A crisis of leadership enveloped the Church of England yesterday, after the resignation of the Dean of St Paul’s Cathedral over his handling of the protest camp on its doorstep.

The Archbishop of Canterbury was facing criticism for his failure to intervene earlier in the protracted decision-making process over whether to evict demonstrators or to engage with them.

But as the Church struggled to contain the fallout from the Occupy protest, some genuine campaigners left the camp in disgust over its descent into what one described as a place for bawdy hedonism, drink and drugs.

Interested readers may note that this was the top story on the front page of he ipad edition of the Times for me this morning. Read it all –KSH(requires subscription).

I do not say that these three early developments [Canon, Creed and Episcopate] necessarily settle the issues currently facing the Church of England, but we do need constantly to look back to these three early developments, which is one reason why, before being ordained or appointed to any office within the Church, each person must make the Declaration of Assent.

I recognise that the Church of England tolerates a pretty broad range of understanding and that we need to distinguish between those things which are fundamental to the Faith and those about which agreement is less clear, but if the Church is to stand for anything there must surely be limits to what interpretations are acceptable, and that is one of the duties of a bishop and one reason why we may feel that there is a need for the Anglican Communion Covenant.

St Paul tells us, in the first letter to the Corinthians, that there must always be charity as a dominant motive and also that we must look for what builds up and not what confuses and destroys. I hope we would also take those words to heart today and in the months to come as we continue to discern the Lord’s will on the two subjects we are currently looking at, and that we will honour and respect one another and not let suspicion and mistrust sour our relationships, remembering always the General Synod’s endorsement in 2006 of the Lambeth Conference Resolution in 1998 that those who dissent from, as well as those who assent to the ordination of women to the priesthood and episcopate are loyal Anglicans.

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The 2010 office and working costs of bishops in the Church of England… [were] published… [this week]. Figures for individual bishops were first published, for the year 2000, in December 2001. Bishops’ office and working costs were previously published as a total figure.

Bishops’ office and working costs for the year ended 31 December 2010 are published on the Church of England website .

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From here:

The Vacancy in See Committee had a preliminary meeting on 1st October 2011, where we elected Mr Jeremy Taylor, former Diocesan Adviser for Education, as Vice-Chairman. Also at that meeting we put in motion the mechanics for drawing up two documents
Description of the Diocese
Statement of needs, which is divided into four areas
Mission/church growth
Teaching/ministry/vocations
Civil Society/ecumenical links
Governance/structures
The second meeting will take place on November 5th at Church House, when we will be discussing the two draft documents with a view of having them almost complete for the main meeting on November 24th when the committee will meet with the Archbishops’ and Prime Minister’s Appointments Secretaries.
Could I on behalf of all members of the Vacancy in See Committee thank those who have written in with their views.
The Venerable Douglas McKittrick
Chairman of the Vacancy in See Committee

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One of the extraordinary features of us human beings is how deep the desire for fairness goes. Parents often hear a cry from their children “It’s not fair”. Parents sometimes reply “Well life isn’t fair”. Indeed it is not. But the point is that we feel it ought to be, and that we ought to try to make it as fair as possible. If a child at school is being punished unfairly, others in the class will protest. If someone is getting away with a wrong, we feel they ought to be caught and admonished. Those childhood feelings are no different from the moral realm we inhabit as adults. However unjust life is, we sense an obligation to do what we can to make it more just, and that includes bringing home to criminals and tyrants the terrible consequences of their deeds….

The great cry running through the Hebrew scriptures is that this world is grossly unjust but that that God will reveal a true justice at the end-so when, when, will God act in that way to put right all that is wrong? Jews, Christians and Muslims have never lost that hope of an ultimate justice.

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There is a great deal which I hope to say about a range of issues which concern our flourishing life as a diocese. It would be absurd not to start with what is occupying all of our minds, hearts and prayers today around the debate and vote on the Draft Legislation to enable the ordination and consecration of women as bishops in the Church of England. What we are doing today is of great significance because we are contributing to the discernment process of the whole Church. I remind us all that we are not voting on whether women can be bishops: the Church has already decided this point in the affirmative.

We are seeking to discern whether this legislation, which is already a compromise, should be supported. If it is passed by us, then we are likely to move to a following motion. What I both expect and commend to you as those who may speak in the debate, as well as those who listen carefully to all the arguments and contributions, is serious and adult listening to one another, properly seeking to persuade but also alert to the impact of what we say on others because the issues are so deeply felt as well as believed. I want no one to leave this hall today feeling that they have been demonised or written out of the book of life. Even when we do not accord integrity to a specific point or argument, we must respect the integrity of the person who makes that argument on whatever side of the debate. I am not going to speak in the debate. I shall vote on the main motion. If we get to the following motion, I shall abstain on the grounds that I am not prepared to vote against a desire for recognition and protection, even if I do not agree with the approach….

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The worldwide split in Anglicanism over gay issues has become linked to the concerns of some Church of England members concerned at the prospect of women bishops.

The Anglican Mission in England (AMIE), which was set up this year, shares some global Anglican leaders’ concerns over the gay question, but is also keen to help Anglicans who cannot accept women bishops.

And if it cannot reach agreement with the C of E, AMIE says members will look to the worldwide Anglican movement Gafcon for leadership.

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The Church of England cleared another legislative hurdle to appointing women bishops, but traditionalist opponents warned on Monday the move was not a foregone conclusion.

Some Anglican provinces already have women bishops, including Australia, the United States and Canada, but the ordination of women and homosexuals as bishops as well as same-sex marriages remain the most divisive issues facing the Anglican Communion, which has 77 million members worldwide.

The Church of England has voted in principle for women to be consecrated, and draft legislation is currently being looked at by its 44 dioceses, or groups of parishes, as part of its long legislative process.

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The Anglican Bishop of Liverpool the Right Reverend James Jones is returning to work four months after a heart-bypass operation.

He will also resume his duties as Chair of the Hillsborough Panel and the Forestry Review.

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This month the campaign to allow women bishops in the Church of England could clear another hurdle.

Supporters are surprised and encouraged by the backing it has been getting in the Church’s regional councils, or synods.

“We were expecting positive votes but the overwhelming majorities have been more encouraging than we expected,” says Helena Jenkins, a parishioner of St Luke’s church in Sevenoaks, Kent.

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The Anglican Bishop of Blackburn has pledged church support for BAE Systems workers in Lancashire who are set to lose their jobs.

In Lancashire, 565 jobs will be shed from 3,970 at Samlesbury, and 843 posts will go from 6,537 at Warton.

Bishop Nicholas Reade said every Christian in the county should ask what they can do to help the BAE workers.

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Archbishop Bernard Longley, the Archbishop of Birmingham, joined Bishop John Inge, Anglican Bishop of Worcester, in a joint ‘Big Bible Study’, in Worcester Cathedral on 24 September, as part of the celebrations to mark the 400th Anniversary of the King James Bible.

Catholics from parishes in the Archdiocese of Birmingham joined with members of Anglican parishes from across Worcestershire and Dudley as well as Christians from other traditions.

More than 200 people looked together at four versions of the chosen scripture reading – “On the Road to Emmaus” – taken from the Jerusalem Bible, New Revised Standard Version, New International Version, and the Authorised Version or King James Bible.

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We should embrace other languages and cultures, particularly those of our European neighbours, says the Bishop of Bradford the Rt Revd Nick Baines in a Church of England podcast, published today, to celebrate 20 years of Anglo-German ecumenical links. Both in business and in the classroom we need to broaden our horizons, he adds, or we are in danger of missing out.

The Meissen Agreement was published in 1988, before Germany was re-united, between the Church of England and the Federation of Evangelical Churches in the German Democratic Republic (DDR) and the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD). A signing service followed in 1991 in Westminster Abbey.

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This sure is matter of love; but came there any good to us by it? There did. For our conception being the root as it were, the very groundsill of our nature; that He might go to the root and repair of our nature from the very foundation, thither He went; that what had been there defiled and decayed by the first Adam, might by the Second be cleansed and set right again. That had our conception been stained, by Him therefore, primum ante omnia,to be restored again. He was not idle all the time He was an embyro all the nine months He was in the womb; but then and there He even ate out the core of corruption that cleft to our nature and us, and made both us and it an unpleasing object in the sight of God.

And what came of this? We who were abhorred by God, filii irae was our title, were by this means made beloved in Him. He cannot, we may be sure, account evil of that nature, that is now become the nature of His own SonNHis now no less than ours. Nay farther, given this privilege to the children of such as are in Him, though but of one parent believing, that they are not as the seed of two infidels, but are in a degree holy, eo ipso; and have a farther right to the laver of regeneration, to sanctify them throughout by the renewing of the Holy Ghost. This honour is to us by the dishonour of Him; this the good by Christ an embyro.

–From a sermon preached before King James, at Whitehall, on Sunday, the Twenty-fifth of December, 1614

Almighty God, who gavest thy servant Lancelot Andrewes the gift of thy holy Spirit and made him a man of prayer and a faithful pastor of thy people: Perfect in us what is lacking of thy gifts, of faith, to increase it, of hope, to establish it, of love, to kindle it, that we may live in the life of thy grace and glory; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the same Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

I want you to know that God loves you and goes on loving you whether you come to church or not. To get God to love you is not the object of the exercise. As St Paul makes clear in his letter to the church in Rome, there is nothing you can do that will separate you from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus (see Romans 8. 31-39). No. The reason we come to church is not so that God might love us, but that we might learn to love God and that we might learn to live God’s way; not just us, but all the world. So if you are here for the first time, or for the first time for a long time, welcome. Please don’t walk away. Because God is all merciful and all loving, and the rest of us are here, not because we are so good or so faithful or so generous, but because we are also learners in the school of God’s love, trying to find out how we can best respond to the challenges of Jesus, and knowing that whatever we do, or don’t do, he goes on loving us.

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The House of Bishops must be ready for a change of culture now, before the final vote on accepting women into the episcopate, Dr Williams heard on Monday.

A day-long conference was hosted by the Archbishop of Canterbury at Lambeth Palace on Monday, after discussions with groups such as Women and the Church (WATCH), and the women Deans, Archdeacons, and Residentiary Canons group (DARC).

The day was reflective and wide-ranging in its discussions, said the Rector of St James’s, Piccadilly, the Revd Lucy Winkett. “People talked about issues like clergy couples and flexible working, and the impact on a priest’s vocation ”” all issues that have been highlighted by the ordination of women….

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The Archbishop of York and a number of bishops are leading the way in inviting millions back to church this weekend for Back to Church Sunday 2011 (25th September). In addition to meeting people where they’re at, at a range of public events (from Sunday car boot sales to jazz nights), they are encouraging people to send friends invitations either in person or using social media.

The Archbishop of York, the Most Revd Dr John Sentamu, Tweeted an invitation to come back to church today, Monday, 19th September. He said: “This Sunday (25th September) is Back to Church Sunday. http://www.backtochurch.co.uk . Why not invite your friends too? Pass the message on!”

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You can find the audio link [from BBC Radio Ulster] here (good for most of the rest of this week only). The segment starts about 1 1/2 minutes in and lasts about 4 1/2 minutes. Of special interest, Ruth tells the story of an earlier story the London Times came within a whisker of printing on this same subject which had to be pulled at the last minute, and she gives her own top choice of who should be his replacement if that possibility arises–KSH.

With only around 10% of Britons attending a church service each week, Back To Church Sunday is a big idea ”“ and an ambitous one.

The annual initiative, which was launched seven years ago, is operated by a network of Anglican dioceses ”“ but they are keen to share their experience with other Christian churches.

This Sunday will be 2011’s Back To Church Sunday and Bishop Richard Blackburn ”“ currently the acting Bishop of Liverpool ”“ says: “It’s a great opportunity to put ourselves in the shoes of many people who do come to church at various points in their lives but, for whatever reason, are hesitant about going through the church doors….

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Apologists, both Western and Muslim, claim that Islamist extremism and terrorism have been bred by resentment of Western power. The military dominance of Israel, the roots of the Kashmir dispute, the megalomania of the Shah of Iran, and Suez are all seen to be examples of Western hubris and ill-will towards the Muslim world.

We can acknowledge that these have contributed to anti-Western sentiment in the Muslim world, but it would be a serious mistake to believe this provides a complete account of the extremism and the terror that has resulted from it.

At the heart of extremism is an ideology, a world-view ”“ and not just concerning the perceived wrong done to the Muslim Umma (or people). Such an ideology expects Islam to dominate rather than to accept a subservient place in world affairs. It promotes pan-Islam and the ultimate rejection of nation-states, even Muslim ones. It may be that some extremists chatter about an Islamic state, in this part of the world or that; however, its ultimate aim is a single Islamic political, social, economic and spiritual entity.

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Dr Rowan Williams is understood to have told friends he is ready to quit the highest office in the Church of England to pursue a life in academia.

The news will trigger intense plotting behind the scenes over who should succeed the 61-year-old archbishop, who is not required to retire until he is 70.

Bishops have privately been arguing for Dr Williams to stand down, with the Rt Rev Richard Chartres, the Bishop of London, telling clergy he should give someone else a chance after nearly ten years in the post.

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You can find the audio here (about 4 minutes). Listen to it all.

This month sees the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre in New York. The term 9.11 is now a part of the global vocabulary. Most of us can remember where we were and what we were doing on that fateful day. None of us can deny the shock and horror as we watched film footage of the impact of the aircraft and the consequent collapse of the buildings. The resultant loss of life was something few would have expected in an urban context far removed from a conventional war zone. For many families caught up in the events of that day the anniversary will no doubt be a difficult day. Memories will be stirred and emotions once again brought to the fore. Solidarity with those who lost loved ones and remembering all those who worked with courage to save others will be important….

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Bishop Thomas McMahon from the Catholic Diocese of Brentwood and Bishop Stephen Cottrell of the Anglican Diocese of Chelmsford paid a pastoral visit to the Dale Farm site last Tuesday. They talked and prayed with some of the Travellers who face imminent eviction from the site by Basildon Council. Both Bishops also talked to the significant numbers of journalists on the site about their concerns.

The Bishops subsequently issued the following statement: ‘The Travellers’ community at Dale Farm, near Basildon, invited us to visit them today. An eviction notice is due to take effect at 12 midnight tomorrow. We prayed with Christian and non-Christian families and children who are under extreme stress, and expressed our solidarity with them.

‘This is a desperate situation. It is important that people should know that it is a humanitarian crisis, whatever they make of the legality and politics of the situation. The travellers are frightened and anxious people. If elderly and infirm people were shown on TV being forced out of their homes, we wouldn’t think we were watching something happening in England, but that is what will happen here….

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Downing Street has today (6th September) announced that the next Bishop of Winchester will be the Revd Canon Tim Dakin.

Bishop designate Tim (53), who is currently head of the Church Mission Society, will be consecrated as the 97th Bishop of Winchester in January and assume the role in Spring 2012.

As well as heading up CMS since 2000 Tim is also a member of the Church of England’s ruling body, the General Synod, an associate priest in the parish of Ruscombe and Twyford in the Diocese of Oxford and an Honorary Canon Theologian of Coventry Cathedral….

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The Bishop of Chelmsford, the Rt Revd Stephen Cottrell, believes that the planned eviction of travellers from a farm near Basildon will create “havoc and chaos” for the 90 families involved.

Bishop Cottrell and the Roman Catholic Bishop of Brentwood, the Rt Revd Thomas McMahon, visited the site at Dale Farm, in Crays Hill, on Tuesday. At midnight on Wednes­day, Basildon Council was due to start removing the travellers who have built illegally on part of the site.

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The Archbishops of Canterbury and York, Dr Rowan Williams and Dr John Sentamu, both expressed their concern about the current changes in education and RE during the House of Lords debate on the riots earlier this month. Dr Williams said that the current system had less room for the building of character and virtue. Dr Sentamu said that religious knowledge formed and created a culture and asked the Government how they planned to now fill the void.

Commenting on this year’s A-level/GCSE RE results, the Bishop of Oxford, the Rt Revd John Pritchard, who chairs the Church of England’s Education Division and National Society said: “Education is about the whole person, not just results and targets. RE is an academic subject that not only teaches pupils about different faiths and cultures but gives room for discussion that develops values, understanding and responsibility. We only have to look at the events of recent weeks to see how important this is. This is not about the church guarding its territory but about safeguarding a subject that has value to all. We shall continue our conversation with the Government on this.”

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