My goodness, it has been a busy week for those concerned over the issue of gay leaders in the churches.
Monday saw the Church of Scotland making its welcome but tentative steps forward. Today it is the leaking from beyond the grave of an astonishing memorandum from the late Colin Slee, recently Dean of Southwark.
The C of S came out of Monday with its integrity very much intact. Indeed, there was a great deal of dignity, tact and care on display for all the world to see. However, the C of E does not come out of today’s revelations with nearly so much distinction. Just the opposite in fact and the two archbishops seem to have sunk even lower in their own mire than hitherto seemed possible.
Here’s today’s story – and it is a great coup for Andrew Brown at the Guardian. The Guardian did not cover itself with glory in covering the C of S on Monday, but today’s revelations are fairly significant.
The story comes from a leaked memo which was written by Colin Slee before he recently died. In an astonishing j’accuse from beyond the grave, his bitter disappointment in his near ecclesiastical neighbour along the Thames, Rowan Williams is laid bare. It is a description of hideous bad behaviour as a new bishop was chosen for the Diocese of Southwark last year. There were stories in the press at the time suggesting that Jeffrey John’s name was considered but rejected. The leaked memo (which has a kind of a gothic intensity to it) appears to show just how desperate the Archbishops in England were not to have either a gay man (Jeffrey John) or someone who had been married to a divorcee (Nicholas Holtham) as the new Bishop of Southwark.
Reading through Andrew Brown’s report of Archbishop Rowan and Archbishop John Sentamu’s behaviour one can but wonder what the American Church is to make of all this. Or any of us outside England for that matter. The Archbishop has interfered in the appointment processes of Anglican bishops far across the world and far beyond the bounds of any jurisdiction that he possesses. He has misused bonds of affection. It feels as though he has betrayed those who once would have been his greatest defenders.
Whilst good people have been made to abide by discriminatory “moratoria” against the nomination of gay candidates for the Episcopate, Rowan Williams appears to behave in his own processes in ways that are being described as those of the bully. Heaven knows, the American church followed due process in electing their bishops. Don’t they have a right to think that those in the Church of England will try to do the same?
Of course, this leak is one bit of paper amongst many. No doubt there will be others who may see things differently and from a more nuanced perspective. Let them speak and say their piece. Part of the problem in all this is the selection of bishops behind closed doors.
Notwithstanding that, I know that Colin Slee was a good man. His words from beyond the grave point towards an increasing feeling that there is a strong odour surrounding Rowan Williams’s ministry as Archbishop of Canterbury. And it is not the odour of righteousness.
Oh dear what a mess! And to think all this has happened just because the church decided to start ordaining the ladies.
(Better get down behind the parapet!)
I stand by your comments Kevin. AC is a big boy, if he can’t take the heat….. As a member of TEC I can tell you that our house of bishops got a first hand task of his rudeness and arrogance a few years back. I suppose that keeping with Anglician tradition, I have no right to complain about how the C of E elects it bishops, as long as they don’t interfere with the way TEC elects bishops. Maybe I am just to Amercian, but the whole election of bishops in C E does seems a bit medival. I have a priest friend from England that told me once, most bishops are pulled from the aristocracy. The average non-churched English person is just so turned off by this kind of thing.
No, it has happened, not because of women in the priesthood, or as Bishops, or because of gays in those roles either – it has happened because the archbishops are holding to a top-down governing style. ‘We know best, so you, bishops, priests, deacons and MOST ESPECIALLY laity will sit down and shut up and do as you are told.’
Sure very duff decisions can be made by ANY style of government. But this kind of bullying is a feature of a particular kind of top down model.
Not at all, Rosemary – they simply wouldn’t get away with it. After all both Archbishops were voted down at a recent General Synod. Moreover, there are two sides to every story – as I’m sure there is in this case. Colin Slee obviously wrote his memorandum when he was very upset at his friend’s possible preferment being sidelined. So I believe Kelvin’s previous comment is apposite:
‘Of course, this leak is one bit of paper amongst many. No doubt there will be others who may see things differently and from a more nuanced perspective.’
I’m not an Episcopalian (yet!) tho watch the goings on in the Church with interest. All I can say is that the Archbishops of Canterbury and York seem to be behaving here with the same arrogance, conceith and bully-boy tactics that the Bishops of the Roman Church are so expert in. Maybe they should both just join the Ordinatiate and leave us all in peace to get on with life.
Seems that even Rowan Williams and John Sentamu are human too! Maybe they should be pondering “let he who is without sin cast the first stone”on the issue of sexuality…..
If we have heard disturbing words from “beyond the grave” the following words this side of the grave “there is a strong odour surrounding Rowan Williams’s ministry as Archbishop of Canterbury. And it is not the odour of righteousness” are not uniquely applicable to poor Rowan!!