Interview with Archbishop Rowan; speculation about his successor; comments from varied viewpoints in the Communion including the Church in Nigeria which is praying for an anti-gay successor, the Chicago Consultation and Reform; also, speculation that HM The Queen and the PM David Cameron will be on a collision course, and that Tory MPs are lobbying the PM. Sources also include Giles Fraser and George Pitcher.
Rowan Williams interviewed
Coincidentally the Archbishop of Canterbury had on his calendar for today an interview on the occasion of an anniversary of the Fresh Expressions, an evangelism ministry of the Church of England. In addition to questions about Fresh Expressions and the place of the church today more generally, he is asked about the job of Archbishop of Canterbury, what has given him joy and how he has maintained his spiritual life.
http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/archbishop_of_canterbury/rowan_williams_interviewed.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+episcopalcafe+%28Episcopal+Cafe%29
Like it or not, Sentamu is the best hope for the Church of England
The Independent – The idea of a traditionalist like Dr Sentamu becoming the head of the Church of England may be alarming for many of us; the US has shown the powerful and illiberal political effect that old-time religion can have. All the same, the evidence of the past …
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/terence-blacker/terence-blacker-like-it-or-not-sentamu-is-the-best-hope-for-the-church-of-england-7578163.html
Will a Blackman Be Allowed to Head the Church of England?
THISDAY Live – By Paul Ohia with agency reports A major test to the equality and openness of anti-racism in the Church of England, also called the Anglican Communion, will soon commence following the impending resignation of the Archbishop of Canterbury, …
http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/will-a-blackman-be-allowed-to-head-the-church-of-england-/111822/
Giles Fraser’s Thinking Aloud podcast: the challenge for the next archbishop …
The Guardian – Later, it became a term attached to the pope himself. And it’s now widely used in the Church of England to describe the main purpose of a bishop. A bishops holds the ring, he keeps the church together. Unity sounds like a warm and fuzzy word – a word …
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/belief/audio/2012/mar/19/giles-fraser-thinking-aloud-podcast?newsfeed=true
Bishop of Gloucester surprised at Canterbury link
This is Gloucestershire – THE Bishop of Gloucester, Right Reverend Michael Perham, has said he does not have the energy for the Church of England’s top job. Bishop Michael, 64, admits he was “surprised” to be named as a possible successor to the Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan …
http://www.thisisgloucestershire.co.uk/Bishop-Gloucester-surprised-Canterbury-link/story-15557697-detail/story.html
Nigeria prays for anti-gay successor to Williams
Episcopal Cafe – A news release from the Church of Nigeria chides Archbishop Rowan Williams for not toeing the Nigerian line on Biblical interpretation: The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Revd and Rt. Hon. Dr. Rowan Williams took over the leadership of the Anglican Communion in 2002 when it was a happy family. Unfortunately, he is leaving behind a Communion in tatters: highly polarized, bitterly factionalized, with issues of revisionist interpretation of the Holy Scriptures and human sexuality as stumbling blocks to oneness, evangelism and mission all around the Anglican world.
http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/archbishop_of_canterbury/nigeria_prays_for_antigay_succ.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+episcopalcafe+%28Episcopal+Cafe%29
The battle for Britain’s soul begins here
Telegraph – The next Archbishop of Canterbury will have his work cut out as the nation negotiates a painful transition of faith. What do we believe in? That used to be an easy question for the British to answer: Queen and country, fair play, family and a nice cup of tea. Now, though, it’s up for grabs.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/9150332/The-battle-for-Britains-soul-begins-here.html
Tory MPs urge Cameron to choose traditionalist as next Archbishop
Guardian – Tory MPs were last night lobbying David Cameron to choose a traditionalist candidate as the next Archbishop of Canterbury after Rowan Williams announced he was stepping down last week. Peter Bone, the MP for Wellingborough and Rushden, was among those calling on the PM to choose a figure who represented the views of the church’s traditionalist wing on issues such as gay marriage.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/mar/18/tory-mps-urge-cameron-to-choose-traditionalist-archbishop?newsfeed=true
Rowan Williams: Farewell to a man of intellect, integrity and spirituality
Guardian Editorial – The Archbishop of Canterbury has been an exemplar of good sense and generosity in troubled times… Now that he has announced his intention to stand down, it is poignant to think back to the optimism that accompanied his appointment. Here was a man of luminous intellect and uncommon spirituality who could add depth, insight and generosity to the national conversation. But for far too much of his tenure at Lambeth Palace, Dr Williams has, instead, found himself embroiled in rancorous debates about sexuality and gender that have shattered the unity of the Anglican communion.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/mar/18/observer-editorial-rowan-williams-anglicanism?newsfeed=true
A church leader buffeted by the storms of his age
Independent Editorial – History may well judge Dr Williams more kindly than either his country or some of his fellow clerics
Chicago Consultation statement on resignation
During Archbishop Rowan’s tenure, he was often at odds with the Episcopal Church over its efforts to include lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Christians more fully in the life of the Church. We regret the friction that has existed between him and our church, and look forward to working with him and his successor toward an Anglican Communion bound together by an ever-deepening commitment to shared ministry between parishes, dioceses and provinces, and ever-greater respect of the gifts and vocations of each of its members.”
The Chicago Consultation, a group of Episcopal and Anglican bishops, clergy and lay people, supports the full inclusion of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Christians in the Episcopal Church and the worldwide Anglican Communion. To learn more about the Chicago Consultation, visit www.chicagoconsultation.org
Statement from Chairman of Reform on resignation of Archbishop of Canterbury
Rev’d Rod Thomas, chairman of Reform, the 1,700-strong network of conservative evangelicals within the Church of England, said “Many people will have appreciated Rowan’s great courtesy in dealing with people of different views within both the Church of England and the wider Anglican Communion. But his departure opens up the potential for a new leader to heal the deep divisions within the Anglican Communion. What is needed is someone who will hold firm to Biblical truth in areas such as human sexuality in order to promote the gospel and unite the church in the face of militant secularism.”
David Cameron is set to fall out with the Queen over the next Archbishop of Canterbury
By George Pitcher, Mailonline – But those who wave good riddance to Dr Williams should be careful what they wish for. David Cameron will doubtless have asked his aides today whether there’s a candidate who would approve, or at least not unduly oppose, his thoughtless plans for ‘gay marriage’.
Mr Cameron has turned out to have hidden shallows since he became Prime Minister. His determination to play party politics with the institution and sacrament of marriage, just so that he can appear groovy to the Liberal Democrats, threatens to do more to undermine the established Church of England than anything Dr Williams’s detractors claim that he has done.
It will also put him on a collision course with the Queen, whom Mr Cameron may need reminding remains Supreme Governor of the Church of England. It could make conversations between Number 10 and the Palace about the next Archbishop interesting, to say the least.
Her Majesty is very attached to the Church of England. If Mr Cameron continues to play fast and loose with marriage – an institution over which he has no authority – and hopes to find a pliant placeman for the next Archbishop of Canterbury, he may find his recommended name returned to him from the Palace unapproved. For all his vapid talk with the Church, when it suits him, of a Big Society, Mr Cameron may yet find that English society isn’t big enough for the both of them.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-2116102/David-Cameron-set-fall-Queen-Archbishop-Canterbury.html