by Francis Martin, Church Times
Reconsideration of rules preventing clergy from entering into same-sex marriage will also be subject to a further process, the Bishops decide
APPROVAL for stand-alone services of blessing for same-sex couples and the reconsideration of rules that bar the clergy from entering into same-sex marriage will be subject to further synodical processes, the House of Bishops has decided.
The House of Bishops made a series of decisions on the Living in Love and Faith (LLF) process at a residential meeting at the beginning of last week.
The outcome of the meeting was announced on Wednesday afternoon, after details were leaked to the press.
The introduction of stand-alone or “bespoke” services of Prayers of Love and Faith (PLF) will now be subject to a process under Canon B2, which requires a two-thirds majority in all three Houses of the General Synod. On the basis of previous votes, this seems likely to forestall their introduction.
In November 2023, an amendment calling on the Bishops to consider a trial period for stand-alone services was carried by the Synod, albeit narrowly (News, 15 November). However, no such trial has taken place.
At their meeting last week, the Bishops also decided that there should be no immediate change to the current rules that bar the clergy from being in same-sex civil marriages.
Any change to the rules is now expected to be contingent on the Synod’s, and subsequently Parliament’s, approval of a Measure and an amending Canon, both of which require simple majorities in all three Houses of the Synod, a Church House briefing note to editors says.
An alternative course of action that was discussed, but rejected, and outlined in a recent paper prepared by the House of Bishops’ Faith and Order Commission (FAOC), is what is described as the “relaxation of discipline”.
“In this scenario, diocesan bishops, as a group or by individual discretion, would ordain and (re)license people in same-sex civil marriages despite the tension this would create between doctrine and discipline,” the paper, which has not yet been published, but has been seen by the Church Times, states.
Read also: Church of England bishops halt plans for blessing services for gay couples, by Kaya Burgess, The Times
CofE Bishops row back on approving same-sex blessings in church by Donna Birrell, Premier