Canterbury calling?

Archbishop of York (Source: Diocese of York)                                         Bishop of London  (Source: Crediton Courier)

Rumours abound that the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, will resign after the coronation of King Charles III.

He has said that he hoped to remain the Archbishop of Canterbury until he reaches retirement age in 2026, if he is in "good health" and "people are happy" with him in the post. 

Very many people are unhappy with Welby's performance as Archbishop of Canterbury, including the majority of Anglicans. Schism looms. Will he go?

Welby's role in turning a Christian coronation service into a multi-faith event has not gone down well. 

His 'off-piste' oath plan has backfired. "Buckingham Palace officials fear the Coronation oath could cloud the ceremony due to the criticism surrounding the 'Homage of the People'."

Those of us old enough to recall the solemnity of Queen Elizabeth's coronation will witness a different ceremony, one built around wokery to include people with entirely different beliefs, some of which reject the Christian message.

The Coronation Liturgy shows that the Epistle (Colossians 1: 9-17) is to be read by a Hindu Prime Minister. Hindus worship many gods so which god will the Prime Minister have in mind? 

Nothing seems to matter in the Church of England other than being conformed to the world.

On that score, if Welby were to retire, the Archbishop of York and the bishop of London have both shown themselves to be unsuitable.

Bishop Sarah Mullally ended  her Living in Love and Faith Presentation  with the words:

"I hope that we will not just ‘look to your own interests, but to the interests of others.’
...May God hold us in the redeeming love of Christ and bless us with the guiding
presence of the Holy Spirit.
Amen."

The guiding  presence of the Holy Spirit is evident not in the Church of England  but in GAFCON:

"Despite 25 years of persistent warnings by most Anglican Primates, repeated departures from the authority of God's Word have torn the fabric of the Communion. These warnings were blatantly and deliberately disregarded and now without repentance this tear cannot be mended."

The Archbishop of York has not heeded the message. In his presidential address at the April 2023 York synod he claimed that "We are not judged by 'doctrinal orthodoxy' but 'love', reminiscent of TEC presiding bishop Michael Curry's Love is the way!

What the Church of England needs is an Archbishop of Canterbury can bring the Church back to faith as neatly explained here by Calvin Robinson in his Common Sense Crusade.

Enough is enough (2)

Ugandans take part in an anti-gay protest in Kampala. The Church of Uganda has been
prominent in the Anglican realignment movement. Source: Independent AFP/Getty

From Christian Today:

Church must repent of 'second class' treatment of gays, Anglican leaders warn Primates:

More than 100 Anglicans including the Dean of St Paul's have written a letter to the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, urging repentance for "second class citizens" treatment of gay people as the leaders of the 38 provinces of the Anglican Communion meet in Canterbury today in the hope of avoiding further schism of the Church.

The cheek of it. Reminiscent of the campaigns for the ordination of women priests and bishops under the 'second class citizen' banner, many commentators who read this blog will find the claim hard to swallow again. Far from being second class citizens gay people are very much in evidence at all levels in the Church in England and Wales and in one diocese very well known to commentators they hold sway.

In my Enough is enough entry on Bonfire Day in 2012 I included a video in which the Bishop of Worcester claimed that if the measure to allow women bishops did not pass it would be a disaster for the Church's mission. Poppycock! Passing the measure was the disaster, aligning the Church of England and Church in Wales with the ultra liberal US Episcopal Church (TEC). Feminism has become entrenched leading to ever more relaxation.

Women priests, women bishops, gay bishops, same-sex relationships and gay marriage have nothing to do with the mission of the Church. It is all about seeking the blessing of the Church to justify personal preference at the expense of Mission .

There are 80 million Anglicans worldwide. The minority who live in Great Britain are no longer representative of the Anglican Communion. If anyone needs to repent it is these self-interested minorities.

Humble pie

On 17th November the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, will be in Rome for the 50th anniversary of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity. Humble pie should be on the menu. As this healthy recipe indicates, it is real family food, just made without meat.

The ingredients of the Christian faith continue to cause meaty problems as they have done since the first schism. For Anglicans the process continues following the introduction of the ordination of women and problems over gay rights. Most Christians worship God with little or no thought of what separates them from other worshippers believing 'right' to be on their side, usually determined by the 'religion' of their birth. I see little problem with that, as long as they follow Christ's example and commandment to love one another, according to others the same privilege of conscience. In the Church of England supporters of the ordination of women have sought to deny others that right with a 'take it or leave it' attitude over women bishops, dismissing arguments that the innovation is contrary to scripture, tradition and the will of the universal church.

Detailed Ordinariate plans have yet to be published but if there is no change from their position that Rome is always right and others have to admit the error of their ways to be received, they will not have learnt the lessons of history that, unlike Christ, the church can and has made errors in the past. Christ is the true light, pure light made of many colours. To enable non-believers to see the pure light of Christ our varied colours have to be united because separated we are not understood. Fifty years of talking is long enough. It eclipses the true Light who, before His betrayal, prayed that we all may be one.

A healthy serving of humble pie must be the order of the day to avoid the faithful who fall between two stools being forgotten as they follow Christ's example as conscience dictates.