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Andrew Goddard writes: The process of commendation of liturgy does not give any legal status to what is commended, and in the debates about the Prayers of Love and Faith (PLF) it has been claimed that law and doctrine are not being changed. To commend the Prayers of Love and Faith is thus to claim … Continue Reading
Andrew Goddard writes: Yesterday’s debate at Synod on LLF/PLF raises some important and potential serious issues. These include: The bishops’ refusal to give Synod advice from the Legal Office breaks with precedents The Bishop of London’s statement suggested members had the foundation of the theological and legal basis in GS 2328 but there is a … Continue Reading
Andrew Goddard writes: What follows explores ten questions relating to the theological rationale that has been offered for the proposed Prayers of Love and Faith (PLF) in Annex H of GS 2328. It argues that a theological rationale needs to state and justify any theological changes from past teaching and show that there is an … Continue Reading
There was a small social media storm last week when the newish group ‘Inclusive Evangelicals’ issued a letter, with 600 signatories, supporting progress in authorising prayers of blessing for same-sex couples, rooted in the conviction that ‘prayerful reading of scripture has led us to an inclusive position on same-sex relationships.’ I infer from this that … Continue Reading
Andrew Goddard writes: As people have responded to the latest proposals from the bishops (which I discussed here and here) it looks horribly like the whole LLF process in its current form is going to “all end in tears”. Summary This article seeks to explore why that is the case and why now nobody seems … Continue Reading
Andrew Goddard writes: Last Friday (October 20th), papers were released for the extra General Synod called for November 13th to 15th and focussed on Living in Love and Faith (LLF) and within that the proposed Prayers of Love and Faith (PLF). They provide much more detail than the brief press release issued after the House … Continue Reading
Andrew Goddard writes: The House of Bishops met on Monday October 9th and in the early evening a press release appeared which set out some of their decisions. One of the key questions has been by which canonical route the Prayers of Love and Faith (PLF) will be introduced into the church. The short summary is that … Continue Reading
There was a flurry of both despair and excitement earlier this week, when Pope Francis answered questions raised by a group of five cardinals on a series of questions—about the nature of God’s revelation, the possibility of the ordination of women, the role and authority of bishops in relation to the pope, the relation of … Continue Reading
For those engaged in end-times speculation, whether provoked by the Covid-19 pandemic, global warming, or war in Ukraine, there has been another rash of speculation about the identity of the Antichrist—that end times personal figure who is now somewhere secretly in the world but who will very soon be revealed. (It is worth noting, for … Continue Reading
Andrew Goddard writes: This painful and contested situation cannot continue, for the sake of the proclamation of the Gospel in England and our own integrity and peace as a Church. These words particularly struck me in a surprisingly un-publicised but important public letter on the LLF process that was released last week. It came from … Continue Reading
Andrew Goddard writes: Twenty years ago, Archbishop Rowan began his presidential address to the July 2003 York General Synod by asking “Does the Church of England exist?”. He replied that “there are several different ‘Churches of England’” and we need “to find out what it is that makes these diverse ‘churches’ one” because “if we can’t … Continue Reading
Ian Paul: theologian, author, speaker, academic consultant. Adjunct Professor, Fuller Theological Seminary; Associate Minister, St Nic's, Nottingham; Managing Editor, Grove Books; member of General Synod. Mac user; chocoholic. Tweets at @psephizo
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