Just when you thought the beleaguered Church of England couldn't possibly decrease its stock any further, a miracle happens.
Just 10 days after the new Archbishop of Canterbury spoke of his aversion "to the language of exclusion", members of the General Synod, the governing body over which Justin Welby now presides, failed to carry a motion on as simple premise as: Let's treat everyone the same.
Instead, having failed to gain a two-thirds majority in favour of ordaining female bishops, the CofE remains officially an organisation that sanctions discrimination against half the population.
Yes - the verdict was close, with the bishops and a clergy voting overwhelmingly in favour of the motion and only the house of Laity voting against.
But that is no mitigation against the fact that legislation was not passed on a principle as basic as equal rights for women - the unwillingness of provincial Anglicans to compromise exposing a huge division between the Bishops and the Clergy, and the Church's representatives from the diocese.
Opponents of female ordination will no doubt see this as a victory for Christian traditionalism. That's no doubt true, but it's also a victory for bigotry, intolerance and small-mindedness, casting aside a much-needed opportunity to drag the 500-year-old monolith a little closer to the modern world.
Instead, the verdict exposes the CofE for exactly what it is - a lumbering, divided, grotesque whose lay members would prefer to see it wither away rather than make any accommodation with progress.
Perhaps nothing could have stopped the decline of the Church; there was no future salvation for the CofE. However, by retaining its adherence to barbaric Bronze Age doctrines that demote women to second-class citizens, the emasculation is nearly complete.
Yes - the Church of Henry has been expiring slowly and in agony for many years, but by voting against female ordination, Tuesday's ballot may well have killed it off, pushing the spear into the side of the half dead institution as it hung limply from its cross.
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Ordination of women - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Church of England to vote on women bishops - World News
Anglicans ordain Africa's first woman bishop | The Raw Story
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Contrary, it's focused on spiritual matters and any related debate is conducted within an established framework of doctrinal beliefs and traditional practice.
The fact that a feminist group within the CoE is seeking opportunities for promotion and power, is not an activity you should necessarily be condoning. At least not until you have viewed the issue objectively, which according to your article & anti-CoE stance, it seems not to be the case!
I thought the arguments made were from omission - that the bible neglected to mention that women could be priests rather than it explicitly stated they could not be. It also talks of a time with no church, and I wasn't aware it talked about a formal institution such as our modern churches at all. The "Example of Jesus" mentioned in the previous post would seem a lot more "small group" ministry.
seems kind of weird...
...I'm sorry, but isn't that fairly redundant? Christian Traditionalism -is- Bigotry, Intolerance and small-mindedness. It's only recently, within the last century, that -any- churches started the long climb out of the dark ages.
But then we are talking about the political classes, destroy anything as long as an election's not near.
I became a staunch 'atheist' after the death of a relative when I was 19, maybe a knee jerk reaction or maybe I finally was enlightened on the truth that religion is nothing more than a fairy story. The thing is religion does teach us some good things, tolerance the main one but I think that most religions are not tolerant.
I could now read bible stories as I would Harry Potter no more than fiction, there is no definitive evidence of god and everything else just as there is no evidence that Hogwarts is real. My point somewhat rather rambled is that religion has no place in society. It can be a personal choice but really clergy and spiritual leaders have no place in Government.
If the Church wishes to shape policy it must act within it's laws with regard to equality in employment.
I am in Australia, maybe my picture from so far away is blurred. Please forgive me, if I am working with outdated information.
Many people today seem to have expected the 'establishment' C of E to adopt modern secular traditions & forget about what the standards are of the Almighty God, Creator, Saviour, Father & Lord whom the Church lives for as a worldwide community.
The apparent Biblical teaching on the role of women in the Church is complex, as Jesus' friends included women (but not as apostles, possibly for a reason then), St Paul's letters say there's no Jew nor Gentile, male nor female, etc. in the church, but tell some churches that their women should have a quiet place in services. He wrote that the eye, hand, etc. had different roles in the body but were equally important - emphasizing equal status but different roles in the church. Women like Priscilla had high roles, & some received spiritual gifts of teaching & prophecy. These were pointed out by the late John Stott in 1984, who believed Scripture pointed to great women teachers but wasn’t sure about their place in top authority (e.g. as bishops).
I'm saddened but not surprised if C of E loses 'credibility' in a nation that seems to "not think it worth while to retain the knowledge of God…" (Rom. 1:28), which I think later verses suggest can lead to lots of modern normal UK behavioural trends. If Christians seem 'aliens' (1 Pet 2:11), maybe it's time for a phase of torture like Christians endured in China for decades.
He trounces on traditionalists by lumping all traditionalists...Opponents of female ordination will no doubt see this as a victory for Christian traditionalism."
Then he goes on to (re-gur-itat-e the same ole nonsense when someone doesn't get their way..."victory for bigotry, intolerance and small-mindedness".
While I really do not care if women want to be clergy or not, it is ok by me, I still see this guy lumping all traditionalists in 1 group and labeling them with the same ole tired dogma that even the L-GbT community uses on anyone that doesn't bow down and worship at their feet.
It is important to remember that we are individuals and the Church of England is adhering to what they believe.
Today, the far left call anything they are against, small-mi-n-ded, hy-po-cri-tes, oh yeah...and b-ig-o-tr-y.
I think this person needs some perspective and stop calling names to people that have a belief system in place.
The laity have spoken and it is their church