The Bishop of Winchester has today voiced his concerns over the first gay “marriage” to be held in an Anglican church.
Rt Reverend Michael Scott-Joynt was speaking after it was revealed that Reverend Peter Cowell and the Rev Dr David Lord exchanged vows at St Bartholomew the Great in the City of London.
He said: “Strictly speaking it is not a marriage, but he marriage is clearly modelled on the marriage service and the occasion is modelled on the marriage service. This clearly flouts Church guidelines and will exacerbate divisions within the Anglican Communion.”
[i]This clearly flouts Church guidelines and will exacerbate divisions within the Anglican Communion.[/i]
No kidding.
Kinda puts a damper on ++Nazir-Ali’s Muslim evangelizing, too.
Will the good Bishop of London now revoke these “priests” licenses? At least the one that canonically resides in his See. (I understand the other one may be canonically resident in New Zealand.) That seems to be the only acceptable choice under the circumstances.
Line up. Take sides. Make statements. Have a discussion at General Synod. Form a task force. Create Windsor 2: The (Fallen) Empire Strikes Back. It’s deja vu all over again.
This is old news in TEC (alas). There have been elaborate ‘gay’ marriages celebrated in many places, including cathedrals (Grace, San Francisco) for many years now, despite canon law, resolutions, etc., etc. Has any member of the clergy or lay person been disciplined for this? Of course not! The ‘Church of Trendier Than Thou’ won’t stand for it!
[blockquote]Line up. Take sides. Make statements. Have a discussion at General Synod. Form a task force. Create Windsor 2: The (Fallen) Empire Strikes Back. It’s deja vu all over again. [/blockquote]
We could quibble about details, Brian, but I suspect your projected timeline is broadly accurate.
I disagree but we’ll see. There is a disciplinary process apparently underway that will take time (4 – 6 months to completion if the accused demands a hearing). I hope he will consent to a judgment made by Bishop Chartres (which may take 2 – 3 months). The worst case would be if there was no disciplinary action at all for so blatant and defiant a breach of Bishops’ Guidelines.
#3 My understanding is that under the Clergy Disciplinary Measure, which is in part designed to work inside the limits set by human rights legislation, a license can only be removed after due process – unless the accused gives consent.