A Spiritual Health Check for the Church of England

A Spiritual Health Check for the Church of England

In a heart-felt blog for ViaMedia the Revd Dr Charlie Bell writes of “a sense of almost total, paralysing powerlessness amongst ordinary churchgoers and clergy” in the Church of England. He proposes that “As a church, we need to commit ourselves to undertaking a serious spiritual health check.” Yesterday’s blog attempted to set out in some detail what the landscape looks like to me. When and where is such a radical movement going to start? Going public is the only way such a movement to persuade the Church of England to undertake a serious spiritual health check stands a chance of achieving anything.

The Safeguarding Crisis in the Church of England

The Safeguarding Crisis in the Church of England

We are living at a time of crisis, globally and individually. The crises are multiple: climate, ecosystem, political, economic, spiritual, religious, refugee, health, housing, pollution. Every member of the human race is at risk of being affected by and infected by this systemic state of crisis – emotionally, intellectually, physically and spiritually. In the Church of England, the drama last week about the sacking of the members of the Independent Safeguarding Group manifests the total mess that is safeguarding policy and practice in the Church of England. The Church is directly affected by the unhealthy magical thinking that is a normative part of today’s Christian teaching and thinking.

Loneliness, the climate crisis, mental health and human wellbeing

Loneliness, the climate crisis, mental health and human wellbeing

My experience of life today compared with forty years ago is that our way of being today is more alienated, lonely, crisis- and anxiety-ridden than it was when Capra wrote. I am affected by today’s culture as much as everyone else. I can remember how I felt forty years ago but it has become almost impossible for me to recover or return to that more contented mode of feeling.

The essence of the Christian message - the primacy of God’s unconditional, infinite, intimate love

The essence of the Christian message - the primacy of God’s unconditional, infinite, intimate love

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. 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.

"I have come that you may have life, life in all its fulness"

"I have come that you may have life, life in all its fulness"

Unless spiritually and mentally and conceptually we are drawn towards and become immersed in an open-minded, open-souled, open-hearted, unconditionally loving presence, the dream of God will not come to be. People will reject Christianity and walk away from the Church. They will find healing and truth wherever men and women recklessly, generously pour ointment on feet, where tears and love flow and the broken hearted are healed.

Abusive behaviour from General Synod CEEC conservative evangelical members

Abusive behaviour from General Synod CEEC conservative evangelical members

Perhaps not every member of CEEC and EGGS is as abusive and arrogant as Ian Paul and Sam Margrave, but they seem to do nothing about asserting a different Christian vision. I have been unable to settle all week. The sheer invasion of spaces that are in theory healthy spiritual Christian spaces for those following the path of Jesus towards a Kingdom of God in which justice and unconditional love, beauty and goodness are primary qualities is deeply disturbing. How is it that neither of these two men understand the damage they cause?

Agents of contamination and decomposition

Agents of contamination and decomposition

After the General Synod debate following completion of the Living in Love and Faith process I began to realise that I am being seen, that we progressives seeking justice and equality are seen, as agents contaminating the Church. I subsequently began to see that we are actually the active ingredients necessary to cleanse the Church from those advocating misogyny, homophobia, transphobia and racism, fuelling the systemic prejudice and abuse that contaminates the Christian Church.

GSFA and CEEC persecute LGBTQIA+ people who contaminate the Church

GSFA and CEEC persecute LGBTQIA+ people who contaminate the Church

The Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches issued a press statement on February 20, 2023 regarding the Church of England’s decision regarding the blessing of same-sex unions. The more the homophobic Anglican Primates, bishops and leaders pontificate about the un-Biblical horrors of equal marriage, the more LGBTQIA+ Africans are targeted within their churches and societies, abused from the pulpit, physically and emotionally attacked, denounced, humiliated, arrested, imprisoned and murdered. The GSFA leaders and their allies in other Provinces including England are directly responsible for this evil, wicked state of affairs. There is nothing in the Bible or in the Christian tradition of my youth on which prejudice against and abuse of LGBTQIA+ people can be justified.

Ian Paul's shocking view - allowing gay clergy to marry reminiscent of Nazi Germany

Ian Paul's shocking view - allowing gay clergy to marry reminiscent of Nazi Germany

The Rev Ian Paul, member of the Archbishops’ Council, General Synod, and a leading conservative voice told students at an Oxford Union debate on Thursday that allowing gay clergy to marry would amount to state interference in religion reminiscent of Nazi Germany. He provided the evidence that underpins my conclusion that there is no relationship between faith in the Mystery named God, a mystery manifest in the life and teaching of Jesus and experienced mystically in the essence and energy of unconditional, infinite, intimate love.