Women and the Church (WATCH) has just launched its campaign to bring motions before all diocesan synods calling for the end of the 2014 settlement; a settlement with no specified time limit and with a framework at its core which provides a home in the Church of England for those who are opposed to the ordination of women to the priesthood and to the episcopate.

It is important to note that the nature of the Church of England’s provision for those conscientiously opposed is such that it explicitly references the roles of the wider Anglican Communion and indeed of the church universal. This is demonstrably, therefore, a matter of ecclesiology rather than of gender per se.

While such opposition represents a minority viewpoint in the Church of England, it reflects the practice of by far the greater part of the church universal. As a result, we should in fact be defined by being in favour of something – the practice of the church universal, inspired by the Holy Spirit and representing something much bigger than any of us can claim for ourselves in England – rather than being opposed to something.

The Bishop of Croydon, one of those who sat on the committee which devised the Five Guiding Principles underpinning the settlement, said to those assembled at the recent WATCH conference held to launch the campaign: “I think in honesty we also thought that as society changed and as views became more open-minded among growing numbers of younger men and women, the culture of the Church would change like the culture of the wider society.”

Given that we are only just over a decade on from the settlement being put in place, and mutual flourishing is in its infancy, such attitudes do not bode well for any settlement emerging for evangelicals from their opposition to the Prayers of Love and Faith (PLF). What are they, and others, to make of the promises made to Anglo-Catholics, which some appear so keen to renege on so soon after those commitments were made?

In an age in which we are being encouraged to emote, what about the feelings of those scores and scores of Society priests – many of them young – who put themselves forward for ordination to the priesthood in the Church of England under the settlement only to be met with a campaign calling for their removal after such a short elapse of time? Does their well-being count for less simply because their theological views do not conform to the spirit of the age?

Prominent in the early stages of the WATCH campaign is much talk of discrimination and of harassment. On the former, I have long wondered what this entails in practice. Given that supporters of WATCH and of The Society tend to operate in different parts of the Church of England, what is being alleged and with what evidence? Is it really traditionalists who are discriminating against female clergy? How precisely are we doing that and from which positions of authority? Could it be that discrimination in reality comes from other quarters?

On the latter, if there is any evidence of anyone in the Church of England is harassing any other individual then that should be reported immediately and acted upon. If the alleged perpetrator is a member of clergy, then the arrangements in place for clergy discipline should

be invoked. Without evidence being provided and without formal reporting of allegations, there is a danger that highly generalised comments become a means of undermining those of a different theological position.

The Chair of WATCH went much further when referring to the Five Guiding Principles and spoke of “the requirement for all clergy to say that they accept the current discrimination effectively silences women, which is an act of violence.” I simply cannot view a set of principles advocating tolerance of different, well-grounded, theological perspectives as being in any way “violent” – quite the opposite.

What is becoming clear is that safeguarding is being ‘weaponised’ and that this is being done on two different levels. Firstly, there is an elision being made between traditionalist witness, whether evangelical or catholic, and safeguarding risk. Secondly, the assertion is being made that men in general are a safeguarding problem. That used to be known as sexism.

I read that, for safeguarding reasons, the Archbishop of York is no longer welcome to speak in a major church in his province – Newcastle Cathedral – as part of his Lord’s Prayer tour later this year. I imagine that many supporters of the ordination of women to the priesthood and of the introduction of the PLF would not have had this brave new world in mind when they committed to those reforms.

We are being presented with a choice. One option is a monochrome state run church, claiming to become more “open-minded” as it closes down other theological perspectives and “changing with society” as it subjects itself to the whims of the political class; whose priorities are assisted dying today and some other profanity tomorrow.

The other is a vibrant national church, celebrating Christianity as a revealed religion and embracing unashamedly the Cross and the Empty Tomb both as a physical reality and as great symbols of God’s love for us. We are called to acclaim: “All for Jesus, all for Jesus, this the church's song must be, till, at last, we all are gathered, one in love and one in thee.”

Tom Middleton

Director of Forward in Faith

4th April 2025

The catholic movement recently celebrated the consecration of Fr Luke Irvine-Capel as the fourth Bishop of Richborough. This means that each of our three Provincial Episcopal Visitors (PEVs), all appointed within the last three years, has a further 15 to 20 years of active ministry to offer in their catholic witness in the Church of England. You could quite reasonably think that, on the basis of these appointments, mutual flourishing is alive and well, so why not move on and talk about something else?

Yet I write this the day before Women and the Church (WATCH) holds its conference ‘Not Equal Yet’ and feel compelled to explain our position. In preparation for that conference, Georgia Ashwell, one of WATCH’s trustees, has written a piece, which is available on the WATCH website. It is titled ‘The Theology of Taint and other misogyny in the Church of England’. You might think that matters cannot get any worse after a title like that, but the article’s first sentence mentions the Tate brothers and the second violence against women.

If this is the taster for the conference, I wonder what WATCH’s supporters can say and do on the day to take their arguments any further forward. Merely to call for an end to the 2014 settlement, and the expulsion of all of us from the Church of England as supporters of that settlement, would seem positively timid.

I thought that it would be worthwhile trying to say something about what we stand for, while in no way seeking to undermine any other tradition in the Church of England, nor calling for anyone’s expulsion from this or any other church.

We are all challenged by the words of Our Lord recorded in St John’s Gospel in the Farewell Discourse following the Last Supper – “That they may be one”.  The call for unity across our various churches will inevitably produce different responses and even different understandings as to its meaning. There is some inevitability to that. In a sense, it explains why such dominical words needed to be said in the first place.

Whatever our response, we need to take Jesus’s injunction seriously. And it hardly needs me to remind readers that ecumenical initiatives, particularly those following Vatican II, have taken the call for unity very seriously indeed. This includes the Church of England, whose Five Guiding Principles recognise the integrity of the ecclesiology we embody.

For our own part, and I have no issue in recognising that other approaches exist, we place a high value on apostolic tradition and the practices of the great churches of the West and of the East. Our position is based on a deep respect for, and an understanding of, the sacramental foundations of those churches, and even more fundamentally a recognition that such practices stem from what we confess to be the divinely inspired Universal Church.

For others to have a different perspective on these issues is part and parcel of life, but simply to dismiss two millennia of Christian witness just because some of its aspects do not sit comfortably with contemporary Western society raises serious questions as to the nature of the Church and its history. What is our understanding of the Church’s history in the period before the mid-twentieth century? What role has the Holy Spirit played throughout that history? Are only developments of the last handful of decades viewed as worthwhile?

It is only by grappling with such questions and by thinking through the role to be played by the Church of England in the wider Church that we can begin to appreciate the basis for our Christian beliefs and what our profession of faith in one holy catholic and apostolic Church requires of us.

The Church of England’s various traditions retain a vitality that can nurture and deepen discipleship in a way which other churches can sometimes only envy. However, an element of humility is required. The Church of England is but one small corner of God’s Church.

In Vincent of Lerins’s words: “All possible care must be taken that we hold that faith which has been believed everywhere, always, by all.” That is what catholicism means, that is the route to unity, and that is our guard against the tyranny of personality driven beliefs.

The Evangelist goes on to record in the Discourse: “I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.”

St Joseph’s Day, 2025

As the Trustees of Forward in Faith, we warmly congratulate the Venerable Malcolm Chamberlain on being appointed as the Bishop of Wakefield. We wish him a long and fruitful ministry in that role. We know that Society clergy in the See of Wakefield will work productively with the new area bishop in the Church’s mission to all the people of that See.

Given that the Bishop-Designate’s immediate predecessor, Bishop Tony Robinson, served as a Society bishop and ministered to Society parishes across the Diocese of Leeds, the appointment leaves a gap in the episcopal ministry provided to Society parishes in the northern province. We stress that this issue is not a matter for the Diocese of Leeds to resolve.

It is important to note in this context that the number of parishes currently under the Bishop of Beverley amounts to approximately 140, covering 11 dioceses and comprising approximately 110 ‘serving’ clergy (retired clergy holding permission to officiate are in addition to that number). This is more than many other Church of England bishops and, at such a high level, is simply too many for pastoral and sacramental oversight to be provided adequately.

We look forward to the Archbishop of York establishing arrangements for an additional serving Society bishop to minister to Society parishes in the northern province so as to rectify the current imbalance.

Such a move would be in keeping with the 2014 settlement, as codified by the text of the House of Bishops’ Declaration, and also with the conclusions reached in the Dioceses Commission’s February 2019 review of the Provincial Episcopal Visitors’ (PEV) Sees – a report which was signed off by representatives of the range of Anglican traditions.

May St Joseph, Patron of the Universal Church, pray for us.

The Society and Forward in Faith welcome the announcement that His Majesty the King has approved the nomination of Fr Luke Irvine-Capel SSC, currently the Archdeacon of Chichester, to the See of Richborough, with pastoral and sacramental oversight for Society parishes in the eastern half of the southern province of the Church of England.

The Right Reverend Jonathan Baker, Chairman of The Society's Council of Bishops, said: "I extend a warm welcome to Fr Luke to the Council, and assure him of the support and prayers of the Society bishops as he prepares to become the Bishop of Richborough."

The Right Reverend Paul Thomas, Chairman of Forward in Faith, said: "I have no doubt that Fr Luke will teach and promote the Catholic Faith across the See of Richborough with dynamism and good grace, enriching the life of the See in so doing."

Fr Philip O'Reilly, on behalf of the Richborough parishes, said: "It is wonderful to be able to welcome Fr Luke to the See of Richborough, and we greatly look forward to his ministry among us."

Fr Luke Irvine-Capel said: "It is a great honour to accept this nomination, and I undertake to serve the Richborough parishes as their bishop prayerfully and faithfully."

The date and venue for Fr Luke’s ordination to the episcopate have yet to be confirmed. They will be made publicly available as soon as they are available.

Please pray for Fr Luke, and for his family, as he prepares for episcopal ministry.

Please pray for the repose of the soul of Fr John Brownsell SSC who died peacefully on Thursday 26th September.

The Funeral Mass will take place at Holy Trinity Winchester on Saturday 2nd November, All Souls' Day, at 12noon. Bishop Norman Banks will preside. There will be a Reception in the Hall afterwards.

The body will be received the previous afternoon at 4 pm.

In accordance with Fr John's wishes, there will be no flowers but a collection for Aid to the Church in Need will be taken.  Everyone is very welcome to attend.

It is hoped that at a later date, a Requiem Mass will be offered by the Bishop of Fulham at All Saints Notting Hill before Fr John cremated remains are buried at Kensal Green.

Update:

A Requiem Mass for Fr John will take place at All Saints Notting Hill on Saturday 14^th December at 12Noon, presided over by the Bishop of Fulham. His cremated remains will then be interred at Kensal Green Cemetery on Monday 16th December at 2.30pm