Church to decide if women can become bishops

Apr 2 2008 by David Williamson, Western Mail

THE governing body of the Church in Wales will today gather in Lampeter to decide whether or not to allow women priests to become bishops.

Opponents demand the appointment of a male bishop who will minister to parishes that decide they cannot accept the leadership of a woman.

A Select Committee has tabled amendments guaranteeing that no one who refuses to accept the authority of a woman bishop will face a disciplinary panel.

The Bill to admit women to the episcopate has been proposed by the six diocesan bishops of the church. If it is passed it will become effective immediately.

For this to happen it must receive the backing of two-thirds of each of the three sections of the Governing Body – the House of Clergy, the House of Laity and the House of Bishops. The Bill will be introduced at 2pm and the debate may continue tomorrow.

The Rev Alan Rabjohns, vicar of St Saviour’s in Splott, Cardiff, last year gathered 101 signatures of clergy who said they could not accept women bishops.

He is pinning his hopes on amendments which would ensure that clergy and laity would not have to submit to a woman’s leadership if their consciences did not permit them to do so.

Yesterday, he said, “I think the main argument is whether we get provision or not. We have put in an amendment which firms up the provision which was promised.

“While that’s far from ideal I think it would make it just about possible for us to stay.”

Mr Rabjohns said that while supporters of women in the episcopate championed inclusion, this tolerance had to extend to those who did not share their views.

Mr Rabjohns has not decided what he will do if the amendments are rejected. He is not a member of the governing body and said he would spend today in prayer.

Among the church’s foremost supporters of women bishops is Archbishop of Wales Barry Morgan. He has warned against providing arrangements for dissenters which would in his opinion institutionalise schism.

Today’s debate will be watched with interest by the Church of England, where supporters of women in the episcopate want to see the ban on female leadership ended by 2010.

The Rev George Curry of the conservative group Church Society said the Church in Wales would face decline if it appointed women leaders. He said, “The long, tall and short of it is it will not enjoy the blessing of God because one is not being faithful to Him.”

Mr Curry said liberal Anglicans had fought a long campaign to shape the culture of the Church.

He said, “The conservative element has perhaps not been as ardent in its stand for what it believes the Bible teaches about the running of the Church. People have been too prepared to be pushed to one side.

“What the liberals have done is they have chewed and chewed away at getting what they want, which is the transformation of the Church into a liberal body and they are just not giving up.”

However, he played down the likelihood of an exodus of conservatives from the denomination.

He said, “There is no desire to run off and create a new body.”

The Rev Giles Goddard, a leading supporter of women bishops in the Church of England and chair of the Inclusive Church group, praised the Church in Wales. He said, “We very much hope it goes through. It would set an example we hope to follow quite quickly.”

Mr Goddard hopes the conservatives and liberals will be able to remain in the one church.

He said, “We’ve disagreed on things firmly before but ended up in agreement after a few years and I very much hope that will happen this time.”