"Can't see the problem"!

Former Second Church Estates Commissioner addressing the Commons
Original source: Mirror

Former Second Church Estates Commissioner, Sir Tony Baldry, attended the recent drag-queen gala at St James’s church, Piccadilly.

The Church Times reports that Sir Tony was one of the 300-strong audience who attended the event. 

Interviewed during the interval, he contrasted the event with the last time he had been in St James’s, for a debate between Theresa May and the Archbishop of York. He defended the drag evening: “It’s not hurting anyone, and making tons of money for the church. I just can’t see the problem.”

Sir Tony couldn't see the problem when he addressed the House of Commons back in 2012. Much was made of the Commissioner's buffoonery in sporting a male-only club tie while he was berating orthodox Christians for being sexist. He claimed that the Church of England's decision to reject the introduction of women bishops "makes it look like a sect".

It didn't then but is going that way. I wrote at the time "Sir Tony Baldry displays an unusual understanding of the word sect which in Christian terms means a group of people with somewhat different religious beliefs (typically regarded as heretical) from those of a larger group to which they belong.

The Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches (GSFA) points out that having recently legitimised and incorporated into the Church’s liturgy the blessing of same sex unions, the Church of England has "departed from the historic faith passed down from the Apostles in the liturgies of the Church and her pastoral practice and disqualified herself from leading the Communion as the historic 'Mother' Church."

Sadly most of the Anglican bishops in Great Britain can't see the problem.

The Rector of St James's Church, Piccadilly, is the Revd Lucy Winkett, staunch promoter of the F word which is where the problem started.

Barry's sexist agenda.

The Bunch of 'Bishops'

Charged with drawing up the Code of Practice required to accompany the authorising of women bishops in the Church in Wales, the Archbishop and his bench sitters have, true to form, produced something sexist to provide for the type of woman Barry has encouraged and who will feel comfortable with the result despite the implied intention to make provision for Church members who cannot accept the ordination of women on grounds of conscience. On this occasion he has managed to make all his bench sitters culpable.

Appalled by the deviousness of his Presidential Address I shall confine myself, for now anyway, to commenting on some tweeted remarks from Governing Body which I found interesting:

"What will you do during this Governing Body to build up our church in the body of Christ?' asks Sion in his Bible reflection". - Sounds like a good start!

"The Archbishop begins his Presidential Address and says this time it is a joint address from the Bench of Bishops". - Dire warning; all are culpable.

"Christ's was an inclusive, not exclusive ministry, says the Archbishop. But sometimes the Church has been exclusive,causing schisms" - Barry should know better than most!

"Crucial question is how do we respect difference and diversity within the Church, says the Archbishop" - Listen to those for whom the Code of Practice was supposedly intended?

"Bishops undertook an extensive listening process across the Province as they drew up the Code of Practice" - but turned a deaf ear to anything they did not want to hear.

"The Code of Practice for women bishops is for every single member of the church, not for just one group, says the Archbishop" - One tweeter grasped the point that under the inclusive code, a woman must be able to demand a woman bishop. Belief apparently is irrelevant. Only sex matters.

"We, as your bishops, see Christ at work in all our members, married or single, gay or straight, old or young.' - Archbishop" - Always provided that they are an acceptable minority who do not follow the teaching of the Holy Catholic Church.

"We perceive the call of God in women to all orders, and we are respectful of the faith of those who cannot receive such ministry" - You could have fooled me Archbishop.

"In these issues, as in others, we invite the Church to unite in the greater task of proclaiming the Gospel" - But only as Barry sees it.

The BBC report (here) is as sexist as is the Archbishop's approach to the Code. There is nothing to suggest that objections on grounds of conscience are because the bishops' beliefs differ from those held by the Holy Catholic Church of which we claim to belong.

Postscript:

WALES: The Washed Up World of the Anglican Church of Wales

From Virtueonline here

Bishops to Abandon the Faithful

Following the example of their close neighbours in Wales, Church of England bishops are preparing to welch on their promise to provide acceptable oversight for those who do not accept their church’s departure from traditional orthodox teaching.

In the Church in Wales there was no replacement for the highly respected Provincial Assistant Bishop David Thomas after his retirement. Not being a defender of the faith himself, their politically motivated Archbishop convinced himself and those around him that the Bench of Bishops could provide satisfactory pastoral and sacramental care for all, including those who thought that their bishops had erred in their ways and simply did’t care.

Today the Church of England has published the report of the Revision Committee which has been considering legislation to permit women to become bishops: http://www.cofe.anglican.org/news/pr4210.html . There are new provisions requiring each diocesan bishop to draw up a scheme in his or her diocese that takes account of the national Code of Practice and provides local arrangements for the performance of certain Episcopal functions in relation to parishes with “conscientious difficulties” - as if there were something abnormal about being orthodox.

In their proposals they demonstrate that they have no understanding whatsoever of the needs of those who expect the pastoral and sacramental care of a bishop who shares the faith of the majority of Christians in the wider Holy Catholic and Apostolic church. Any “difficulty” is of the Anglican church’s making and has nothing to do with being sexist or anti-women as is often implied.

As the once great ship of Anglicanism sails away to founder on the rocks it will be ironic if those whom the pirates abandon are saved by a Catholic lifeboat while the ship sinks into oblivion.