The perversion of Lambeth 1.10
by George Conger, Anglican Ink:
The Bishop of Gloucester, the Rt. Rev. Rachel Treweek, will preside at an “LGBTI Eucharist” on 15 Jan 2017, the diocesan chapter of Inclusive Church reports. “The Bishop of Gloucester will celebrate the Eucharist and spend time with group members,” the gay pressure group reports.
Will this be a violation of Lambeth 1.10? A plain reading of the document coupled with the original intention of the authors would say “yes”.
The presence of the Bishop of Chichester at a Brighton Gay Pride march and the Bishop of Salisbury at a similar affair, was raised in GAFCON-UK’s paper “The Church of England and Lambeth 1.10” released last week. They were cited as examples of the problematic stance of the church hierarchy on issues surrounding human sexuality — and as a violation of Lambeth 1.10.
The Bishop of Salisbury denounced GAFCON-UK’s criticism as “outrageous” and a perversion of the spirit of Lambeth 1.10. In a letter to the Church Times the Rt. Rev. Nicholas Holtam said he too had offered prayers at a Gay Pride parade, explaining: “The blessing of Gay Pride in Salisbury was a joyful celebration of a people who are part of our community and among the rich diversity of all God’s children. This is in keeping with Lambeth I.10, which calls us ‘to minister pastorally and sensitively to all irrespective of sexual orientation and to condemn irrational fear of homosexuals’.”
Bishop Holtam’s interpretation of Lambeth 1.10 and his advocacy for changing the church’s practices on same-sex marriage may have support among the liberal wing of the church, but it is foreign to the understanding of the authors of Lambeth 1.10, as I remember it.
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