Bishops sans frontières
by David Pocklington, Law & Religion UK:
On Sunday 14 May, the document Consecration of New Style Bishops – Q&A was handed out at Jesmond Parish Church. It explained the rationale behind the episcopal consecration of its curate, the Revd Jonathan Pryke and the perceived need for “New Style Bishops” operating within a non-diocesan remit. Although legal issues were not addressed in the document, it provides a framework within which these issues may be discussed and it also raises questions concerning the development of this initiative within GAFCON, GAFCON-UK and AMiE.
Background
As we noted in our round-up on 14 May, the Q&A document states inter alia [emphasis added]:
“such [New Style] bishops need to be faithful to 1) the biblical miracles of the virginal conception of Jesus and his Resurrection and empty tomb; 2) the biblical ethic that sex should be reserved for lifelong heterosexual monogamous marriage; and 3) the biblical principle that means bishops should be male – all issues in the North East in recent years”.
[…]
“the aim is not to create a new denomination. No! This is one small but necessary step on behalf of faithful Church of England ministers and congregations nationwide in our mission to the nation. This is not a step of ‘leaving the Church of England’. It is the theologically liberal bishops and clergy that have ‘left the Church of England’ doctrinally. This is a step to preserve the Church of England’s heritage and mission which we have received”.
It appears, therefore, that the intention is for “New Style bishops” to work within the Church of England structure through the ordination of male, undivorced, heterosexual clergy. What follows is an attempt to address both the legality of the consecration and the subsequent activities of the “New Style bishops” – as well as the issue of canonical obedience which is common to both of those.
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