Wycliffe Hall Principal Writes “to put the record straight”
By David Ould, Stand Firm:
As the disagreement over the invitation to Martin Percy, renowned proponent of same-sex marriage in the Church of England, to preach at Wycliffe Hall chapel continues to grow, thePrincipal of Wycliffe Hall, Michael Lloyd, has written a letter which I understand has been or will shortly be sent out,
I am writing to the incumbents of churches which have sent students to Wycliffe over the past five years, and to others with whom we have close links. Over the last couple of weeks, there has been a lot of comment on blogs and Facebook about the invitation to the Dean of Christ Church, Dr Martyn Percy, to preach in Wycliffe Hall Chapel. A lot of that comment has been ill-informed and, in particular, some of what I am reported to have said has been misquoted. So I wanted to put the record straight and reassure you that Wycliffe Hall and I continue to be committed to an Evangelical view of Scripture, and of doctrine and ethics; neither the Hall nor I has changed our doctrinal or moral position.
The original decision to invite Dean Percy was made with no agenda, and implies no endorsement of his recently-expressed views on the debate about human sexuality. Lest there be any misunderstanding, let me make it clear that I, personally, and Wycliffe Hall, corporately, stand full square behind the official teaching of the Church of England and the Anglican Communion, as expressed in Issues in Human Sexuality and Lambeth 1.10. I have been misquoted as saying that we can ‘agree to disagree’ on the issue of homosexuality. I never said that. What I did say, when speaking to our students, was two things: that I do realise that some will, in all good conscience, disagree with my decision not to un-invite Dean Percy, and that it is vital that Wycliffe should hold together in love, on the basis of our common commitment to Christ.
I recognise the extreme sensitivity of this area, and have listened carefully to the concerns that have been expressed. If you have any further anxieties, or if there is anything else about which you would like to express your views to me, I would be happy to talk with you directly. If you call my PA, [redacted], she will fix a time for a telephone conversation.
I deeply regret any confusion that has been caused, and would hugely value your prayers for the Hall and for me.
With many thanks for reading this,
and with very best wishes,
The letter comes at the end of a difficult week for Wycliffe Hall. The invitation of Percy has caused a great deal of disquiet. The entire college community heard from the Principal on Monday and, as we reported then, there were some who were in tears at what they heard. TheHall Council then met on Wednesday (for what I understand was a regularly scheduled meeting). That discussion was described to me as “tense” and we have not heard of any outcomes, although Lloyd’s letter will surely be taking the Council’s views into account.
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