Dear friends,

Our leaders in the Anglican Communion have been very busy over the past few weeks. I’m writing the day after General Synod has voted to allow the process to continue for women to become bishops in the Church of England. The voting makes interesting reading, as if the same policy is adopted as in the final vote on women priests in 1992, a two-thirds (66%) majority in all three houses (Bishops, Clergy, Laity) will be necessary to see women bishops in the C of E.

The vote in favour last night was – Bishops 28 (68%), Clergy 124 (73%), Laity 111 (61%); in 1992 it was only in the House of Clergy where there was not a two-thirds majority in favour before the final vote. As you can see the issue is finally balanced. Most commentators expect that after ‘special arrangements’ are made ‘for those who as a matter of theological conviction will not be able to receive the ministry of women as bishops or priests’ the way ahead will be clear for women to become bishops, sometime in 2010. 

In another course of events, a number of Anglican bishops from around the world have decided not to attend the Lambeth Conference this year; instead they met in Jerusalem a few weeks ago as GAFCon (Global Anglican Future Conference). The Lambeth Conference happens every 10 years and (nearly) all the bishops from around the world-wide Anglican Communion are invited, with their spouses for 20 days of ‘worship, study and conversation.’

I say nearly all the bishops are invited as certainly one who wasn’t invited this year is the homosexual bishop of New Hampshire (USA), Gene Robinson, although those bishops, who took part in his ordination as bishop, have been invited. In response to this many who attended GAFCon found they could not, as a matter of conscience, share in fellowship with them and so they have stayed away.

Last Tuesday I along with 800 other clergy attended a ‘gathering’ to listen to some of the bishops who attended GAFCon – it certainly has given me food for thought. It seems inevitable that in the future there will be a radical change in how the Anglican Church is organised with individual clergy and churches signing up with a bishop of their choice who will reflect their theology.

I have long suspected that the Church of England will become more congregational in the (near?) future i.e. that more power and authority will be given to church members, as in the URC and Baptist churches. Some people say that this would be no bad thing – what do you think?    

                                                                    Blessings,

Chris