Representatives of ten progressive organisations have been meeting on Zoom since the early days of the LLF process. We met this week to monitor developments since the February meeting of General Synod and the meeting of the College of Bishops on March 23, 2023.

The focus was inevitably on the three working groups and a steering group to oversee and coordinate their work. Each group will “be made up of bishops assisted by a group of advisers drawn from across the Church, both lay and ordained.” The proposed working groups will focus on:Pastoral Guidance – with responsibility for drafting new Pastoral Guidance.

Prayers of Love and Faith – to further refine the texts in the light of feedback from General Synod
Pastoral Reassurance – to examine what will be required to ensure freedom of conscience for clergy.
What happened to radical new Christian inclusion?

I reminded the group of the commitment by the Archbishops of Canterbury and York following the rejection of the House of Bishops’ proposals by General Synod in February 2017. Slightly edited, the Archbishops said: “No person is a problem, or an issue. We need a radical new Christian inclusion in the Church to be founded in scripture, in reason, in tradition, in theology and the Christian faith as the Church of England has received it based on good, healthy, flourishing relationships, and in a proper 21st century understanding of being human and of being sexual.”

One member of the group commented that at the time they thought this was a cynical proposal, designed to sound pro-LGBTQIA+ inclusive but in fact designed to avoid schism by pursuing “Christian inclusion”, this being the inclusion of all strands of Christian teaching and practice, pro- and anti-gay. It did indeed turn out to be a cynical ploy. The 2017 commitment made by the Archbishops to seek “a radical new Christian inclusion in the Church” has been abandoned. Despite Changing Attitude England repeatedly asking the Next Steps Group to clarify and define the content of “radical Christian inclusion”, they never did. There is no mention of radical inclusion now, and no commitment to no person being a problem. LGBTQIA+ people are still the problem – especially the reality that many lesbian and gay couples in the church are now in civil partnerships or married. The proposed Prayers of Love and Faith are cynically worded to ensure that the couple nor their marriage are never actually blessed.

The place of LGBTQIA+ people in the Church is still unresolved. We are certainly not being granted equality in relationships or ministry. We are being denied equality in marriage. Homophobia and transphobia (and misogyny) continue to be protected as legitimate ‘Biblical’ expressions of ‘orthodox’ Christian teaching and truth.

Disagreeing about our disagreements

In an SCM blog, Disagreeing about our Disagreements, Mark Vasey-Saunders reflected on the February Synod. He notes that the February 2017 Synod refused to take note of a strikingly similar set of House of Bishops proposals. He identified two rival narratives emerging as to what was decided at Synod and what response might be necessary. In her recent Shared Conversations blog, Revenge of the Sticky Notes, Helen King comments that “we seem to be regressing at the moment into precisely those caricatures of our fellow Christians which LLF was intended to move beyond.

‘Biblical orthodoxy’

A new category of Christian fundamentalism called ‘Biblical orthodoxy’ has come into being. It is characterised by what ‘traditional’ conservative evangelicals led by the Church of England Evangelical Council (CEEC) have come to define as their new, exclusive definition of Christian essentials. The essential that applies in this case is the one that states that marriage can only be between a man and a woman. Any person or group who dissents from their definition of Christian orthodoxy is defined as unorthodox, not to be recognised as fully Christian.

Tribes

Tribalism dominates the Church, from the loose tribalism of progressive, inclusive movements to the defensive tribalism of Conservative Evangelicals within the CEEC (and the same for Conservative Catholics in the Society of St Wilfred and St Hilda opposed to the ordination of women. One tribe is homophobic and transphobic, the other is misogynistic). The latter tribe already occupies a protected space within the Church. The aspirant CEEC tribe wishes to be granted the same formal protection. Both seek to defend themselves from what they perceive to be people who will contaminate their purity of faith.

The CEEC has issued a declaration setting out why they are compelled to resist any attempt to recognise and bless equal marriages. They will declare that any such action represents a departure from the faith which is revealed in the Holy Scriptures and set forth in the catholic creeds and to which the historic formularies of the Church of England bear witness. They will resist all attempts to introduce any of these changes. Their Christian identity depends on there being a Church free from the contamination of partnered and married same-sex couples. They want a Church defined by and characterised by prejudice, homophobia and the abuse that inevitably follows.

My conclusion, having been reading, thinking, processing, writing and struggling to make sense of my emotions for the past two months, is that we are confronted with a CEEC so hostile to the full inclusion of LGBTQIA+ people, so addicted to homophobia and transphobia, that it is no longer recognisable as characteristic of the teaching and ministry of Jesus.

Infected Church

We are all affected and infected by, to a greater of lesser degree, these seemingly impossible-to-resolve conflicts located within the very unhealthy twenty-first century constructs of Christianity. Today’s Church is a breeding ground for anxieties, uncertainties and insecurities and they affect pro-equality, pro-inclusion progressives as much as conservatives. None of us has begun to come to terms with the implications of God’s unconditionality in love.

We, the members of progressive groups, are being drawn the next stage of the House of Bishops’ process, the setting up of three groups. Of course we are; LGBTQIA+ people and allies want to know whether and how LGBTQIA+ representatives are going to be integral to each group. I want to achieve this, despite the fact that the bishops repeatedly ignored Changing Attitude England’s representations that LGBTQIA+ people should be included as members of the Next Steps Group.

Unconditional Love

My faith is also determined by what is revealed in Holy Scriptures, but my starting point is different from CEEC. My starting point is a Christian one - the life and teaching of Jesus as described in the Gospels.

I believe we have arrived at a moment when the essence of Christian teaching has to be reframed to emphasise the primacy of God’s unconditional, infinite, intimate love the Gospels reveal in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, rooted in his core message, his teaching, actions and wisdom.

There should be no place for homophobia, transphobia, misogyny, racism, prejudice and abuse in the Church of England. Prejudice and abuse are contrary to the teachings and practice of Jesus as described in the Gospels. God’s love is unconditional, infinite, and intimate.

To become involved in Changing Attitude England’s campaign to achieve a radical new Christian inclusion please join our Facebook group.