The Church of England has postponed debates on marriage and proposals to allow civil partnerships to be registered in churches.
The motions were due to be debated during a five day General Synod meeting in York, set to begin on Friday (5th July). They have now been postponed, allegedly to allow more time to consider the issue of women bishops.
Civil partnerships
Bishops are thought to be privately considering whether to introduce services of “thanksgiving and dedication” for same sex couples in civil partnerships.
Many Bishops have been officially opposed to same sex “marriage”, arguing that civil partnerships provide “equal” rights for same sex couples.
But this has led to questions over why the Church of England does not then provide services to recognise them.
Marriage motion
Marriage supporting members of Synod will be disappointed that debate on a motion reaffirming the “Christian doctrine of marriage”, tabled by Andrea Minichiello Williams, has been put off, especially in light of a recent statement by the Bishop of Leicester.
In his role as Convenor of the Bishops in the House of Lords, the Rt Rev Tim Stevens issued an official statement after the Lords voted through the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill, effectively signalling the end of the CofE’s official opposition to the Bill.
He said: “It is now the duty and responsibility of the Bishops who sit in the House of Lords to recognise the implications of this decision and to join with other members in the task of considering how this legislation can be put into better shape...”
“Baffling”
Andrea Minichiello Williams, CEO of Christian Concern and a member of General Synod, said:
“The decision to drop the debate on affirming the Christian doctrine of marriage is baffling. This issue has huge significance, both in terms of its prominence in Christian teaching and the wider current debate prompted by the same sex marriage Bill.
“This is the time for the Church to be speaking up and stating clearly what it believes about marriage based on the Bible and historic Christian teaching, not keeping quiet and hoping the issue goes away.”
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