theology

Why has the LLF process reached the end of the line?

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Andrew Goddard writes: Three weeks ago, on 15th October, it was announced that “The House of Bishops has made a series of key decisions on the future direction of the Church of England’s Living in Love and Faith process”. To widespread surprise across the divisions the process has created in the church, this announcement looked like it amounted to “LLF RIP”, which to some was much too late a step after too much damage had already been done whereas to others—such as David Monteith, the Dean of Canterbury, Mark Oakley, the Dean of Southwark (text and video), and Charlie Bączyk-Bell—it felt like a major betrayal and a decision that the one crumb that had so far been dropped from the table should be accepted as sufficient by gay and lesbian Christians.

Rather than bringing to the February General Synod next year proposals to proceed with commending Prayers of Love and Faith (PLF) for use in “bespoke” services focussed on the same-sex couple, the bishops were once again reversing their plans and returning to using the Canon B2 process. This is almost certain to fail to get the necessary level of support (two-thirds in all 3 Houses) in General Synod.  

Rather than offering a timetable for allowing clergy to enter same-sex marriages, an outcome that many felt was imminent back in summer 2023, the bishops have simply laid out a range of options all requiring formal and lengthy legislative processes. 

Can pastoral ministry be re-united with theological thinking?

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One of the perennial features of theological study and preparation for Christian ministry has been the yawning chasm between scholarship and church leadership over the last century or two. The evidence for this varies from the comment to young Christians: ‘Don’t study theology at university; you will lose your faith’, to a sense that theological … Continue Reading

Is the Archbishop of York right about migration?

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When bishops and archbishops speak about migration it always hits the headlines—and never ends well.  In 2016, Justin Welby got into trouble when he said that it was quite reasonable to ‘fear’ the consequences of mass migration. There is a tendency to say ‘those people are racist’, which is just outrageous, absolutely outrageous. But in … Continue Reading

Writing out the Bible by hand

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I was fascinating to learn, on social media and in personal conversation, that my friend and General Synod colleague Kate Wharton has for several years been writing out the Bible by hand in personal notebooks. So I asked her about the project. IP: What has this project involved? How much time has it taken so … Continue Reading

Ministry, power, and the Ascension

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James Cawdell writes: In today’s world, we often find ourselves caught between two cultural poles when it comes to power: one that celebrates dominance and control (often caricatured as the ‘red pill’ mindset); and another that views all power as inherently oppressive, associated with so-called ‘social Marxism’. Christianity, however, has never sat comfortably with either. … Continue Reading

Where is the cross and atonement found in the Book of Revelation?

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Any discussion of ‘the cross’ in the Book of Revelation immediately faces a substantial challenge: in contrast with almost every other book in the New Testament, it is barely mentioned at all overtly. Its solitary explicit appearance comes in an extended prophetic narrative in chapter 11: the bodies of the ‘two witnesses’ will ‘lie in … Continue Reading