You
may have seen the 11
March press release by Lichfield diocese in which they excitedly say they 'could be the first in
the Church of England to adopt the Anglican Covenant.'
The
prospect of us being picked off diocese by diocese is appalling.
I had assumed there would simply be a vote in General Synod,
with each diocese mandated by its own synod, but the idea
of declaring individual diocesan votes as they are taken
puts great pressure on all to conform.
What
happens to the dioceses who vote against the covenant?
Will they be excluded from General Synod, extrapolating
from the proposal to exclude dissenting provinces from
the Anglican Communion? What about the parishioners in
each diocese?
It
is like the old joke about the man who shouted 'I will
drown, and no one shall save me' condemning himself to
death by his own apparent determination to drown himself.
Whether the Church of England is drifting blindly into
this, like the fool on the clifftop, or is determined to
commit collective suicide, I see no outcome except schism.
Please
tell me I am wrong.
Laura
Sykes
St Peter's, St Mary Bourne, Hampshire
Near Andover, Hampshire, UNITED KINGDOM
laurasykes@layanglicana.org
14 March 2011
(Editor:
Any decision that the Church of England
may take about adopting, or not, the draft Anglican
Covenant, can be taken only by the General Synod.
Part of the procedure which it is obliged to follow
is to refer the matter to each of the 44 dioceses,
and it is only if a majority of them vote favourably
on the issue that it can then proceed any further.
That is what is happening at the moment, although
most dioceses are taking a full year to allow reflection
and study to occur within the deanery synods before
taking a formal vote at diocesan level. Although elected to represent a particular diocese, voters
in General Synod are however, never mandated by a diocesan
synod, and each member is free to vote on any issue as
he or she thinks fit. The
press release is quite simply wrong to make any claim
that the diocese will be 'adopting' the Anglican
Covenant as a consequence of its vote.)
I
know of your policy to not print responses to letters,
but I wish to respond to the response to a letter. I find
your
response to Derek Dunwoody most commendable.
Years
ago, when I first began reading AO, I also wrote in about
the perception given by a front-page commentary. You responded
immediately and posted a slightly reworded version to reduce
or eliminate any further confusion about the matter.
I
am impressed with the care and concern you demonstrate
for your readers (from all points along the spectrum of
Anglicanism). It demonstrates a Christian ethic of consideration
which is now sadly absent in some circles.
Chaplain
(CPT) Steven G Rindahl
www.ChristTheKingChapel.org
Fort Jackson, South Carolina, USA
14 March 2011
