The Mullallyfication of the Church of England
by Jules Gomes:
Why was Sarah Mullally chosen to be Bishop of London? This position of pre-eminence naturally cries out for a distinguished priest who is phenomenally gifted or has made a remarkable contribution to church and society.
A few names who would qualify for the position flit across my mind. How about Michael Nazir-Ali, former bishop of Rochester, Islamic scholar fluent in Urdu, Arabic and Persian and champion of persecuted Christians in Islamic countries? Nazir-Ali is a potential dynamo for gospel engagement with the large Muslim population of Londonistan.
How about Nicky Gumbel, pioneer of Alpha, a tool that has been used for evangelism across the world? I am not a fan of Alpha. But Gumbel’s church has grown to one of the largest in London, with a vision for planting new churches.
How about Alastair McGrath, Andreas Idreos Professor of Science and Religion at Oxford University? McGrath is scientist and theologian, has his first doctorate in molecular biophysics and two further doctorates in theology. An atheist who became a Christian, McGrath is a stellar public intellectual and apologist. His rebuttals of Richard Dawkins make the Oxford atheist look like the classroom dunce.
How about Giles Fraser, spitting liberal, Marxist radical, pro-gay, doctorate on Nietzsche and long-time columnist in The Guardian? As far as the east is from the west, so is my theology and politics from Giles Fraser’s, but the ‘Loose Cannon’ and Brexiteer has brains and balls and blasts his way into the marketplace of ideas.
So what are Mother Mullally’s towering achievements and phenomenal gifts that qualify her to be appointed to the third most important bishopric in England? Mullally’s crowning glory is that she is a feminist and so ‘necessarily subversive’ as she portrays herself in her debut sermon.
Feminism is subversive? Is the new Bishop of London so out of touch with cultural criticism that she doesn’t even know that feminism has been part of the dominant orthodoxy for ages? Feminism in the West is as subversive as environmentalists hugging trees and snowflakes cuddling teddy bears.
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