General Synod in York

Today the General Synod meets in York for sessions sure to be dominated by debate and decisions around the issue of introducing women into the episcopate.

I have added my signature to the open letter sent to the archbishops.

An Open Letter to the Archbishops

Forward in Faith is delighted to publish the text of an Open Letter recently sent to the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Archbishop of York by some of those bishops, priests and deacons of the Church of England who are unable in conscience to receive the ordination of women as bishops. The letter has been sent in advance of the July Sessions of General Synod in order that the concerns of these loyal Anglicans are made clear in the run-up to the debates which will take place in York this weekend.

The letter was the initaitive of the three Provincial Episcopal Visitors, the Bishop of Fulham and the Master of the Society of the Holy Cross. It has been signed by 1,333 clergymen and women. 60% of the signatories are in Office in the Provinces of Canterbury and York and 35% of those who have signed are retired clergy who are all still performing valuable and much-needed ministry. Just 5% of the names are of those who, for reasons of age or infirmity, are now inactive.

Text

The Most Reverend and Right Hon the Lord Archbishop of Canterbury
&
The Most Reverend and Right Hon the Lord Archbishop of York

July, 2008

Most Reverend Fathers in God,

We write as bishops, priests and deacons of the Provinces of Canterbury and York, who have
sought, by God’s grace, in our various ministries, to celebrate the Sacraments and preach the
Word faithfully; to form, nurture and catechise new Christians; to pastor the people of God
entrusted to our care; and, through the work of our dioceses, parishes and institutions, to build
up the Kingdom and to further God’s mission to the world in this land.

Our theological convictions, grounded in obedience to Scripture and Tradition, and attentive
to the need to discern the mind of the whole Church Catholic in matters touching on Faith
and Order, lead us to doubt the sacramental ministry of those women ordained to the
priesthood by the Church of England since 1994. Having said that, we have engaged with the
life of the Church of England in a myriad of ways, nationally and locally, and have made
sincere efforts to work courteously and carefully with those with whom we disagree. In the
midst of this disagreement over Holy Order, we have, we believe, borne particular witness to
the cause of Christian unity, and to the imperative of Our Lord’s command that ‘all may be
one.’

We include those who have given many years service to the Church in the ordained ministry,
and others who are very newly ordained. We believe that we demonstrate the vitality of the
tradition which we represent and which has formed us in our discipleship and ministry – a
tradition which, we believe, constitutes an essential and invaluable part of the life and
character of the Church of England, without which it would be deeply impoverished.
Since the ordination of women to the priesthood began in 1994, we have been able to
exercise our ministry in the context of the solemn assurances given at that time that our
understanding of Holy Order was one entirely consonant with the faith and practice of the
Church of England, and secure in the knowledge that those assurances were embodied in the
legislation passed in 1993, and in the Act of Synod which followed that legislation. That
legislation, together with the Act, has been the framework which has allowed us to continue
to live and work in a church which has taken the decision to allow women to be ordained, but
which has also made room for us, and honoured our beliefs and convictions. We have been
further encouraged and affirmed by the Resolution of the Lambeth Conference 1998,
endorsed by the General Synod in July 2006, that “those who dissent from as well as those
who assent to the ordination of women to the priesthood and episcopate are both loyal
Anglicans.”

We believe that, should the Church of England move to the ordination of women to the
episcopate, our ability to continue to minister in the church to which we have been called will
depend on provision being made to allow us to do so with the same theological integrity
which we have been able to hold since 1994. We recognise that, much as we might hope
things to be otherwise, the Church of England is set upon the path of ordaining women as
bishops. We will strive to honour their calling as ministers of the Gospel, and to respect the
offices which they will hold, despite our profound reservations about the Church of
England’s decision to ordain and consecrate them. We do not look for ‘protection’ from the
ministry of ordained women. Rather, we ask that our theological convictions continue to be
accorded that respect which was promised fifteen years ago. We believe that priests must be
able to look to bishops about whose ministry they can be assured; and that bishops in turn
must be able to carry out their ministry in a way consonant with the traditional exercise of
Episcopal office. Only a structural solution to the new problems which will inevitably be
created for the Church by the ordination of women to the episcopate can, we believe, allow us
to flourish and to contribute to the life of the whole Church as we believe the Spirit continues
to call us to do.

It is with sadness that we conclude that, should the Church of England indeed go ahead with
the ordination of women to the episcopate, without at the same time making provision which
offers us real ecclesial integrity and security, many of us will be thinking very hard about the
way ahead. We will inevitably be asking whether we can, in conscience, continue to minister
as bishops, priests and deacons in the Church of England which has been our home. We do
not write this in a spirit of making threats or throwing down gauntlets. Rather, we believe that
the time has come to make our concerns plain, so that the possible consequences of a failure
to make provision which allows us to flourish and to grow are clear. Your Graces will know
that the cost of such a choice would be both spiritual and material.

We know that all members of the Church of England and of the General Synod in particular,
will be looking to you for wisdom, guidance and leadership in this matter. We urge you, as
our Fathers in God, to lead the whole Church in making generous and coherent provision for
us. This will not only allow us to continue to play our part in that mission, under God, to
which we are all committed, but also ensure that the Church of England continues to
encompass, in her polity, an understanding of Holy Orders consonant with that of the great
Churches of East and West with whom we share the historic episcopate.

We assure you of our prayers at this time.