much misery to a far greater number of women and men who have been trampled on by them while claiming to be called by God. They have called themselves. If God were going to call women, Jesus Christ would have done so 2,000 years ago. No matter how they twist scripture to make it appear more relevant to society, He didn't. The cost to Christian unity has been immense but that is irrelevant to them.

The Church in Wales is a tiny little Province in the Anglican Communion which makes its own rules yet supporters of the ordination of women claim that 'the church' has accepted it. The vast majority of Anglicans and the wider Apostolic Church have rejected the innovation. Dr Morgan suggests picking biblical texts selectively to support his view that the decision empowers women. At the same time he disregards all those women who have been cast aside because they have not succumbed to his political point scoring.

An embrace for the woman bishop.  Source: ITV

It is odd that the antics of the Church in Wales receive so much attention in the media given that churchgoing has become so depleted under Archbishop Barry Morgan's administration. His ministry has been dominated by embracing the ordination of women and LGBT issues. It has not encouraged the growth suggested. Instead, people have simply left in droves. Currently around 0.8% of the population regularly attend Sunday services. Decline continues at a staggering 5% a year. But the bench appears unconcerned in their cosy little cocoon. 

In the run up to the consecration the BBC dutifully turned up "at the church's training college" to record the proceedings for posterity. Formerly Wales' own St Michael's Theological College it was forced to close on Barry Morgan's watch as have many churches.

The BBC headline was History will be made tomorrow. A woman will be made a bishop in the Church in Wales for the first time. Unfortunately the iPlayer recording is not currently available but here are the recorded comments of the bishop-elect of St Davids with Barry and the bench sitters showing their true intentions, particularly with regard to the Code of Practice which the bench deliberately put in place to deprive traditional Anglicans of acceptable sacramental oversight as provided in the Church of England.

Asked how she responds to people who still can't accept women bishops the bishop-elect said: 
It's strange that people find it so difficult to see the full humanity in women as well as in men and why men are seen as the person that God calls and women are sort of slightly on the side. People are entitled to their consciences but I think the time for rehashing the argument is over.
It is understandable that she thinks that rehashing the argument is over because on further investigation the duplicity of the bench would be exposed.

I thought the bishop-elect's choice of words was rather odd given the circumstances the Church in Wales find herself in.
Humanity = The quality of being humane; benevolence.
Humane = showing kindness, care, and sympathy towards others, especially those who are suffering.
But who cares? The bench doesn't.

Note also the change of tone having joined the bench. Previously the bishop-elect claimed:
"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."
Asked by Ed Stourton about the nature of the alleged 'discrimination' she had suffered it amounted to no more than "blank incomprehension" that she would want to exercise her own ministry rather than help her husband. If disagreement amounts to discrimination, Barry and his bench sitters have been exercising discrimination against fellow members of their church for years.

Asked how the bishop-elect would manage opposition to women bishops in practical terms she said:
The genius of Anglicanism has been the way we have held people of all sorts and different opinions so there is a code of practice that enables us to make place for people who don't wish to receive my sacramental ministry.
No mention of course that the Code of Practice was written to be inclusive only on terms acceptable to the bench.

An ecstatic Dr Barry Morgan said: She's a woman and women always change things, for the better usually.
Is changing her mind to that of the bench an example of what he had in mind?

The bishop of Swansea and Brecon wryly observed:
It may change the way in which the rest of us behave at bench meetings because we can be quite robust.

Referring to 'Bishop Jo' in her new role, Bishop Dick of Monmouth said:
"The Church in Wales still hasn't got many senior posts with women in and I think 'Bishop Jo' coming along now will be a very clear signal", contrary to the Archbishop's claim that the appointment had nothing to do with Joanna Penberthy being a woman.

Oblivious to any fundamental conscientious objection to the ordination of women, the bishop of Bangor added:
As people see that she will do a wonderful job they will be won over.

But it was the bishop of St Asaph who rather candidly let the cat out of the bag when he said:
The Church needs to be the sort of place which says, this is how to disagree well. The real problem I think is that those who can't accept women bishops want more than we feel able to give.

With that revelation Dr Morgan concluded the gathering by engaging in some light-hearted banter directed towards bishop Jo. He said:
To the Archbishop they say Your Grace if they want to be terribly formal, to bishops they say my Lord, and I was just saying to John, she could be like the Queen, Ma'am. 

It's all such a laugh for bench sitters.

The bishops of St Davids and Gloucester share a laugh.  Source Wales Online     

Bishops in the Church in Wales have their own way of seeing things. Dr Morgan expressed his delight that out of the nine consecrations he has performed, that of Joanna Penberthy was the most applauded. It was reported that more than 500 people attended the bilingual service. The empty seats in the nave shown in ITV News coverage suggests that most must have been stood around the West door! Dr Morgan paid tribute to the Church’s women clergy for “daring to trust and hope” during what had been a “long and hard journey” to ordination, ignoring others left with no hope.

Dr Morgan said he could not think of a nicer way to end his ministry - "it is fantastic" he said. Now he looks forward to further elections when women will be included 'equally' with men (ie, preferentially). Llandaff next while more people leave the church?

Empty seats visible at the Consecration service                                                                                                                                                            Source: ITV

Festive Charades: Welsh bishops

Bishop of Llandaff (Pritchard Hughes) Source: Wikipedia

Soon it will be time for the Electoral College of the Church in Wales to elect another bishop. This time the Bishop of Llandaff. Secrecy is the name of the game. An oddity when openness has become the norm, especially in matters of sexuality. The reason becomes obvious when the meeting in St Davids which resulted in Canon Joanna Penberthy becoming bishop-elect of St Davids is regarded as the biggest stitch-up yet.

Ignoring the specific requirement for a fluent Welsh speaker enabling the bishop to communicate effectively with all worshippers in a diverse, conservative diocese, the 'election' of someone who can conduct a service in Welsh parrot fashion was deemed to be sufficient.

The Archbishop keeps repeating that Canon Penberthy was elected not because she is a woman but because she is "the best person to be a bishop". This cannot be true if as reported, a fluent Welsh speaker was specified in the diocesan profile.

In a valedictory interview for BBC Radio Wales, Dr Morgan again repeats his assertion in an attempt to convince his listeners that the election was not a stitch up. Believe that if you will despite the fact that Canon Penberthy's name had been circulating as the next bishop for months before her election.

Dr Morgan's interview starts with a promise recorded fourteen years ago at his installation as Archbishop of Wales: Will you be faithful in your ministry in calling the dioceses of the Church in Wales to work in harmony together. And will you so guide us in our work ecumenically that all the churches of Wales may see in our ministry the work of fellow members of the body of Christ? 
Dr Morgan answers: With the help of God, I will.

Regrettably, harmony has turned to discord. Motivated more by politics than by the mysteries of faith Dr Morgan has steered a different course to all but like minded liberal primates in the Anglican Communion such as Katharine Jefferts Schori, the disastrous former Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church of the United States.

People sitting on Dr Morgan's side of the fence will agree among themselves that he has much to be proud of but that is from a secular point of view. For others his tenure has been a disaster. His influence will linger on among those owing their 'success' to him so it is with little surprise that I learn that the options being considered for the see of Llandaff are close to Barry's heart, advancing the role of women in the church, homosexuality and same sex marriage (SSM).

One name which routinely pops up whenever there is a vacancy is that of the Dean of St Albans. His ministry has suffered greatly from church politics but he did himself no favours when he came Out4Marriage, bending scripture in the modern fashion to accord with personal circumstances. Many others, despite what Dr Morgan says in his BBC interview, have suffered more for their faith. Ignored or passed over because they have not gone along with Western Anglicans' obsessions with so-called women's rights, LGBT+ and SSM issues.

Thought to be the favourite candidate is a woman vicar serving in a parish in the centre of Cardiff. If elected she will of course have to accept that she is second best despite her superior CV because 'the best person to be a bishop' according to Dr Morgan is the Bishop-elect of St Davids regardless of her being a monoglot in a Welsh speaking diocese.

With a second female bishop in place, women on the bench will still lack parity so that will be the next feminist clamour dressed up as an equality issue. Parity could be achieved next year if the Bishop of Swansea and Brecon retires at 65. That would leave one male bishop, the Bishop of Monmouth, to cover the whole of South Wales under the flawed Code of Practice which was designed solely for the advancement of women in the church, hence the urgent need for some sort of Society similar to that operating in England to support faithful Anglicans who have been marginalised for their faith in their own church.

When feminisation of the Bench is complete there will of course be no male bishop to provide "appropriate sacramental episcopal ministry" under existing rules. But the provision is a nonsense anyway because none of the existing bench sitters shares the conscientious beliefs of those for whom provision was intended.

To provide some semblance of choice on this occasion a third name is in the frame, that of one of the Llandaff Cathedral canons so unless there is a translation the choice is gays v. wimmin so spare a thought for all those loyal, straight male priests who Barry says he listens to but has ignored like a backfiring bishops' consultation.

Striking a positive note for the New Year, as church attendance continues to shrink, at least Barry Morgan can be proud of his promise to work ecumenically. Thanks to his efforts, much of the Church in Wales is becoming indistinguishable from chapel so we are all in it together.

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 problem is for those who

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

ordaining women as bishops, the problem 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. This cannot 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 by another, '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 Lost" 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.

Church in Wales attendance down 5% 2014-2015

Source: The Church in Wales Membership and Finances 2015

The average Sunday attendance of worshippers over 18 in the Church in Wales dropped another 5% between 2014 and 2015 according to the latest figures published in The Church in Wales Membership and Finances 2015. That represents just 0.9% of the population of Wales.

British Religion in Numbers (BRIN) puts the problem of declining numbers into perspective. In 2004 the Over 18 average attendance on Sundays was 41,771 making the 2015 figure of 29,019 all the more startling, a fall of 12,752 on the 2004 figure (-31%), but the Church in Wales simply carries on regardless continuing its "Gadarene slide" as VirtueOnline puts it in Viewpoints.

Attempts to bolster numbers by adding 'Non-traditional Acts of Worship' such as Animal blessings, Café churches, Teenscreen clubs and Interfaith engagement have served only to emphasis the decline: "Overall, it would seem that just over 30,000 people in total participate in some form of nontraditional worship, compared with 36,000 in 2014".

The Membership and Finance Report (pdf) is way down the Agenda at item 19 for the next meeting of the Governing Body of the Church in Wales to be held 14 - 15 September 2016. There will be a Motion: That the Governing Body do take note of this report.

Given the seriousness of the situation one would have thought that 'taking note' of the Report is somewhat short of the mark but with "Evangelism" coming last on the agenda it puts the current state of the Church in Wales in context. 

The Report follows "Admission to Holy Communion – Pastoral Letter " [item 18]. There is no clue as to what surprises the bishops have in store in their Pastoral Letter which is to be "distributed at the time", a device favoured by the bench sitters to avoid anyone with an enquiring mind being forewarned.

This is reminiscent of the same sex marriage manoeuvring and of the women bishops saga which provided a worthless code of practice for anyone who holds their faith in conscience making the forthcoming Conference to "preserve the breadth of Anglicanism in Wales" all the more confusing. Dr Morgan has remained true to his word that there would be alternative Episcopal oversight in Wales 'over his dead body'. He retires as Archbishop of Wales in January 2017 so is there to be new life? Simply to carry on as before would make nonsense of the conference.

The un-Christian Jackson/Wigley Amendment to the women bishops legislation established that unlike other Anglican provinces 'provisions for conscience should not be included in the body of  formal legislation' and that 'legislation should not include structural provision to accommodate dissent' thus removing the prospect of any meaningful sacramental and pastoral provision for church members who in conscience could not accept the ministry of women bishops.

It would be absurd to have a male assistant to a woman bishop on whose authority he would act so given that there will be no "structural provision to accommodate dissent" in Wales the way forward must be to allow Society bishops to minister in Wales. The Welsh bishops have already invited US women bishops to celebrate the Eucharist in the Church in Wales and I see from Item 20 on the GB agenda, "Evangelism – Report from the Evangelism Conference", that Bishop Stephen Cottrell, Bishop of Chelmsford, was able to lead 2 key sessions. To refuse loyal Anglicans access to Society bishops would not just be uncharitable, it would be hypocritical.

As the Church in Wales continues to decline in numbers the Ordinariate is increasing and is gaining more priests. In this month's edition of New Directions, the Chairman of Credo Cymru (FiF Wales) quotes the previous Archbishop of Wales Rowan Williams who stressed the value of promoting internal ecumenism. By allowing bishops from outside Wales to minister to 'traditionalists' the bench would regain some much needed credibility and provide a reason for worshippers to remain in the Church in Wales.