E December 2012 I D S IN REVIEW IN Free In Review THE NATIONAL CHURCH INSTITUTIONS WORKING FOR YOU Supplement inside Bishop Justin Welby addresses a press conference at Lambeth Palace, at which his name emerged WELCOME to the latest edition of In as the new Review, a twice yearly newsletter from the National THE SUNDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2012 No: 6154 www.churchnewspaper.com PRICE £1.35 1,70j US$2.20 CHURCH OF ENGLAND THE ORIGINAL CHURCH NEWSPAPER ESTABLISHED IN 1828 NEWSPAPER Pressure mounts over women INFLUENTIAL VOICES are calling for the In reply to her speech, Sir Tony Baldry thing for the House of Commons to tell the the appointment of bishops, a right given Church of England to revisit the issue of likened the attitude to those opposed to established Church how to run itself’. up by Gordon Brown when he was Prime women bishops before a new synod is women bishops in the General Synod to Apart from Mr Bone, all the speakers in Minister. elected in three years’ time. Eurosceptics in his own party. Just as the debate from all parties expressed dis- Lord Carey added his voice to those call- According to a report in The Times the Eurosceptics refuse to listen to the whips agreement with the decision of the General ing on the Church to take speedy action in secretary-general of the synod, William Fit- so the opponents of women bishops Synod. Chris Bryant (Rhonda, Labour) an interview with The Times last Saturday tall, has written a memo to the Archbish- refused to follow the lead of the bishops, he called for a moratorium on the appointment when he said it was ‘ridiculous’ to say that ops’ Council warning of an urgent need to argued. of male bishops until there could also be General Synod could not reconsider the revise the decision. He refers to its impact This provoked one Eurosceptic, Mr Peter female bishops and Ben Bradshaw (Exeter, matter until 2015. He said that women on morale in the Church, particularly Bone MP, to say that Eurosceptics happen to Labour) suggested that the Prime Minister among women clergy, and hints at dises- be right and that ‘it is a very dangerous should take back his right to be involved in Continued on page 3 tablishment if the Church fails to sort itself out. “Time is not on our side,” he writes. “Par- liament is impatient. Unless the Church of England can show very quickly that it’s Fresh Expressions says farewell to Dr Williams capable of sorting itself out we shall be into a major constitutional crisis in Church- State relations, the outcome of which can- not be predicted with confidence.” Although the vote to allow women priests in 1992 passed by only a small mar- gin of two votes, Mr Fittall says the situa- tion is different today because the measure for women priests was not expected to pass. This time there was a widespread expectation that that measure would go through. He warns of talk in Parliament that a Bill should be introduced there to do what the Church has failed to do. “In weighing how best and how quickly to proceed, the Coun- cil needs to take very seriously both the degree of parliamentary anger and the desire of many in the Church to circum- vent the Synod because of the perception that it is not properly representative of the wider church opinion’. In making his analysis, Mr Fittall was probably influenced by an emergency debate held in the House of Commons last week. In the debate, Sir Tony Baldry, the Second Church Estates Commissioner, announced that he was arranging a meet- ing between MPs and the Rt Rev Justin Welby to discuss future action. He quoted the Prime Minister’s view that this was a matter for the Church of England to resolve and expressed the hope that he would, during his time in office, be able to bring before Parliament a measure to enable the consecration of women bishops. Ms Diane Johnson (Labour, Kingston- upon-Hull) referred to the presence of 26 bishops in the House of Lords and said that the decision of General Synod meant the ‘entrenchment of the discriminatory Young people from a Romford Fresh Expression Church, re:generation, praying for the Archbishop of Canterbury. This was nature’ of these appointments. called an ‘Olympic Torch’ moment – the older generation passing the baton on to the younger. The prayers were held during the 2012 Fresh Expression conference Following the Missionary Spirit at Holy Trinity, Brompton, on Thursday. ANDREW CAREY 7 • LETTERS 8, 10 • HAZEL SOUTHAM 9 • CLERGY MOVES 12 • SUNDAY 15 • PAUL RICHARDSON 16 2 www.churchnewspaper.com Sunday December 2, 2012 News Conservationists angry over diocesan ‘negligence’ Inside... By Michael Brown Grade II listed church in mysterious cir- “incompetent” in its handling of such Britain’ s leading evangelical newspaper cumstances which local conservationists important items. CONSERVATIONISTS have accused a have spent months investigating. A spokeswoman for the Wakefield dio- northern diocese of “negligence” for failing Diocesan officials reported that the carv- cese admitted that a mistake had been to protect rare and valuable carvings that ings had been stolen but it was later learned made in allowing a contractor to go into the have disappeared from a redundant church. that they were taken by a contractor who church unsupervised. She denied that the The oak misericords were crafted in the had permission to be inside the church and church had sold the carvings. 1920s by Halifax woodcarver HP Jackson to remove some items. Two misericord seats on eBay have been for St Peter’s Church at Stanley, Wakefield. The diocese said the contractor did not returned and four others on an antique They depict the “16 stages of creation” have permission to remove the miseri- dealer’s website have also been recovered, and are thought to be the only set of their cords. said the spokeswoman. kind in the world — and with a price tag to Some ended up on Internet auction site There is currently an ongoing dispute match. eBay and others at a London auction house. between the church and an auction house Earlier this year the carvings disap- Paul Dainton, of the St Peter’s Church over the ownership of the two further mis- peared from the disused and vandalised Action Group, said the diocese had been ericords. News . 1-7 Your Church . 2 UK News . 1-4 Bishop Kenneth Cragg, 1912-2012 World News . 5-6 Comment BISHOP KENNETH preaching to a blank Westminster Abbey, high- Andrew Carey . .7 Cragg, who spent much wooden wall. He himself lighted three words from Whispering Gallery . .7 of his ministry in the had woven a number of the passage which char- Letters . .8, 10 warm and sunny climate the panels while waiting acterized Bishop Cragg’s Leader . .9 of the Middle East, was at stations and airports life and work: love, hospi- Hazel Southam . 9 buried in an eco-friendly during his long mission- tality and stewardship. wicker casket on a cold ary career. Canon Harvey specially England on Sunday November afternoon on Prayers were led by focused on hospitality of Jonathan Macy . .E1 22 November. Canon Christopher the mind as the key to his Ruth Gledhill . .E3 He died on 13 Novem- Lamb, himself a mission- devotion to lifelong dia- Crossword . .E2 ber, four months short of ary in Pakistan, and spe- logue with Islam. Bishop Films . .E3 his 100th birthday, at the cialist on inter-faith Cragg had identified that Books . .E3 College of St Barnabas, relations, whose doctoral the “lex talionis” (an eye Catherine Fox . .E4 Lingfield, which had also studies were on Bishop for an eye) was the curse Janey Lee Grace . .E4 been the last home of Cragg’s theology. The of human history which John Stott. Bible reading was chosen had been borne away by The Record Bishop Cragg was laid by Bishop Cragg himself Christ on the cross. Anglican Life . 11 to rest in the Oxfordshire – 1 Peter chapter 4: “He The church was filled College Street . .12 churchyard of Holy Trini- who has suffered in the by his family and local Classifieds . .13 ty, Ascott-under-Wych- body is done with sin. As people as well as by the- Clergy Moves . .14 wood, where he and his a result, he does not live ologians and mission per- Spiritual Director . .15 wife had lived in their the rest of his life for evil sonnel from Oxford, Sunday Service . .15 retirement. In the human desires, but where he had taught at CMS . .15 church, a tapestry hangs rather for the will of Wycliffe Hall and the Paul Richardson . .16 inside the west wall. We God.” Oxford Centre for Mis- People . .16 were told this had been a The preacher, Canon sion Studies, and the Milestones . .16 gift from Bishop Cragg Anthony Harvey, former Church of England, past Next week’s news . .16 because he did not like Canon Theologian of and present. News from Your Church your diocese London: The redevelopment of an Enfield Church into a new development west of Waterlooville. The Diocesan Sheffield: Sheffield Manor Parish is one of the first community centre and primary school has been shortlist- Board of Education is still awaiting final approval from groups in the UK to receive a Heritage Lottery Fund All ed for a prestigious planning award. The project to rede- Hampshire County Council before it can be built, which it Our Stories grant. The project, Manor Memories, focused velop St John’s Church in Enfield into the new Dysons hopes to receive in January.