What is in Kelvin's Head?

  • The Best Questions in the World

    We offer a course at St Mary’s every now and then called the God Factor. You may have heard me mention it. It works like lots of church courses in that folk gather around food and have a conversation. In our case we gather around the best pizzas in town which come from just across the road and most of the courses have chosen to meet on a Sunday lunchtime.

    However, the God Factor is different from a lot of courses that churches run because I can’t tell you what will happen exactly from one course to the next. I can’t give you the book. I can’t give you a plan for what those on the God Factor will all learn. Why so? Well, because the participants set the agenda. The first meeting is all about collecting questions from the group. Those questions are then grouped and tackled by the group over about eight weeks. The idea is that they get to use those running the course (clergy and laity) as a resource to try to find answers to the questions that have been logged at the beginning.

    For those who want a bit of pedagogy, this arises out of a situation where the Vice Provost is into Paulo Freire and the Provost is known to read Ivan Illich in the bath, but let us not be too technical and get too distracted by methodoloty right now. Because the exciting thing is that we’ve just got the questions for the course that is beginning at the moment.

    I think these are the best questions in the world to get a group to try to answer. See what you think below. Oh, and if you want to join in with this course and engage in trying to find the answers to these then get in touch with the Vice Provost using this contact form.

    The Questions – God Factor – March 2014

    Bible

    • Is it OK to disagree with some bits of the Bible?
    • Do I have to believe everything in the Bible?
    • What is the best way to read the Bible?
    • If the Bible was written in approximately 400 AD, how accurate is it?
    • Why are only some Gospels used today?

    Church and churches

    • How does the Scottish Episcopal Church choose its clergy?
    • Who are Episcopalians and how do they differ from Catholics and other Protestants?
    • What is the Church for? Couldn’t we do without it?
    • Why are there so many different denominations?
    • So few people go to church these days; will it change or simply die out?

    Doctrine

    • Is God male or female? Black, Chinese, White?
    • How will I know that God has accepted me? Forgiven me?
    • Can you lose your faith, find it and lose it again in your one lifetime?
    • Is there such a thing as condemnation?
    • Is ‘God’ a male?
    • Reincarnation – does it exist?
    • Do you think suicide is a coward’s way out?
    • Spiritual ‘dry spells’ – what to do during them.
    • What ‘sins’ cannot be forgiven?
    • How do we define sin?
    • Is there an afterlife? If so, what does it look like?
    • Is there a hell?

    Ethics

    • Why is the Church obsessed with sex?
    • Why does a message of peace and love end up causing war, suicide bombings and so much hatred?
    • Why so many different rules and regulations, e.g. on birth control and same sex marriage?
    • The Vatican = corruption? Wealth? I struggle with their beliefs – no birth control, third world women dying etc.
    • Was there any truth in the Da Vinci Code book?
    • Why do the different denominations of the Church always seem to be at odds with each other?
    • Is faith just for sad people and those who need a crutch?
    • Why are so many religions intolerant of different people, e.g. gay people, and contraception?
    • Should the Church be involved in politics?

    God and Jesus

    • Is Jesus God or just a way to God?
    • Why did Jesus allow himself to be crucified?
    • Will Jesus return?
    • Was Jesus God or human?
    • Does God exist?
    • Why does God not intervene on issues of poverty/hunger etc?
    • What does God look like/feel like?
    • Was Mary really a virgin when pregnant?

    Other faiths/religions

    • Why is Christianity different to other faiths?
    • Why are there so many different religions?
    • Why has religion caused so many wars?
    • Why is the Jewish religion so feared? Hated?
    • How should we respond to people of different faiths?
    • Relationship between Christianity and other faiths.
    • Is the Christian faith the only way? What about good Buddhists, Muslims and Humanists?
    • Is war and bad weather judgement from God?

    Worship

    • How can I learn to pray?
    • When during services do people ‘cross’ themselves and why?
    • Would Scottish independence be good for the UK?
    • Does God really love everyone? What about those who reject him?
    • How does prayer work? Is there a right and a wrong way to pray?
    • Why does it feel so incredibly peaceful in a church?
    • Why is incense used?
    • Why is the Eucharist important?
    , ,

13 responses to “Peter Tatchell on Outing Bishops”

  1. Ann Avatar
    Ann

    I agree — as The Rt Rev. Barbara Harris says, “it is okay to be in the closet as long as you are not using it as a machine gun nest”

    Reply
  2. Erika Baker Avatar
    Erika Baker

    While the CoE policy is completely crazy and homophobic, it is consistent in itself.
    Gay sexual relationships are not permitted for clergy.
    So the official line is that all CP’s clergy follow this rule – and who knows, some may actually follow it! Stranger things have happened!

    But marriage is different because it is defined as a sexual relationship (and the Alice in Wonderland “I am not seeing reality” ignores marriages between people who cannot or do not want to have sex).
    And so no amount of looking elsewhere can distract from the fact that your married gay priest is not celibate.

    That’s the faultline.
    And outing non-married gay bishops, partnered or not, does not touch this.
    They can all to a man say that they are following church policy.

    Reply
    1. Stephen Peters Avatar
      Stephen Peters

      Yes, Erica. But somehow, and more hugely, no. That Gay Bishops hide and allow gay clergy to be demonised on any front, is just not on. Church Policy or no = They should be working to change this appalling policy, not supporting it to harm the lives of truly loving couples.

      Reply
    2. Rosemary Hannah Avatar
      Rosemary Hannah

      The whole insane situation is made more invidious by the fact that one of the arguments trotted out against marriage between people of the same gender is that they could not (in the eyes of some detractors) actually have sex. Sex was, to these people, certain acts and certain acts alone. I suspect the same arguments pertain in the HoB and that people in partnerships with another of their own gender can make what is, in the eyes of the HoB, a perfectly valid case they are not ‘having sex’ with their partner.

      The situation is nuts, perfectly nuts. The answer is for straight people, and for celibate people, who have the least to lose, to stand up, and shout. The higher up the ecclesiastical tree they are, the more important it is that they do this.

      Reply
  3. Richard Avatar
    Richard

    Both Erika and Stephen make fair points. As I see things, those who scramble for scripture to justify treating people as second class citizens in a way that trench troops scramble for the last round of ammunition as the “enemy” marches inexorably
    forward, will view outing as inflammatory.
    If anything, this could widen the schism. Could this fracture the C of E in a way that women’s rights threatened to? As the breath of equality, dignity and fairness dominates the secular world and is very much present in many hidden corners of the church, possibly so. It could certainly further damage the church’s membership.
    If these are possibilities then perhaps the church’s leaders might be forced to discuss this in the open should outing occur. I remain sceptical that fundamentalists will cast aside their theological guns as it were, but the church will be a healthier place for having open and honest debate and reflection- and action. I’d rather see a reduced sized church that is founded on fairness and honesty rather than a larger body that hides behind the armour of theological confusion and hypocrisy on this issue.
    I’m saddened to reflect that I don’t believe that the main church will countenance or confer equality and dignity. Whatever the cost. Hopefully, I might be wrong.

    Reply
  4. Dennis Avatar
    Dennis

    When you go outing an anti-equality CofE bishop be prepared for all sorts of ugly hate filled email. I saved a few of the nicer responses just because they were so amazingly horrible. A couple of emails were frightening and a right wing Anglican blog tracked down and posted my work contact information. Six and a half years later I still get sick at my stomach thinking about it. And honestly it has no impact on anyone other than the now out-of-the-closet bishop who will lie and deny deny deny. Do it but be prepared for an ugly situation on your hands.

    Reply
  5. James Byron Avatar
    James Byron

    What’s to be gained? The ’90s mass-outing did nothing to change the church’s homophobic trajectory, and I doubt a repeat would do an any better. Either the bishop will refuse to comment, and the story dies; or they admit it, and are forced to resign. It could backfire hugely, making the people doing the outing look vindictive. Many traditionalists would sympathize with the outed bishops.

    Besides, what makes people think there’s any gay English bishops to out? Everything I’ve seen to date has been rumor and innuendo, usually nudge-nudge comments about Anglo-Catholics with a love of white port and vestments.

    The problem is, at heart, economic: rich evangelical parishes could bankrupt the church overnight if they chose. A handful of bishops can’t change that. Instead, open evangelicals need to be convinced to change their minds. Any fight for equal rights that isn’t supported by people like Ian Paul, N.T. Wright, Graham Kings and Nicky Gumbel will go nowhere.

    Reply
  6. Peter Ould Avatar
    Peter Ould

    From the conservative side, if you’re going to out anybody, out them because they’re being hypocrites. There is nothing to be gained from outing men who have been sexually active in the past but are not any longer, or who have always been celibate. But if there are members of the House of Bishops who are sexually active with someone of the same sex, outing them is less to do with homosexuality and more to do with hypocrisy. It is unacceptable in any line of business to demand one thing of your staff and then to do the exact opposite yourself.

    Of course, what will happen in practice is that men will be named who are celibate, or who have repented of previous sexual activity and this will just backfire, because it will be seen to be vindictive and nothing more. As far as I know, there are no hypocrites in the House of Bishops on this issue, but please do correct me if you have any knowledge to the contrary.

    Reply
  7. Fr Steve Avatar
    Fr Steve

    It seems difficult to justify perpetrating one sin towards another on the basis of the fact they themselves have perpetrated an act of sin(hypocritical abuse of power). This doesn’t seem to me like the Jesus who stood before Pontius Pilate.
    We may ask ourselves what then do you do?….do we really gain anything by not just fighting sin with sin. But by promoting sin (outing)…for surely such it is! We do nothing to advance the cause of justice.

    Reply
  8. Kelvin Avatar
    Kelvin

    It is not my view that we can derive our ethics from scripture – for that reason, I’m a little hesitant about the comparison with Jesus standing before Pontius Pilate.

    There are quite a lot of examples, I think, when Jesus did speak directly about hypocrisy.

    There’s also Nathan the prophet confronting David over Bathsheba.

    None of these proves anything – scripture doesn’t prove an ethical decision to be right one way or another. It is worth noting though that scripture seems to me to be far from one-sided on this matter.

    Reply
  9. Fr Steve Avatar
    Fr Steve

    Was very mindful Kelvin of these examples when jesus was confrontationist…..but outing is just horrible

    Reply
    1. Kelvin Avatar
      Kelvin

      We are in a horrible situation. Yes.

      Reply
  10. Fr Steve Avatar
    Fr Steve

    I don’t actually agree with the statement “scripture doesn’t prove an ethical decision to be right one way or another”
    but do understand the complexity of: ‘that scripture seems to me to be far from one-sided on this matter.’
    At Mass yesterday (my first in my new parish: stmarymags125.blogspot.com.au)
    I was harangued by a parishioner who objected to the fact that I had told the congregation that ABM-A (Australian Church’s Missionary Agency) has launched a campaign for funds for Gaza
    She told me, as rightists do….that all Palestinians are wrong!….didn’t seem to know that most Anglicans in the Holy Lands are Arabs of Palestinian origin.
    She obviously hadn’t heard my first sermon …that catholic means universal and that our God & Jesus loves everyone! That is what ‘universal’ means.
    The Church is just awful…hypocritical yet loved by God…just as She loves those who are different from us.

    Reply

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