Earlier this month, the Church of England Synod voted to proceed with blessings of same-sex couples and to explore allowing clergy to enter same-sex civil ‘marriages’. I spoke to Revd Dr Ian Paul, member of the Archbishop’s Council, about how the Church reached this position and what the future may hold. You can listen to our frank conversation here:
Ian highlights the crisis within the Church of England, marked by a loss of trust and a 50% decline in attendance in the last 14 years. Ian notes a “visceral reaction” to the church’s poor state of trust, linking this to the ongoing discussions on same-sex blessings. He cites the Scottish Episcopal Church’s 40% decline in six years after changing its doctrine on marriage.
Ian states that “the process so far has been basically dishonest”, pointing out that these blessings are not an experiment because “there’s no canonical mechanism by which once prayers are authorised, you can then de-authorise them”. He reveals that a “number of Bishops do want to see the doctrine of the Church changed”, and criticises the Bishops for trying to “drive this through regardless of the cost”.
The core issue, according to Ian, is the integrity of Christian doctrine. He questions: “How do you take an ordination vow and say, I believe in the doctrine of the Church, I will uphold it... and at the same time you say, I don’t believe and I think it should change?” This inconsistency, he argues, leads to further division and decline.
Ian discusses the societal impact of marriage, noting that children flourish best “in the context of a stable long-term committed relationship between biological parents”. He highlights the disparity in marriage rates among different socio-economic groups and the need for societal support for traditional marriage.
C4M exists to promote marriage as the exclusive lifelong union of one man and one woman. Nothing else comes close in terms of benefits to adults, children and society. We call on the Church of England to hold true to its doctrine in the interests of not only the poorest among us, but of everyone.