The House of Bishops met on Tuesday 16 December and discussed the proposals they intend to bring to General Synod in February. The press release issued by the Church of England at the end of the day indicated that the bishops were unable to make any definitive decisions. They have therefore agreed to do some further work between now and January on a letter to the Church summarising Living in Love and Faith and setting out their position.

This meeting followed their previous one in October, where bishops acknowledged the theological and lawful impediments to clergy same sex marriage and standalone services (see our news article).

Rev Canon John Dunnett, National Director, CEEC, said: “Without wishing to sound negative, this rather sounds like an admission of ‘Groundhog Day’.  The tectonic divisions caused by LLF continue to rumble through the Church of England. General Synod, Diocesan Synods and parishes are experiencing it – sadly, it is now eroding the collegiality of the House of Bishops and their ability to lead.

“It is hard to imagine that taking more time is going to enable the bishops to square a circle.  Our hope and prayer is that the House will have the courage to attempt a different approach – to recognise the depth of division LLF has caused in the church, and either halt the project, or revisit CEEC’s proposals for the creation of differentiated ‘spaces’ within the church that will help secure orthodoxy for the future.”

 The House of Bishops will meet again in mid-January to decide on what will be taken to General Synod.