Same Sex Marriage: The Bishops Are Wrong

The decision of the senior Church of England bishops to deny to its gay members blessings to support civil gay marriage and to further deny its clergy the right to gay marriage and also to continue with the edict that civil partnerships among clergy are acceptable ‘provided the partners remain celibate’ is ungenerous, cruel, unfeeling, idiotic and above all un-Christian.

During my lifetime, the influence of the C of E in public policy has plunged by at least seventy five per cent. This is due in large part to its internal quarrels and its obsession with sex and the bedroom. There is so much it could do and should do to enrich the lives of the needy and offer to the nation as a whole a moral compass for the conduct of public policy. The refreshing pronouncements of the new Archbishop of Canterbury on many current issues are undermined by this mean streak which poisons every aspect of the Church’s life.

The Church of England, in trying to appease its evangelical nutters whose shrill declarations are conspicuous for their lack of humanity and compassion, has destroyed its traditional foundation as the most enlightened of the various segments of the Christian religion. In so doing it has put at risk its own survival as a serious player in the country’s life. Indeed the vast majority no longer care whether it survives or not.

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