The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, speaks during the debate on Women Bishops being held at the General Synod, Central Hall, York University, York, England, Monday July 7, 2008.
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Church of England Confirms Support for Women Bishops
Posted on Tue Jul 08 2008
By Jennifer Gold
Christian Post Correspondent
After lengthy debate, the Church of England’s General Synod voted on Monday to confirm its support for the ordination of women as bishops without offering much in the way of safeguards for objectors.
The Synod had already agreed to the ordination of women bishops in principle but was voting on Monday night on legislation to confirm the process towards the first ordinations as well as possible concessions for church members and clergy opposed to female bishops.
Much to the disappointment of the more traditional Anglicans, members rejected proposals to create new dioceses for objectors and to appoint “super bishops” who would have offered alternative care for opponents.
Synod members voted at the York meeting to instead implement a voluntary national code to accommodate objectors. Bishops voted 28 to 12, clergy by 124 to 44 and the laity by 111 to 68.
The idea of "super bishops" had enjoyed the support of the Archbishop of York, Dr. John Sentamu. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Rowan Williams, meanwhile stressed to the Synod his view that a “systematic marginalization” of Anglo-Catholics would be wrong. He was quoted by The Times as describing traditionalists as a “necessary abrasion.”
Adding that he does not want to limit the authority of women bishops, Williams said, "I am deeply unhappy with any scheme or any solution to this which ends up, as it were, structurally humiliating women who might be nominated," as reported by The Associated Press.
The vote casts a shadow of uncertainty over ongoing efforts between the Church of England and the Vatican to achieve “full visible unity.” On Tuesday, the Vatican condemned the Church of England's support for women to become bishops, noting it as a move breaking with tradition. Cardinal Walter Kasper, head of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity, said the decision will have consequences for dialogue which had so far been "fruitful."
Dialogue between the two church bodies has already been on the rocks because of concessions to homosexual clergy in parts of the worldwide Anglican Communion.
Church legislators will now get to work on drafting new legislation to turn the vote into reality, reports The Times. The ensuing document will be debated at next February’s Synod in London before being passed over to dioceses for approval. A final vote is not likely to be taken for another two to three years.
Women have been allowed to become priests since 1994, but they have not received the green light to become bishops in the church.
Vatican "regret" at Church of England vote
The Vatican has "regretfully" acknowledged a vote by the synod of the Church of England allowing the ordination of women as bishops.
The Church of England voted on July 7 to approve women bishops, sweeping aside a proposed compromise that would have provided a separate hierarchical structure for more conservative believers. Over 1,000 clerics of the Church of England have threatened to leave the Anglican communion if they are forced to acknowledge female bishops. Some Anglican bishops have reportedly spoken with Vatican officials about entering the Catholic Church.
In a statement released after the Anglican synod vote, the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity said that the Church of England was making "a break with the apostolic tradition maintained by all of the churches of the first millennium." That step, the statement continued, constitutes "a further obstacle to reconciliation between the Catholic Church and the Church of England."
Cardinal Walter Kasper, the president of the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity, had warned Anglican leaders that the approval of female bishops would jeopardize dialogue "which had up until now borne fruit," the Vatican statement noted.
Cardinal Kasper delivered that warning in June 2006, when he spoke to the bishops of the Church of England at the invitation of the Archbishop of Canterbury. The cardinal has been invited to address Anglican leaders once again when the Lambeth Conference convenes later this month.
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