A group of evangelical clergy are protesting about an article written in their Diocesan newspaper by a member of the senior staff team that promotes the acceptance of same sex relationships. Dr Martyn Percy, Dean of Christ Church, Oxford, writes what appears to be a brief review of two books on the subject. In one paragraph he praises More Perfect Union by Alan Wilson, then he contemptuously dismisses “Is God anti-gay?” by Sam Allberry, in four sentences. (Sam’s book is a clear and concise survey of the biblical texts and the real live issues for Christians with same sex attraction.) Percy concludes with his own sermon arguing for complete change in the biblical doctrine of Christian marriage…
..once again we have to flag up this tendency, no doubt occurring in many other Dioceses as well, of church leaders using their position and official institutions to promote heresy, causing confusion, anger and disunity.
In another Diocese, which I can’t name at the moment, a number of clergy in civil partnerships have been appointed to senior posts, to the extent that even some moderates feel that this kind of ”˜affirmative action’ is getting out of hand. Of course all these clergy have given assurances that their relationships are non-sexual, but they make no secret of their opposition to the C of E’s current teaching and their support for the ”˜inclusion’ ethic. For some evangelicals, the appointment of one of these revisionists to be in charge of the training of all curates in the Diocese has proved the last straw. Or has it? This situation is not unique. As revisionists continue their takeover of Diocesan administrations, the few conservatives left in senior positions tend to keep their heads down and work for ”˜peace’, seeing protesting biblically faithful clergy as equally a problem to be managed as the campaigning inclusionists.
The more I read by Andrew Symes, the more I like the guy. This short piece is no exception. His coverage of the facts on the ground, especially the deeply troubling (but predictable) way that more and more senior diocesan posts are going to open pro-gay advocates and relativists, is objective and helpful, especially for those of us on this side of the Pond. Illuminating, but discouraging.
I like his proposed solution of 3 D’s: Disestablishment, Disengagement, and Discipleship. As a fervent advocate for a “gathered church” style Anglicanism (even or especially in the CoE), I will however call attention to two or three significant caveats or downsides to Syme’ 3-D’s scheme for British evangelicals (not to be confused with my own “3-D Christianity” idea).
First, I strongly suspect that when, not if but when, the CoE finally breaks up outwardly and institutionally (it has already hopelessly broken up inwardly and spiritually), it is highly likely that the CoE won’t break into merely two parts, a liberal one and a conservative one, but rather it will probably shatter into at least three or four major groups. There are deep faultlines within both camps, over such things as churchmanship, women’s ordination, the charismatic gifts, and not least over ecclesiology. Am I worried about that grim prospect or fragmentation? You bet I am. Very worried.
Second, I myself continue to wonder, as an American, if the CoE is even capable of shedding the heavy baggage of its Erastian past, necessary as that is, without completely collapsing. Winston Churchill once described himself as being like a flying buttress, he supported the Church from the outside. Everyone knows or can readily see that the CoE, like the splendid English cathedrals that are among its treasures, is propped up by external supports on which it is utterly dependent. Remove the flying buttresses, and an English cathedral (especially a full Gothic cathedral) immediately collapses. Remove the close association between loyalty to the CoE and patriotism or loyalty to the English cultural heritage, and it’s highly dubious if English Anglicanism will survive as anything but the smallest remnant. As an American, I don’t presume to know, but I have nagging doubts and much skepticism about it.
Finally, there is a further factor that even the admirable Andrew Symes doesn’t seem to have considered yet. I myself am firmly convined that what is needed in England as well as the rest of the Global North goes well beyond mere Disestablishment (whether legal or social, depending on the national context). The Anglican provinces of Ireland, Scotland, and Wales have been legally disestablished for decades, but a persistent state church mentality lingers on, both inside and outside the Church, because of the strong Tory, pro-Establishment associations of Anglicanism endure. Uprootng those deep historic roots isn’t easy.
But my point is that mere Disestablishment won’t be enough, even when it’s gone beyond mere legal separation of church and state to the more important disentangling of biblical Christianity from an increasingly neo-pagan and even anti-Christian culture. Surviving Disestablishment will be tough enough (the sobering example of how Anglicanism was decimated by it in the latter 1700s here in VA where I live is a cautionary warning). But much more is required. For orthodox Anglicanism to not only survive but really thrive in the Global North will take even more drastic measures. For we are going to have to learn how to morph into being ANTI-Establishment Christians, who are actively, and even aggressively opposed to the anti-Christian values and pressure groups that now dominate the West.
But is it even possible for the leopard to change his spots in that way? Can a tradition which has been so utterly Erastian and Constantiian for many centuries suddenly morph into the opposite and become genuinely counter-cultural??
I don’t know. I’m highly skeptical.
Can we Global North Anglicans learn from our Global South brothers and sisters what it means to stop being conformed to the world and how to endure the persecution that so often comes with that refusal to conform to cultural norms? I don’t know.
But I do know that the future of Anglicanism in the Global North depends on it. Somehow, by the grace of God, we must manage that drastic overhaul. It would amount to nothing less than…
you guessed it…
a New Reformation.
David Handy+