THE draft legislation on women bishops will not be coming before the General Synod for debate next month as scheduled. Instead, the revision committee is expected still to be working on it after Easter. It will not now be debated till July.
In February last year, the Synod asked the revision committee to consider the arrangements, embodied in a statutory code of practice, for those opposed in conscience to women bishops.
At its October 2009 meeting, however, it appeared to move away from the code of practice, and voted for “the vesting by statute of certain functions in bishops with a special responsibility for those with conÂscientious difficulties”. The options of an alternative diocese or a regisÂtered society for objectors were ruled out, but it appears there was no vote on the adoption of the simplest form of legislation without a statutory code of practice.
Delay long enough and the ABC will not be faced with a division in the CoE, eh? Hey, it’s working with the AC.
Its so predicatable and depressing. The HOB are now running scared in the face of Pope Benedicts offer and so:
a) the revision committee pulls back from meaningful decision
b) revision committee finds it mysteriously unable to report
c) everything is fixed to kick into the long grass in July buying time
Note to Rowan:
I am BORED of waiting. REALLY BORED. So please get your Synod to state quite clearly what it offers Catholics. In all honesty it would need to be pretty impressive to match the Vatican offer…but I will listen out of a sense of duty and respect. But mess about and give me fudge and I am off before you can say ‘Ordinariate’.
Enough already. Playing games will no longer work. Let Synod decide what church it desires to be and then live with that decision. If it embraces Catholicity the women bishops will have to accept sacrifice. If not then be generous with those who leave. Sheesh how difficult is it?