A man of integrity

Warren Gatland has been head coach of Wales for 149 matches                                                                             Source: BBC/Photo Huw Evans Picture Agency

 On Friday 31st January 2025 France starts The Six Nations 2025 season kicking off against Wales. In the meantime Wales' head coach Warren Gatland awaits news of his fate with his customary humility.

Questioned after a record 11th successive Test match defeat he said he agreed "whatever the best decision is for Welsh rugby". 

Wales has had a disappointing run of results as have other teams over the years but let us put it into proprtion.

Country populations published for the 2023 World Cup showed Wales with a population of only 3 million compared with England's 57 million, Ireland's 7.2 million and Scotland's 5.5 million. Italy was 61 million, France 68.5 million and Japan a whopping 123.7 million.

When it comes to most registerd players France leads with over half a million compared with Wales'  83,120 registered rugby players. South Africa has the second highest number with 405,438 while England is third with 382,154 registrations. New Zealand comes 4th after Australia. Ireland is tenth and Scotland 15th.

Wales have punched well above their weight over the years and, like Scotland and Ireland, will do again.

Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) bosses have been reviewing the outcome of the autumn series and will determine if Warren Gatland will be in charge for next year's Six Nations season. 

The Review should be completed before Christmas. Hopefully it will be a happy one for a coach who has given so much to Welsh rugby.

Postscript 20.12.2024

Warren Gatland will remain as Wales' head coach for the 2025 Six Nations

Scottish Episcopal Church drops bullying tribunal against Scotland's first female bishop

Bishop Dyer was suspended in August 2022.                                                                                              Source: STV News

In 2024 it ws reported that bishop Anne Dyer was to face a disciplinary tribunal after being suspended in August 2022.

In a document outlining the reasons for the decision to drop the bullying tribunal, lawyer Paul Reid KC said: "It has become apparent that the prospect of giving evidence, and in particular facing cross-examination in a public forum, is a source of anxiety for a number of potential witnesses." He added: "Given the already difficult situation in the Diocese of Aberdeen and Orkney, a public trial very materially risks, whatever its outcome, of making an already difficult situation worse."

According to Mail Plus, angry parishioners in the Scottish Episcopal Church are threatening to leave while others have vowed to remove it from their wills after bullying complaints against its first female bishop were dropped.

In 2022 the bishop of Llandaff found herself in the clear after the Dean of Llandaff withdrew his charge of bullying following an extended period of sick leave. 

The Vicar of Radyr at the time resigned saying that she could no longer, with integrity, knowing the many things she knows, serve in the diocese where she believed a 'culture of fear' exists.

Then there were two! 

Postscripts

Four Scottish bishops urge Dyer to consider her position - Church Times

(26.10.2024)

Bishop accused of bullying now on sick leave - BBC News

Reminiscent of St Davids diocese in the Church in Wales. Another 'social worker' in clerical clothing.

Truth will out!

Many thanks to Dr Gavin Ashenden for his Ashenden Scripted presentation. Truth will out!

More promised from Calvin Robinson on X (formerly Twitter)

Postscript {25.01.2024]

What Happened at the Mere Anglicanism Conference? Calvin Robinson's response.

Archbishop's Rwanda judgement

After the arrival of the refugees from Ukraine at the Polish-Ukrainian border crossing in Medyka, they wait for a place
 in one of the buses that will take them to large sites or collective shelters. Source: Westport Presbyterian Church

The Archbishop of Wales, who represents less than 1% of the population of Wales, has welcomed the judgement on Rwanda asylum plan.

In doing so, the Provincial News item included the above photograph without attribution. 

The photo has nothing to do with the Rwanda judgement. It actually shows refugees from Ukraine arriving at the Polish-Ukrainian border crossing in Medyka in 2022 according to its source, Westport Presbyterian Church. 

The picture was used to illustrate the plight of Ukrainian refugees in a Church Mission Project in the United States.

This photo published by the BBC more accurately illustrates the problem.

More than 100,000 people have come to the UK by crossing the English Channel in small boats since 2018.

That is more than the population of Rochdale.

The cost of housing asylum seekers in hotels costs around £8 million a day. 

Government projections put the cost of dealing with illegal migrants plan could cost £6bn over two years.

A solution needs to be found but it is unlikely to come from the Church in Wales.

In 2022 the archbishop said he would not make any apologies for pointing out the "deficits" within the government's Rwanda policy. "It's the duty of all people, Christians and those of no faith to speak up for those who are marginalised..and for what is right and proper."

The archbishop would be better employed considering the plight of the many Anglicans he and the bench have marginalised in the Church in Wales by reneging on the promised twin integrities and leading the remainder into secularism.

Generosity!

Church in Wales bunch of bishops  (l to r): St Davids (sick), Llandaff (Ret'd), Swansea & Brecon, Bangor (Abp), Bangor
 (Asst Bp & Bp elect of Llandaff), St Asaph, Monmouth (Source: Church in Wales)

A comment dated 23 March 2023 under my entry An ACE Bishop for Wales referred to a letter sent to all clergy from the bishops of the Church in Wales following the decision of the Rev Stuart Bell, former Rector of the Rectorial Benefice of Aberystwyth to accept ordination to the episcopate from Archbishop Foley Beach of the Anglican Church of North America and others. 

The letter as reproduced concludes:

"We would like to be as generous and open in our relationship with former colleagues and brothers and sisters in Christ in the future but we have to recognise the reality of the step which has been taken." 

In short, the bench is introducing another ban to avoid any form of mutual flourishing.

'Generous' is not the word that springs readily to mind. 'Treachery' would be nearer the mark.

Referring to the decision of the Governing Body of the Church in Wales to permit same-sex couples to have a blessing on their civil unions they write: "although we have been clear that clergy, leaders and members of the Church in Wales have a diversity of opinions on this matter, [we] have sought to provide space in our common life for freedom of conscience and difference."

That is simply untrue.

Mutual flourishing in the Church in Wales died in 2017 along with bishop David Thomas. Society bishops are barred from entering Wales leaving 'traditionalists' to travel to England to exercise 'freedom of conscience and difference'. Only the right sort of 'bishop' in their view is allowed to officiate.

In their letter the Bench state: "No ministers affiliated with the Anglican Convocation in Europe should exercise ministry or leadership in a Church in Wales context, unless the explicit written permission of the appropriate Church in Wales diocesan bishop has been given."

That is generosity?

Anglican Convocation in Europe (ACE) bishops. (l to r), Bishop Andy

 Lines, Bishop Stuart Bell and Archbishop Foley Beach (Source: Source ACE)

Postscript [26.03.2023]

ACE bishops reject claims of the Church in Wales’ bishops

"Contrary to what Archbishop John and his Bishops have said, it is the the Church in Wales which has placed itself out of communion with the majority of Anglicans worldwide by departing the historic, orthodox, biblical faith. Faithful Anglicans living under such failed oversight need a spiritually safe home and a hope for the future. We are grateful that Gafcon has provided this by authorising ACE as a genuine Anglican jurisdiction." Full story from Anglican Ink.

Anglican Bishops

Church in Wales new bishops consecration 2022                                                                                                                                           Source: Church in Wales

The election of the 73rd bishop of Llandaff commences on January 18 following the retirement of June Osborne who was appointed by the bench of bishops in 2017 after the failure of the electoral college to agree on a candidate.

A disaster waiting to happen, Osborne was tipped to be one of the first bishops in the Church of England. Instead she was appointed Dean of Salisbury. With a background in sociology Osborne was a prolific LGBTQ+ campaigner but suffered from allegations of bullying. She was found, on the balance of probability, to have a case to answer until the then Dean of Llandaff withdrew his allegations and resigned. 

The Vicar of Radyr also resigned as incumbent and Ministry Area Leader saying that she could no longer, with integrity, knowing the many things she knows, serve in the diocese where she believed a 'culture of fear' exists. A diocesan survey conducted after her initial exposure 'brought up the same results'. 

New bishop Joanna Penberthy in 2017    Pic: BBC

The 'best person to be a bishop', in the eyes of former archbishop Barry Morgan, has been another disaster. The bishop of St Davids has been on a second bout of sick leave since the end of August 2022 with no official updates which is reminiscent of the secrecy surrounding the extended absence of the former bishop of Monmouth. The only news is this report from a commentator under a previous entry:

"Yesterday at meeting of LMA's priests archdeacon updated us on Johanna La Loca. Her sick leave has been extended again - to end of February, as she is suffering from depression and anxiety. At present on half pay, her stipend will cease on 28 Feb. Is this the moment she resigns and diocese starts to recover? It was suggested that people ought to write to ++ Andy to pile on the pressure. Lovely thought if we can celebrate St David's day sede vacante."

'Affirming Love' Pride Eucharist with bishop
Cherry Vann . Source: Twitter

Joanna Penberthy along with the bishop of Llandaff, June Osborne, campaigned vigorously on secular matters while the bishop of Monmouth, Cherry Vann, is patron of Open Table. 

Following her appointment the Church in Wales tweeted:

"Find out more about the new Bishop of @MonmouthDCO @cherry_vann in an interview with her on @BBCWomensHour today from 10am."

I tuned in on catch up. There was nothing spiritual, just sex. See The Bishop of Monmouth and partner.

Contrary to biblical teaching, bishops in England and Wales are hellbent on conforming to the pattern of this world rather than being transformed.

In the Church of England there has been the predictable outcry from Women and the Church (WATCH) following the appointment of the Rt Rev Philip North to be the 10th Bishop of Blackburn:

Their Chair, the Rev Martine Oborne tweets under the heading 'Trying to lift the lid off the ongoing sexism & discrimination in the CofE & how this impacts women. Chair of WATCH but these tweets my own'. 

More apt would be Using the Church for self validation at the expense of others. 

Oborne said of the Bishop of Backburn appointment: "The appointment sadly reflects … institutional discrimination in the church and we are effectively told that we must just suck it up and get on with it."

This is a familiar feminist tune, regularly tweeted by the WATCH chair and well worn by bishop Joanna Penberthy. Disagreement is labelled discrimination regardless of facts. Integrity has been replaced by duplicity.

Inclusive Church said Bishop North's views made it "a painful appointment". 

So what is the problem with Bishop North's appointment? 

Simply it is because his beliefs are not based on false notions of equality but on biblical teaching and tradition along with the vast majority of Anglicans and the Catholic and Orthodox Churches.

Holy Catholic Church showing the 2% accepting the ordination of women (OW)

Provision was made in England and Wales for those who, in conscience, could not accept the sacramental ministry of women. WATCH has been picking at it ever since. In Wales Barry Morgan simply abandoned provision following the retirement and untimely death of the Provincial Assistant Bishop David Thomas.

Pray that the Electoral College meeting in Llandaff will follow the example of the Church of England and elect a holy man of God to be the next bishop of Llandaff, not leaving the appointment to a bench of bishops to appoint another in their image when they have clearly lost their way. 

The sinking ship

As 'Jolly June' Osborne prepares to sail off into the sunset on retirement she leaves behind a trail of discontent. There will be few tears spilt over her departure but many on the wreckage she leaves behind.

Thumbing her nose to scripture and tradition she has already set the scene for her successor by hastily installing a dean of her choice rather than letting the new bishop make the appointment. The new dean is a priest living openly in a same-sex partnership who was involved in some discontent over his involvement in the Percy affair during his time at Oxford.

He should fit in well, not only in the diocese but in the province which is foundering on the rocks of secularism following a string of political appointments.

In her long running battle with the former dean the bishop was forced to face allegations of bullying after it was decided that she had a case to answer. The allegations were subsequently withdrawn. 

Meanwhile the Revd Vicki Burrows, the Garth Ministry Area Leader, wrote of a "culture of fear" in the diocese in the Church Times (Letters, 17/24 December) and called for the suspension of the Rt Rev June Osborne, after the bishop was accused of "bullying and harassment".

The vicar resigned saying that she “can no longer minister with any sense of integrity in Llandaff”.

Bishop Osborne's response was to appoint the Rev'd Ian Yemm, "who is married to Bernhard, an NHS doctor", in what appears to be another attempt to pre-empt a decision by the Church in Wales.

No doubt the bishop of Llandaff with the again absent bishop of St Davids were influential in the appointment of the first lesbian bishop, the bishop of Monmouth, who also lives with her same sex partner giving the impression that their ministries have more to do with the promotion of homosexuality than the sanctity of Christian marriage.

What of the bishop of St Davids? The original announcement in August of Joanna Penberthy's latest sick leave  promised updates as they became available. I can no longer find that notice, perhaps because there have been no updates which is typical of the mushroom method of management in the Church in Wales.

This is what happens when sociology replaces theology.

Former giants of the Church in Wales before bishops were replaced by 'prefects'.
Five held Oxford Firsts in Theology.     Source: Anglican Misfit

But whatever the cause, the latest Church Growth Modelling is bad news for the Church in Wales as well as other denominations as wokeness replaces holiness:

"The Church in Wales contains a mixture of churchmanships, and for many years all were on the conservative side. However, in the last 25 years, it has become increasingly liberal. In common with most historic UK Christian denominations, it has steadily declined since 1960. This analysis investigates the likelihood of decline leading to denominational extinction.

"The Church in Wales is forecast to be extinct by 2038."

The author writes, "Churches do not grow by becoming like society and attracting people, but by becoming like Jesus and converting people."

Exactly.

How bad must it get for a bishop to resign?

 No economy at the top: "Bishop Mary and Bishop John join the Church's Bench of Bishops"                                                                    Source: Church in Wales

The Vicar of Radyr has announced that she has submitted her resignation as incumbent and Ministry Area Leader to the bishop of Llandaff. 

The Reverend Vicki Burrows said that she could no longer, with integrity, knowing the many things she knows, serve in the diocese where she believed a 'culture of fear' exists. A diocesan survey conducted after her initial exposure 'brought up the same results'. The senior leadership team acknowledged there was room for improvement. See the vicar's statement in this video link  starting at position 1.00.15  

The problem for the vicar and those for whom she is sacrificing her ministry is that the bench ditched integrity as soon as they had their own way on the ordination of women. See Brood of vipers!        

It is not expected that the bishop of Llandaff will consider her position having already been engaged in a long running battle with her side-lined Dean and the new archbishop confirming his impotency in such matters. 

Bishop June also has the precedent of the bishop of St Davids sitting tight until the storm blows over after the Twitter scandal in which she insulted many of her flock. Bishop Joanna is now making more frequent appearances as if she had never blotted her copybook. 

Vicars are expendable it seems while bishops expand their empires despite Recommendation XXV for diocesan reform in the 2012 Harries Review.

Instead we have feminist triumphalism praising their latest 'successes'. Recently the Church in Wales tweeted: Our new bishops, Mary Stallard and John Lomas, join the Bench of bishops. We now have more women bishops than men, which we think is a first in the Anglican Communion @AnglicanNews @ChurchTimes.

This is somewhat ambiguous. Presumably they mean joining the bench for a photograph. According to the constitution the “Bench of Bishops” means the Archbishop and the other Diocesan Bishops but the gloating "We now have more women bishops than men, which we think is a first in the Anglican Communion" implies the prospect of an expectation of feminism influencing the Church in Wales even more.

It has been said that the hat makes the man so perhaps the mitre may be thought to make the women. That could explain the biggest mitre being sported by the assistant bishop. If I remember correctly she saw a woman wearing a mitre on a visit to the USA and was even more convinced that women bishops were right!

Postscript [01.04.2022]

Church Times - Dean’s complaint of bullying by Bishop of Llandaff to be heard at tribunal:

"No date for the tribunal has yet been fixed. A spokeswoman for the Church in Wales confirmed on Tuesday that the tribunal panel was currently being appointed by the president, Mark Powell QC. It can have five members, and must include a diocesan or assistant bishop from another diocese.

"The Church in Wales has appointed Gavin Foster QC — joint registrar in the diocese of Salisbury, a former Crown Prosecutor, and former domestic chaplain to the Bishop of Winchester, Dr Tim Dakin — as Proctor to bring the case. The tribunal has considerable powers, ranging from absolute or conditional discharge, rebuke, or monition, to deposition from Holy Orders."

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.

Double standards

Sydney Anglican Archbishop Glenn Davies has said to supporters of same-sex marriage:
‘Please leave us.’  Source: Guardian. Photograph: David Moir/AAP

The Bishop of Liverpool rebuked the Archbishop of Sydney, Glenn Davies, after he called for gay marriage supporters to leave church saying he ‘seems to want to exclude people rather than to engage with them’.

That's rich.

From the Guardian: "Archbishop Glenn Davies said last week that those who supported same-sex marriage should abandon the church. If people wish to change the doctrine of our church, they should start a new church or join a church more aligned to their views – but do not ruin the Anglican church by abandoning the plain teaching of scripture,” he said. “Please leave us.”

The Australian Newcastle Herald reports that "Anglicans have joined two other Australian dioceses to support same-sex marriage church blessings at a Hunter Synod where Bishop Peter Stuart said he had "spoken frankly" to a Sydney archbishop against the move. Newcastle Anglicans strongly supported changes to church rules that could allow clergy to bless same-sex marriages and protect clergy in a same-sex marriage from church discipline."

The Dean of Newcastle, the Very Reverend Katherine Bowyer supports the diocese's move to bless same-sex marriages. She rejected comments by the Archbishop of Sydney that supporters of same-sex marriage should leave the church, saying differing views deserve respect.

Her views and those who side with the Bishop of Liverpool have nothing to do with traditional Church teaching.

The Archbishop of Sydney is correct. If Western Anglican leaders had adopted the same approach many of us would still have a church to attend.

Dean Katherine Bowyer's attitude typifies the double standards of liberal Anglicans amply illustrated by Mae Cymru the Welsh offshoot of the feminist organisation Women and the Church.

Mae Cymru recently tweeted an article from cruxsolablog An Open Letter to John MacArthur (re: Beth Moore). The author states:
"Recently John MacArthur commented that Beth Moore (Christian leader and teacher) should “go home.” As I have pondered this over the last few days, I wondered what Paul would say to John. So, I wrote an open letter.

It is not my intention to comment on the letter's content. Readers of the letter can draw their own conclusions but I was drawn to the double standards of the new breed of Anglican.

The membership secretary of Mae Cymru the Ven Peggy Jackson, Archdeacon of Llandaff and scourge of  orthodox, often cradle Anglicans is a late convert to Anglicanism. Their idea of engagement is exclusion dressed up as inclusion.

Before Barry Morgan imported her from the Church of England as his hatchet woman the then Rev Canon  F A Jackson wrote in a paper for GRAS (Group for Rescinding the Act of Synod):

"New individuals with conscientious difficulties over women’s ministry will simply have to make personal decisions and individual choices, to find accommodation as best they can – just as many already have to do over a host of other current issues, some very uncomfortable, where people find themselves representative of a view which is not that sanctioned by the ‘church’ as a whole, and upheld through Synod and Parliament." 

Ten years later with attendance figures still plummeting, thousands of often cradle Anglican women and men have been abandoned by their Church.

Far from relenting Jackson has attempted to turn the screw ever tighter by seeking to exclude from ordination anyone who does not conform to her wishes, misrepresenting genuine theological doubt about sacramental assurance as misogyny.

The concept of twin integrity has been all but abandoned. As Sir William Fittall said in response to a complaint:
"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."

Following the appointment of a third woman bishop in the Church in Wales half the bench will be female.

The diocese of St Davids has been quickly feminized after the appointment of the first woman Bishop. She lost no time in appointing a woman Dean. Two female minor Canons have also been appointed. If the Canon in Residence is a female cleric the sub-Dean is the sole male priest at Wales' premiere place of pilgrimage.

There is no indication for pilgrims who will be celebrating yet the Cathedral online Worship Sheet merrily quotes St David's last words to his followers, “...Be Joyful, Keep the faith and do the little things that you have heard and seen me do...”

The Bishop of Liverpool should have looked closer to home before whinging about the Church in Australia.

Bishop of Monmouth appointment

A tweet from Governing Body:

#govbody agreed that the right to appoint to the see of Monmouth will not pass to the bench of bishops until 31st October to give time for Monmouth diocese to have time to prepare properly for the Electoral College.

Time for reflection! 

No doubt there will be the usual calls for gender parity by adding a third woman bishop to the bench. 

The consequence of such a move would result in three women bishops in perpetuity in southern Wales, assuming that whenever a female bishop retires she would be replaced by another female bishop to maintain gender balance.

To break this undesirable cycle and provide a better balance for the future, a male bishop is preferable after two female appointments using subsequent appointments to provide a more even balance throughout the Province.

Given the Governing Body's resounding rejection of Archdeacon Peggy Jackson's motion which would have put an end to mutual flourishing, this is an opportune time to take note of the Archbishop's Presidential Address in which he urged members to be ready and willing to listen, "even to things you don’t want to hear...Take upon ourselves that yoke and to take up that cross", to "listen more particularly, listening to the voice of the Father; listening to the voice of the Teacher; listening to the voice of the Spirit; and listening to each other’s voices too."

The appointment of an orthodox bishop would help heal the divisions that have been created unnecessarily. Orthodox opinions need to be heard and balanced against current trends rather than dismissed as irrelevant as defined by the Jackson coterie.

That was the implication of the consultations held to discuss the appointment of women bishops in the Church of Wales. Diocesan meetings called to discuss the Code of Practice consistently called on the Bench of Bishops to provide a traditionalist bishop to minister to Anglicans who wished to retain the original Apostolic integrity of the Province.  

Archbishop Barry Morgan and his bench sitters ignored pleas of the faithful and embarked on a strategy which resulted in Jackson's final assault on orthodoxy at Governing Body.

Taking over the reins after his new Dean of Llandaff, Janet Henderson, spectacularly resigned two months into post, Morgan decreed that the Cathedral Office was not to publish the names of officiants at each of the Cathedral services. His purpose was clear.

Twin integrities were anathema to Barry Morgan as was the appointment of the Provincial Assistant Bishop to provide sacramental assurance and pastoral care for those who in conscience could not receive the sacramental ministry of women in common with the majority of the world's 85 million Anglicans. 

Bishop David Thomas died broken hearted and much of the Church in Wales died with him.

Belatedly there is an opportunity to move forward in hope that the years of decline can be turned around. 

It is too good an opportunity to miss and certainly not one to be bungled.

Brood of vipers!

"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."

The words of Sir William Fittall in response to a complaint by an orthodox Anglican who claimed he was being "marginalised" because he was forced to arrive at services  at Wakefield Cathedral without prior knowledge of whether there would be a male or female celebrant.

That will have a familiar ring for readers of this blog. In Welsh Primate abandons twin integrity I wrote:

" 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. 

"This action again illustrates that there is nothing so intolerant as an arch-liberal. If this is the level of pastoral care shown by the Archbishop in his own Cathedral for those who are told they still have an honoured place in his Church, what hope is there for the rest of us? "

The Dean of Wakefield Cathedral argued that "Removing the names of those - male and female - who are to preside at a particular service helps to make the point that it is our offering of the Eucharist that is central, rather than the particular individual who is presiding."

In the Anglican Church orthodoxy has become a hindrance resulting in outright discrimination.

Transgenders are thought by the House of Bishops to deserve a special welcome service while LGBT Anglicans have their own chaplains and LGBT Masses, often with the Lord's Table draped in a rainbow flag.

Orthodox Anglicans have to fend for themselves, often having to take steps to avoid being trapped into embarrassing situations as in Wakefield Cathedral.

Yet women priests still complain. "Not everybody accepts us” sighs England's first female priest as she casually trots out more secular propaganda about equality: "Despite the many advancements in equality that the Church of England has seen in the past few years, there is always room for further progress. One should never sit on one’s laurels and while there are pockets of resistance, it’s nice to kind of think we’ll persevere until there aren't any, but that’s probably being unrealistic.”

Presumably the pockets of resistance she refers to are orthodox Anglicans such as the "nice woman" who is "not hostile" to her but just can’t accept that women can be priests so she wont accept communion from her, and the worshipper in Wakefield Cathedral forced to complain because of a wilful failure to honour the agreement that enabled women to be ordained in the Church of England.

In its 'Five Guiding Principles', the Church of England says it is "fully and unequivocally committed to all orders of ministry being open to all irrespective of gender". But the principles also state: "Those whose theological convictions mean they 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, so the church of England remains committed to enabling them to flourish"

With hindsight it appears that the revisionists had no intention of honouring the pledge intended to enable orthodox Anglicans to flourish.

In September 2018 a row broke out in the diocese of Oxford because an advert for a new vicar at St Barnabas and St Paul with St Thomas the Martyr Parish specified that it was seeking a male priest.

The Oxford Mail reported that the advert provoked outrage in the community with one councillor 'slamming the church' for being 'too cowardly' to confront misogyny.

In their pursuit of power Women in the Church have talked of equality rather than theology permitting false accusations of misogyny and discrimination in the Church.

The former Archbishop of Wales Dr Barry Morgan used similar tactics when he wrote of "discrimination in a church that believes there is 'no male or female' in Christ". He used one of the most misquoted verses in all of Scripture, in an attempt to hoodwink his readers.

He went further saying, "At the heart of the Christian gospel are values of integrity, justice, wholeness and inclusion". Values he and his brood have consciously neglected to apply to Anglicans who keep the faith as received.

Seeking to validate their dishonesty they claim that the Church has to be credible to outsiders. In doing so they have allowed feminism to take control and substituted sex for love as they scratch around in scripture looking for any reference they can take out of context to boost their cause.

The latest row over whether gay bishops attending the 2020 Lambeth Conference should bring their same-sex partners as guests illustrates how far Anglicans have moved away from the gospel. Nigel Evans MP said that he believes the rule could equate to workplace discrimination adding that "If it wasn't for the gays in the Church, the Church would crumble"!

Unable to distinguish between faith and secular fads, people outside no longer care what the Church has to say. The Anglican Church has successfully made itself 'more relevant' to society, losing the sense of otherness which had set her apart in the process.

The revisionists speak not for Christ but for themselves. They use their own interpretation of the gospel to support a preferred lifestyle while recruiting secular opinion to justify their cause.

The Dean of Wakefield Cathedral talked of the centrality of offering the Eucharist while the Acting of Dean of Llandaff, Archbishop Barry Morgan, wrote of sanctioning schism, threatening the unity of the church if he supported calls for a male bishop with jurisdiction for those who oppose the authority of a woman bishop.

The Holy Eucharist has become a weapon in support of claims that are not only unsupported by but condemned by most members of the Anglican Communion, the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church.

Pilate asked the crowd whom he should release to them, Barabbas or Jesus? The chief priests and elders persuaded the crowd to chose Barabbas.

What is the choice offered today? The Gospel of Christ or crowd pleasing liberalism?

When the circus came to York Minster

It is interesting that the BBC reports before and after the consecration of the Rev Libby Lane as the new Bishop of Stockport appear under the URL "bbc.uk.co/news/uk-politics" for that is what it is, politics. The pre-service clip in the first link is of a TV interview with 'Mrs Lane's friend and curate', the Reverend Georgina Watmore, on the BBC Breakfast show. It stops short of the point when she was asked how they would be celebrating her vicar becoming the first female bishop in the Church of England.

Here was a heaven sent opportunity to say that they would be celebrating the Holy Eucharist, the essential sacrament of the Church, injecting some Christian teaching at the culmination of their 'equality' campaign - a spurious claim if ever there was one. They were going to celebrate with a knees up - rather than knees down. Previously a commentator who had been speaking live from York Minster referred to the thousand or more 'spectators' including a hundred bishops from around the world who wanted to lay hands on the first female bishop to be consecrated in the Church of England. Surely she meant 'congregation' I thought but on reflection she was correct. 'Spectators' summed up the media event. - After all, it's all about equality, stupid!

When the Archbishop of York asked the spectators during the proceedings, "Is it now your will that she should be ordained?", there was one objection on the not unreasonable grounds that innovation was not in the Bible.  The objector was refused permission to speak. Instead Dr Sentamu read out a prepared statement assuring the spectators that the consecration was lawful under the Canon of the Church of England which is "part of the law of the land". Correct. It was legal, the Church of England having enacted it but it was not legitimate in the eyes of the wider Church, hence the objection.

A spokesman for the Church of England said the objector, the Rev Paul Williamson, a priest in charge of St George's Church, Hanworth, West London, had shown himself to be a "lone voice of protest in a sea of voices of affirmation". So he was but he gave an honest response, one which many others could have made had it not been for the agreement which enabled the consecration to take place. It is regrettable therefore that an objector voicing his response according to conscience was portrayed as a clown in the rite of feminist authentication in the same way that other objectors on grounds of conscience have been portrayed in the media.

Everyone who was anyone, or anyone who thought they were anyone in this charade was there. Around 100 bishops 'from around the world' pressed forward to be in front for the laying on of hands while exercising sufficient restraint to avoid the appearance of a Black Friday stampede. I say charade because in the view of the wider Church, Orthodox, Catholic and for most Anglicans the Church has no authority to ordain women. Hence it was a gross parody to answer "I do" to the questions:

• Do you accept the Holy Scriptures as revealing all things necessary for eternal salvation through faith in Jesus Christ?

• Will you teach the doctrine of Christ as the Church of England has received it, will you refute error, and will you hand on entire the faith that is entrusted to you?

• Will you be faithful in ordaining and commissioning ministers of the gospel?

• Will you promote peace and reconciliation in the Church and in the world; and will you strive for the visible unity of Christ's Church?

• Will you accept the discipline of this Church, exercising authority with justice, courtesy and love, and always holding before you the example of Christ?

Nobody thought to question how these questions could be answered in the affirmative with complete integrity having changed the rules, thus putting themselves at odds with the the rest of the Church and creating a serious impediment to Christian unity. But what is that to commentators who appear to know less about Christianity than their understanding of Islam.

Commentators were stressing that women in the Church of England had waited twenty years for this moment as if a prejudiced minority had impeded their legitimacy. They were of course applying secular principles of equality of opportunity in the workplace. Claims that the ordination of women are about equality are totally spurious but who cares these days let alone understands? Typical Sunday attendances in the Church of England have halved to just 800,000 in the last 40 years. That is around 1.5% of the population of England, just slightly better than attendance in Wales. Most of those remaining will simply have played follow-my-leader without regard for the consequences while others have left, their faith destroyed.

Friends of Libby Lane may celebrate with a knees-up but it is a hollow victory for the Church of England given the damage the liberal invasion has caused. Writing in the Telegraph their Religious Affairs Editor, John Bingham, poses the question "Female bishops are go: What on earth will the Church row about now?" One has to ask if it really matters any more given the damage to the Church the innovation has caused.

Writing about the consecration of Fr Philip North, a 'traditionalist Anglo-Catholic', next week Bingham commented: For reasons which might charitably be described as obscure at best, there is 'acrimony'  because "the plan is - ironically - to depart from tradition for the central part of Fr North's consecration service". A Religious Affairs Editor who can refer to the Apostolic Succession as 'obscure at best' must surely be in the wrong job unless his main purpose is to denigrate the Anglican Church. If the deliberations of the Church are "tortuous and, to many people, simply incomprehensible" Mr Bingham would have been better employed explaining the genuine held beliefs of traditionalists rather than making a cheap buck out the misery inflicted upon them.

Taint as they say!

Ministerial group: the Prime Minister with (left to right) the Ven. Dr Jane Hedges, the Rt Revd
Kay Goldsworthy, and the Ven. Christine Hardman                                   Credit: Church Times

"A confident Church is a 'vital partner' in the care of the nation" the Prime Minister wrote in the Church Times. A report on his politically correct twaddle dressed-up as faith can be read here. With this new founded but deluded confidence the latest call raised by MPs is: "Give us a female Bishop of Durham and Bishop of Newcastle",  having approved legislation to help fast-track female bishops into the House of Lords over the next decade.

In the debate "Mrs Blackman-Woods told MPs: I should say that we have recently got a new bishop in Durham and I am not trying in any way to push him out of the door, as he is doing an excellent job, but when the time comes for him to retire I hope that a woman bishop will be on our agenda. Backing a change in the law, Mrs Blackman-Woods told the Commons: 'Without the Bill, a woman appointed as a diocesan bishop would effectively join the back of the queue to get into the House of Lords. At anticipated rates of retirement it could take up to seven years for the first female diocesan bishops to get into the Lords, a period that could cover the lifetime of the next Parliament. That would create an anomaly whereby women were actively and visibly involved as bishops in all aspects of the Church’s national ministry except as Members of the Bishops’ Bench in the other place'."

I don't know whether or not Mrs Blackman-Woods is a regular churchgoer, an Anglican or even a believer but in her previous intervention in the 'Bishops and Priests (Consecration and Ordination of Women) Measure' we heard the usual political claptrap dressed as faith when she said. "This is a historic moment that we should note, because it gives the Church a real chance to look more like the society that it seeks to serve. A Church with women in office at the highest levels of authority will better reflect British society today" [@5.56]. I note also that she voted in favour of Same sex marriage so if she had been ordained no doubt she could have expected a call from the Archbishop of Wales with an offer of another plumb appointment over the heads of his loyal but long suffering clergy.

Of little surprise to observers, there are now dire warnings that that this 'confident church', this 'vital partner' in the care of the nation is in peril. If it is not to go into 'terrifying' decline the Church of England must 'adopt one of its most radical shake-ups in generations'. Senior Church leaders have warned: "It leaves the Church little time to sit back and enjoy the success of the legislation as the consecration of the first woman bishop at York Minster approaches."

If readers think these reports are exaggerated they should read Virtue Online. Here is a sample:
"Virtually all the 1,900 churches with more than 350 people in their congregation are either Catholic (1,350) or evangelical (460); the remaining seventy are considered broad or liberal. There are also virtually no churches with 350 or more in rural areas; just thirty spread across numerous commuter rural areas (and all between 350 and 400 people). There are one hundred churches of this size in city centers, 310 in inner city areas (many of which are Roman Catholic), 165 on council estates, 920 in suburban areas, and 350 in separate towns".

As a "dyed-in-the-wool traditionalist" I am told that I should avoid waving around statistics shrieking: "See! We told you this would happen if you let women have opinions, and stand at the front of church, and be vicars. We told you the men wouldn't like it. You've feminised the Church! Of course the men are leaving!" The author of this Telegraph article, Helen Coffey, continued: "This sexist hysterical crew seem to think that, in slowly but surely embracing equality, the entire Church is being transformed into one long episode of Loose Women. That by letting women lead, it naturally follows we're creating an environment that is “toxic” to men. What a load of tosh." Obviously hysteria is not confined to the male sex. Helen Coffey is a sub editor and staff writer at Telegraph Ski and Snowboard. Her previous contributions have been "Church yoga row: Am I going to hell for stretching myself?" and "Twenty years of women priests: And the Church has survived just fine".

To these politicians and journalists who feel free to dictate what true Anglicans are supposed to believe, sending the Church of England and the Church in Wales into terminal decline in the process, must be added liberal Anglicans whose sole aim is to change the Church to meet their career prospects and to suit their particular lifestyles. The feminist pressure group Women and the Church (WATCH) has played a key role in this phenomenon: "We have in modern society a new F-word: Feminism" - Keynote address given to the WATCH AGM, 3 November 2007, by Canon Lucy Winkett, Precentor of St Paul’s Cathedral.

I admit to having expressed regret about the increasing feminisation of the Church although not in the manner suggested by Helen Coffey. However, if women were supposed to halt the decline by spreading 'equality', how is it that the Anglican Church has reached this perilous position? Women clergy have not halted the decline in liberal Provinces by 'looking more like society', they have exacerbated it. Perhaps they are waiting until they have packed the benches of the Lords Spiritual by which time they will be left to talk among themselves on current trends.

Notwithstanding the fact that the innovation of women priests has been a complete and utter disaster bringing the Anglican Church to the point of collapse, there is no indication that lessons have been learnt with calls for yet more women, particularly younger women to be ordained instead of the elderly matrons soon to join the retirement queue. The secular notion of rapid advancement for women in the Church which shattered any claim about introducing 'equality' has not lessened their anger as they invent more claims of foul play so that they can frustrate procedures if no longer backtrack on their promises.

The latest outcry is over the token consecration of one traditionalist, the  Rev Philip North as Bishop of Burnley on 2 February alleging female 'taint' because the Archbishop of York will not participate in the laying on of hands when Fr North is consecrated. This is deliberately emotive point scoring. It has nothing to do with 'taint'. It is a question of true belief in the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. A matter of 'authenticity' such as bishops of The Old Catholic Church acting as co-consecrators in the ordination of Anglican bishops.

The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu,  told The Huffington Post that "he was the one who suggested the unusual change, in order to accommodate North's strong theological conviction that women should not be ordained. Giving traditionalists room to flourish was part of the church's plan all along -- a necessary concession that makes it difficult for either side to claim outright victory". Dr Sentamu added: "Any suggestion that the arrangements proposed for the consecration of the Bishop of Burnley are influenced by a theology of ‘taint’ would be mistaken," Sentamu said. "These arrangements are for prayer, not politics."

The consecration of the first woman bishop in the Church of England takes place tomorrow (26 January, 2015). In the Observer it has been reported that the Rev Libby Lane is aware that "what I say and do will be heard by millions, many of whom have no other contact with the church". So what does she say? - She hopes that as the new bishop of Stockport she will "send a signal to young girls regardless of their faith". Whilst Anglicanism has become all about the advancement of women, the new bishop admits to "feeling the pressure that comes with the historic appointment, expressing concern that her position may distract people from the message of Christ". The message of Christ is what some of us have been concerned about all along, not a distorted version of Christ's ministry designed to satisfy wants, not needs.

There is no letup in the feminist's campaign. The 'theology of taint' is the latest weapon feminists are using to exercise their power. They agreed a compromise to ensure that women were allowed to become bishops in the Church of England but now they are seeking to dictate on matters which should not concern them. They should follow the advice of the Archbishop of York "giving traditionalists room to flourish" rather than creating imaginary divisions. That has caused more than enough damage in the Anglican Communion.

All credit then to His Grace the Archbishop of York for his integrity in maintaining agreements unlike the example set across the border in Wales.

Welsh Primate abandons twin integrity

News from Llandaff Cathedral insiders:

 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. 

This action again illustrates that there is nothing so intolerant as an arch-liberal. If this is the level of pastoral care shown by the Archbishop in his own Cathedral for those who are told they still have an honoured place in his Church, what hope is there for the rest of us? 

So much for a Code of Practice - it's probably not worth the paper is written on.

Stuffed!

  "This stinking fish has been a long time on the slab. Back in 1992, the church voted to admit women to the priesthood, but this was only agreed upon the intervention of the then Archbishop of York, Dr John Habgood, who insisted that there were “two integrities” within the church: the one that could accept women priests and the other that could not. Room must be made for both. If Dr Habgood’s agreeable compromise had not been accepted then there would not have been a majority in favour of the ordination of women".- The Rev Peter Mullin, The Telegraph, 06 Feb 2012 

Living with two integrities is now unacceptable to the cause of Women and the Church. According to most reports, being seen to be on the wrong side of the fence has been a clear impediment to the chances of the Bishop of London's name appearing on the Crown Nominations Committee list of two possible candidates to succeed Rowan Williams as Archbishop of Canterbury. Brief profiles of the 16 people selecting Rowan's successor indicate that all but two members are in favour of women bishops. It is not clear what protection for opponents would be favoured by some but of the 'Canterbury six' only one conservative amongst the modernisers wants concessions for traditionalists. Of the two 'Canterbury' women, one wants 'only minimal protection for opponents' while the other is 'opposed to measures which would make them inferior to male counterparts', ie, no concessions. 

There is a more balanced representation between conservatives and modernisers among the remainder of the panel, all but two are in favour of women bishops. Again it is not clear how some of them feel about opponents but one who is completely out-of-step with the Anglican Communion while supposedly representing them has already withdrawn provision for opponents in the Church in Wales. Also highlighted is the fact that the chair of the London branch of Women and the Church is said to be 'frustrated at the Bishop of London’s opposition to the ordination of women'. No surprise there given the record of WATCH but is it acceptable that a commanding figure such as the Rt Rev Richard Chartres is considered beyond the pail because of his opposition to women priests regardless of his ability or suitability when the church has “two integrities”, or was their acceptance simply a cynical act of duplicity for political ends?

But does it really matter? Not if these estimates are correct because the Church of England will be dead in 20 years time. Killed by politically correct, self-interested groups who have tinkered with other people's faith to such an extent that many have already given up attending formal worship - other than in the Diocese of London, that is where the church is still growing!

The stench is overwhelming.