Traditionalists in the Church of England are contemplating their next move after the General Synod voted against making any formal provision for them when women bishops are ordained.Do they cross the Tiber or stay to fight on?
The Church of England has always prided itself on its inclusiveness and its ability to accommodate a wide range of often conflicting views under one big tent.
But for four days last weekend, the age-old policy failed when the General Synod met in the bleak concrete bowl of the University of York’s Central Hall to decide upon the ordination of women bishops.
The Archbishops of Canterbury and York wanted to make special provision for those members opposed to women bishops but were narrowly defeated. The failure of the measure suggests that Synod will only stretch so far and no further to accommodate minority groups.
Drs Rowan Williams and John Sentamu gambled that mainstream synod members would be reluctant to vote against them and that their intervention would help prevent the split in the Church they so desperately hoped to avoid. But this time things were different.
Huddled around tables after enjoying a generous dinner, or walking deep in conversation around the university grounds, these mainstream Anglicans, it was clear, were in defiant mood.
“The vast majority of us are in favour of women priests. You either have them or you don’t,” said one elderly lay member, adding, “We’re fed up with making allowances for the minority. The Church must move forward.”
The proposal from Drs Williams and Sentamu gained a majority of votes in the synod as a whole but failed because one of the three synod houses, the House of Clergy, defeated it by five votes.
The defeat is further evidence of Dr Williams’ increasingly vulnerable position after suggestions that he vetoed the appointment of the gay but celibate Dean of St Albans, Jeffrey John, as Bishop of Southwark.
The furore surrounding Dr John’s candidacy for the senior role reopened divisions within the Church over gay clergy at precisely the wrong time for Dr Williams, costing him precious votes in synod on the women bishops’ amendment, and weakening his control of the Church.
Following his defeat, the archbishop cut a slightly isolated figure, as he sat eating his lunch in deep conversation with no more than two people at a time – in contrast with the large groups of chattering attendees elsewhere in the dining hall.
From my conversations with clergy and lay members, it appears that Dr Williams retains the respect of a broad swathe of synod members – but there is no doubt their faith in his judgement has been shaken.
Most, however, recognise that his goal to maintain the unity of the Church has been made next to impossible.
One vicar from the West Country likened his position to that of a ship’s captain trying to keep his vessel afloat by plugging tiny leaks while “ignoring the gaping hole in its side”.
Synod’s eventual decision to pass the rest of the draft legislation on the ordination of women bishops virtually unamended is likely to be the final straw for conservative Anglo-Catholics and evangelicals who oppose women’s ordination.
Synod’s acceptance of a clause in the draft amendment that allows diocesan bishops discretion to negotiate local arrangements with parishes opposed to women bishops will have done little to soften the blow for these groups.
Anglo-Catholic priests and their congregations may now look to the offer from Pope Benedict of an ordinariate that will allow them to retain much of their Anglican patrimony if they are prepared to join the Catholic Church.
The Bishop of Fulham, John Broadhurst, chairman of the traditionalist Anglo-Catholic group Forward in Faith, described the synod’s decision as “devastating” and compared it to discovering “that your mother is not your mother. Like you have been deceived.”
He claimed that up to 1,000 clergy would now “seriously consider” joining the ordinariate and feared that the ordination of women bishops would seriously damage the cause of Christian unity.
“How does the Catholic Church continue an ecumenical debate with people who have so little regard for ecumenical traditions?” said Bishop Broadhurst, who also addressed the practical issues facing those priests who turn to Rome, such as their continued use of Anglican churches and other property, and he cast doubt over future cooperation between the Catholic Church and the Church of England.
Fr Jonathan Baker, principal of the Anglo-Catholic institution Pusey House in Oxford, agreed that the future for traditionalists within the Church of England had been made “desperately difficult”, but said those opting to join the ordinariate must do so “because that is what God wants them to do”, and not because of what happened at the synod.
Fellow Anglo-Catholic Martyn Jarrett, the Bishop of Beverley, was equally circumspect, maintaining that he and other traditionalists were still prepared to “fight on” to get the draft legislation rejected, and saying: “We are profoundly dissatisfied with the way things have gone so far … [but] I think most traditionalists remain committed Anglicans.”
Another senior Church of England cleric, who did not want to be named, told me he believed that those who turned to Rome would see their Anglican traditions diluted. He said that a lot of people would laugh at the idea of a distinctly Anglican body within the Roman Catholic Church, adding:
“Many of them have been using Catholic rites (illegally) anyway – so I would ask exactly what authentically Anglican aspects will they be taking with them. The only thing authentically Anglican would be their wives.”
Despite winning the vote on the archbishops’ amendment, one of the most striking aspects of this General Synod has been the absence of triumphalism among those who backed the plan and who can fairly be described as mainstream Anglicans. On the contrary, the most commonly used word by speakers on all sides of the debate was “sadness”.
There was sadness expressed that many Anglo-Catholics and conservative Evangelicals must now consider whether or not to remain within the Church of England, and sadness among those in favour of the draft legislation who felt they had to vote against the archbishops.
The Revd Rachel Weir, chairman of Women and the Church (Watch), which campaigns on behalf of women’s ministry, said the archbishops’ proposed amendment to the draft legislation would have diluted the powers of women bishops and undermined their ability to perform their duties.
Fellow Watch member Christina Rees said the archbishops’ failed amendment was contradictory to the spirit of the draft legislation.
“We either have women bishops equal to men, or we don’t – for the time being. As the established Church of England, we need to stay in touch with what is going on in society,” she said.
Ms Weir said that she hoped that the compromise clause agreed by Synod allowing local arrangements to be made for those parishes opposed to women bishops would be accepted by the dioceses.
But although she said she was relieved that the archbishops’ amendment was turned down by Synod, she believes there have been “no winners or losers” at this synod.
In what appeared to be a tongue-in-cheek reference to the tensions at synod, the Archbishop of York, John Sentamu, introduced a debate on the size and composition of church bodies by reminding those in attendance that the measure’s schedule number (1793) was a particularly bloody year during the French Revolution.
As the archbishop later suggested, Anglicans are more used to spilling ink than blood, but he and others in the Church of England will pray that the issue of women bishops and the simmering divisions over homosexual clergy can be resolved without the need for further damaging upheaval.
The draft legislation will now be sent to the Church of England’s 44 dioceses for evaluation before returning to the synod in 2012, where it needs to receive a two-thirds majority before being sent for Parliamentary Approval and Royal Assent.
While some Anglo-Catholics have had enough and are preparing to leave what they see as a sinking ship, a large number are vowing to continue the battle to overturn the plan – starting with the elections for the next synod, which begin in September.
Last weekend’s synod marked a significant milestone on the road to women bishops but the journey is far from over.
SIC: TabletUK