Archbishop of Canterbury succession race begins in earnest; Royal wedding attracts couples to church; Was Jesus Married?
Archbishop of Canterbury succession race begins in earnest
Andrew Brown writes in the Guardian – Next Wednesday, four women and 15 men on the Crown Nominations Commission will gather for two days of prayer and horsetrading to replace Rowan Williams as archbishop of Canterbury. We know who they are, and when they will meet – but not where, so they can’t be doorstepped.
Only three members of the commission, chaired by the former Conservative arts minister Lord Luce, are bishops. One of the women and two of the men have no vote, but are there to advise. Five, including one of the women, are priests. The rest are lay people. Almost all the parties of the church are represented and there is even Dr Barry Morgan, a Welshman, to represent the rest of the world for the first time in this process. They will pick two names to present to the prime minister, who is bound to choose the first, unless he proves unable to take the job.
The man they choose will have at least five jobs at once in his new post, and very little power in any of them. He is a bishop in Kent. He sits in the House of Lords. He chairs meetings of the bishops of all England. In some very nebulous sense he is also the leader of the Anglican communion, a worldwide body with no agreed doctrine and no discipline, which has rejected all attempts to supply it with either. If the Queen dies, he will crown her successor. When the nation requires religious pageantry, he must supply it and star in it.
“The next man has got to be able to hold together the Anglican communion, and to stare down the loony left and the loony right on sexual questions,” says Stephen Kuhrt, a south London vicar who represents centrist evangelical opinion. “There are those who want a split as soon as possible, but the vast majority of Anglicans want a working compromise on sexuality. We need someone who can communicate a bit more on a popular level than Rowan, and is a bit tougher.” More at:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/sep/20/archbishop-of-canterbury-succession-rowan-williams?newsfeed=true
Press review
“Royal wedding attracts couples to church” – Daily Telegraph
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/9555715/Royal-wedding-effect-helps-drive-interest-in-church-ceremonies.html#
“Was Jesus Married?” – Daily Telegraph http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/9555715/Royal-wedding-effect-helps-drive-interest-in-church-ceremonies.html#