Making Women Bishops is a mistake the Synod is warned

"For those of us ordained since 1992, our understanding, in good faith, was that proper legal provision would be made for those who did not agree that women should have the overall leadership of a church."


Those are the words of the Revd Rod Thomas, of St Matthew's Church, Elburton, Plymouth.
 
Revd Thomas is the chairman of the evangelical group Reform, described on their own website as a network of individuals and churches within the Church of England committed to reforming the Church of England from within according to the Holy Scriptures.
 
I am astounded at this outrageous sexism, and do not understand the thinking of these peole from supposedly a caring profession.
 
Extract from the open letter to all Bishops and Synod Members from Reform;

"As 50 incumbents of Church of England churches we are writing to say why, in our view, the consecration of women bishops would be a mistake and would raise for us great difficulties of conscience and practice, as well as being wrong for our Church as a whole.


Our concern is derived from Scripture. It seems to us that the Apostolic teaching on male headship in church and family (as in 1 Corinthians 11-14, Ephesians 5, 1 Timothy 2 and 1 Peter 3) is clear enough in its principles: overall leadership in the church is to be exercised by men."

I don't pretend to understand God, the church or it's followers, but these views of people like Revd Thomas, who are clearly scared that a woman may be in charge of a church are scary.

I thought the church was supposed to be all embracing, and apparently yes, it is as long as you aren't gay, lesbian, bi-sexual or trans.  Now, it also appears that women are to be embraced as long as they are at home, doing the baking or arranging flowers, what utter rubbish is that?

I may have read this wrong, but that is what I took from this quote on the Reform website;

"The letter points out that their opposition is based on the pattern the Bible gives both for relationships in the home and the church. They say that they cannot see how, as Bible teachers, they can do other than put into practice what they believe the Bible to be teaching."

In other words women cannot run a church but they can run a home.

I was involved in the Church when I was at Primary School, Edwalton Parish Church (pictured) where I joined the choir and became head Choir boy over time and I recall we had a female lay Preacher, Pamela from memory, who wore the robes and was involved in all dealings of the Church.

I see from their website that the assistant priest is a woman, Revd Patricia Edwards so female priests have not done Edwalton Church any harm and in my humble opinion neither will female Bishops.

Members of the General Synod, meeting in London, are due to hear a presentation from the Bishop of Manchester, the Rt Rev Nigel McCulloch, about the "extraordinarily difficult" negotiations over the issue.

It will be told that a key debate on legislation to introduce women bishops will be delayed until July after hundreds of submissions were received on the subject.

I hope the Synod sees sense and moves with the modern times we are in and I look forward to a female bishop being recognised properly and I wish WATCH (women and the Church) who are campaigning to see women take their place alongside men in the Church of England.