Church of England bishops affirm orthodox marriage

Critics on both sides of the theological divide regarding sex and marriage are criticizing a Church of England House of Bishops report reaffirming the doctrine of one-man-one-woman marriage. The bishops will present the non-binding report to the General Synod next month.

Gay rights advocates called the document a “betrayal” and a threat to the mental and physical well-being of gays and lesbians. Conservatives said the document is ambiguous, leaving the door open for future progressive changes. Bishops issued the report Jan. 27 following a series of private meetings and a two-year public discussion held throughout England’s dioceses.

Potential pushback from stakeholders on both sides of the debate threaten calls for unity within the Church of England, the seat of the global Anglican Communion.

“We know that this report may prove challenging or difficult reading,” the bishops wrote in the report’s opening statement. “We are confident, however, that the commitment that has been shown to listening to one another … will have helped prepare us all as members of Synod to address together the challenges we face as a part of the One Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.”

LGBT advocates like Jayne Ozanne, a member of the General Synod and campaigner for LGBT inclusion in church life, said the bishops failed to “hear the cries of faithful LGBTI+ people.”

“Teaching that being in a loving, faithful same-sex relationship is sinful is not only in my mind unbiblical, it creates untold spiritual and emotional damage,” she wrote.

But nowhere in the 20-page document do the bishops refer to gay and lesbian sexual relationships as “sin” or even hint that such relationships are outside God’s design. Instead, the report repeatedly calls for the establishment of a “fresh tone and culture of welcome and support for lesbian and gay people, for those who experience same-sex attraction.”

The bishops did not make changes to church prayer or liturgy to include same-sex marriage but did recommend the creation of a new “Teaching Document” on marriage and relationships to replace or expand existing documents drafted in 1991 and 1999.

They also called for new guidance “about the nature of questions put to ordinands and clergy about their lifestyles.” They want to end “unhelpful” questioning that singled out sexual conduct “from the wider requirements on clergy and ordinands concerning the ordering of their lives.”

Critics called the new questioning guidance a formalization of “Don’t ask, don’t tell.”

“We do not have confidence that this document will guarantee the maintenance of orthodoxy within the Church of England for the future,” wrote members of the conservative Global Anglican Future Conference United Kingdom (GAFCON UK). “We need to express our serious reservations about the many ambiguities in the text relating to how we as Anglicans understand truth and goodness, sin and salvation, and how we should carry out pastoral and liturgical practice.”

Rev. Andrew Symes, Anglican Mainstream executive secretary, told me most Biblically orthodox church members will welcome the report’s maintenance of the status quo. But others share his fear about a softening toward flawed theology. Pushback from LGBT advocates in the pews and pulpit could petition Parliament to force the Church of England to subjugate itself to British law, which affirms same-sex marriage, Symes warned.

But a minority within the LGBT minority thanked the bishops for not “abandoning” them. Ed Shaw, a same-sex attracted, celibate pastor and member of the General Synod, had feared a shift in doctrine that would dismiss Biblical sexual ethics and his commitment to them.

“We’re also keen to partner with the Church of England in drawing up teaching documents that communicate and apply Christian sexual ethics in a way that connects with our contemporary society,” said Shaw. “Today’s report highlights the need for this and anyone working with younger generations will know of our desperate need to communicate a better story when it comes to God, sex, and human flourishing.”