The Church of England press release proclaimed Prayers for God’s blessing for same-sex couples take step forward after Synod debate.
The Church of England’s General Synod has welcomed proposals which would enable same-sex couples to come to church after a civil marriage or civil partnership to give thanks, dedicate their relationship to God and receive God’s blessing.
The Anglican
Communion News Service reported the event under the headline Church
of England Synod endorses bishop’s decision not to change doctrine of marriage.
The article points out
During the Synod debate, only one of the tabled amendments to the bishops’ proposal was passed: that the synod endorsed “the decision of the College and House of Bishops not to propose any change to the doctrine of marriage, and their intention that the final version of the Prayers of Love and Faith should not be contrary to or indicative of a departure from the doctrine of the Church of England”.
It also points
out that the two amendments urging the Synod to move towards acceptance of
same-sex marriage had both been rejected in all three houses.
All true as
far as it goes, but perhaps neither is telling the true story. I was hoping for
generous orthodoxy to prevail and it might still do but things are not looking hopeful.
It would require greater transparency and integrity from the House of Bishops
than has been on display thus far.
The Church
of England appears to be split three ways. There are those who urge a change to
our doctrine of sex and marriage on the grounds that the received teaching is unloving
and harmful. There are those who feel compelled to resist such a move towards
(what they perceive to be) heterodoxy. And there are those who are torn in between
and just wish for the whole debate to go away.
And then
there are those who wield power, who hope they can hold everyone together by
offering prayers that can (a) be said not to be indicative of a departure from
the church’s doctrine of marriage, and (b) nevertheless be used to bless
same-sex couples in sexually active relationships and without regard for
whether the couple is in a civil partnership, in a civil marriage, or in a covenanted
friendship.
Those who
feel compelled to resist such a change are told that they do not have to use
these prayers. They only have to accept that those who do use them are faithful,
orthodox Christians too.
The first
group above is not altogether happy because it is clear that the Church of England
is still a long way from endorsing same-sex marriage.
The second
group could be happy if it could be convinced that what is on offer is not
indicative of a departure from the church’s doctrine. Alas, most in this group think it is and that saying otherwise is merely adding insult to
injury or lack of integrity to lack of faithfulness. What is asked of them is
nothing short of a redefinition of what constitutes orthodoxy. This is why it’s
a big deal.
The third group has no reason to be happy. The one thing that seems certain in all the confusion is that this debate will not go away and that the divisions within the Church of England will deepen and solidify.
The Archbishops urge that it is our Christian duty to stick together and show the world that disagreements do not need to lead to walking apart. But you cannot walk together in different directions. There are disagreements with which one can live and others which must divide us. Tolerating injustice is not loving, neither is tolerating heterodoxy. For as long as the Bishops do not succeed in convincing the one group that refusing same-sex marriage is not unjust and the other that the prayers of blessing on offer are not heterodox, the appeal to unity is just so much whitewash. Painting over harmless hairline cracks in the wall is one thing, covering up structural damage with a bit of paint is another.
For Ian Paul's take on what happened see What exactly happened at Synod on the Prayers for Love and Faith? This also includes links to comments on the legality of what the Bishops offered by Philip Jones and by a group of lawyers who are mostly members of General Synod.
UPDATE: Christopher Cocksworth, who led the LLF process, offers his reflections here.
