Church Times: C of E paper on marriage is tendentious, poorly argued; Church Society Response to the Church of England Submission on Same-Sex Marriage; Women-bishops supporters might send Measure back; Archbishop warns of ‘majoritarian tyranny’ in elected House of Lords; Agenda for July 2012 General Synod
Church Times: C of E paper on marriage is tendentious, poorly argued
The Church Times devotes its lead editorial to an evisceration of the paper that the Church of England submitted to the British government expressing its opposition to same-sex marriage:
Many churchgoers woke on Tuesday morning to learn about their adamant opposition to same-sex marriage. Whether they agree with its position or not, they will find the paper submitted to the Government’s consultation on their behalf to be tendentious and poorly argued. In brief, it says that the government consultation on same-sex marriage is flawed (it is); that marriage has always been defined as between a man and a woman (it has); that matters such as consummation will be hard to work into a new definition (they will); and that there is a false distinction being made between civil and religious marriage (there is, although this is the Government’s clumsy attempt to preserve the Church’s right to discriminate).
Besides these points, however, the paper makes a number of unsupported claims. In just one example, it states that the view of marriage as “a lifelong union of one man with one woman” is “derived from the teaching of Christ himself”, first without citing which teaching, and second without any apparent embarrassment over the use of the word “lifelong”. The impression that Church and state have walked hitherto arm in arm up and down the aisle can be sustained only by ignoring the huge chasm over divorce that opened in the 19th century. Much is made of the Church’s supposed susceptibility to legal challenge; but again, this has not been its experience when clerics have refused second marriages in church. Hardest to follow are the paper’s arguments that the benefits society derives from heterosexual marriage will somehow be absent if marriage is extended to same-sex couples.
http://www.churchtimes.co.uk/content.asp?id=129976
Church Society Response to the Church of England Submission on Same-Sex Marriage
Church Society welcomes the Church of England’s official submission to the government’s ‘consultation’ on sex-same marriage, which argues strongly in favour of retaining the current definition of marriage as “the voluntary union for life of one man with one woman to the exclusion of all others”.
The submission helpfully points out the confusion at the heart of the government’s proposals: observing that there is no such thing as “religious marriage” or “civil marriage”, but only civil and religious weddings, which provide different doors into an identical legal relationship.
It also highlights the way in which the far-reaching legal and constitutional implications of the proposed redefinition of marriage appear not to have been worked through by the government – with, for example, the worrying possibility of Church of England clergy being exposed to legal challenge in the courts.
The submission restates the Church of England’s teaching embodied in Canon B30: “The Church of England affirms, according to our Lord’s teaching, that marriage is in its nature a union, permanent and lifelong, for better for worse, till death them do part, of one man with one woman, to the exclusion of all others on either side….” Since this is on the basis of “our Lord’s teaching” this is not something that can be redefined – whether by the government or by the church.
http://www.churchsociety.org/press/PR_2012-06_CofESubmission.asp
Women-bishops supporters might send Measure back
Church Times – There are growing signs that a procedural motion will be tabled to delay the women-bishops legislation when it goes to the General Synod for final approval next month.
Under Section 94 of the Standing Orders, a motion can be moved from the floor of the Synod to send the draft Measure back to the House of Bishops for further consideration. Supporters of women bishops have expressed their reluctance to vote for the Measure since the Bishops added two amendments (News, 25 May).
If the Synod were to adjourn the debate, the soonest it could be reconsidered would be February 2013, unless the business committee decided to reassemble the Synod in November.
The object of such a move would be to prevent the possible rejection of the legislation, which could lead to a much greater delay. The Measure needs to pass by a two-thirds majority in the Houses of Bishops, Clergy, and Laity. The opponents of women bishops, although some welcomed the Bishops’ amendments, are still unlikely to vote in favour, and to their number will be added those who cannot stomach the changes introduced by the Bishops.
http://www.churchtimes.co.uk/content.asp?id=129938
Archbishop warns of ‘majoritarian tyranny’ in elected House of Lords
Independent – The Archbishop of Canterbury has spoken out against the House of Lords becoming an entirely elected chamber.
In a speech Rowan Williams said he supported reform but warned that “popular election should not be the sole or necessarily the dominant factor in the composition of the chamber”.
He defended the current make up of Britain’s second legislative house arguing that there is currently “a significant level of expertise on legal, scientific, sociological and international matters – not to mention significant representation from the whole range of faith communities – which may be relevant to the making of sound and fair legislation.”
But he expressed concern that a Lords which was entirely filled with politicians elected on party tickets risked verging towards a “majoritarian tyranny” that could trample over the voices of minorities. “The second chamber stands for the acknowledgement that someone needs to keep an eye on the wider picture that can be held by a single elected chamber alone,” he said.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/archbishop-warns-of-majoritarian-tyranny-in-elected-house-of-lords-7855013.html
Agenda for July 2012 C of E General Synod
C of E media – General Synod meets in July for final stages of women bishops legislation, with an agenda that also includes world mission, church growth, the August 2011 riots, manifesting faith in public life, church schools, Palestine and Israel.
http://www.churchofengland.org/media-centre/news/2012/06/agenda-for-july-2012-general-synod.aspx