CAPTION: The Bishop of Exeter said he hoped there would be a more generous welcome to LGBTQI people in churches
Prayers of Love and Faith Discussed by Exeter Diocesan Synod
The Church of England’s proposed Prayers of Love and Faith have been discussed by Exeter’s Diocesan Synod.
The suite of prayers, which include prayers of thanksgiving, dedication and God’s blessing for same sex couples in a civil partnership or marriage, were approved by the General Synod in February.
Two of the Diocese of Exeter’s General Synod representatives, Tim Hamilton (who voted against the Church of England motion) and Canon Morwenna Ludlow (who voted in favour of it) presented their reports of the 18-hour General Synod debate to the diocesan synod members.
Once they had spoken, the clergy and lay members of the diocesan synod took part in facilitated round-table discussions about the proposed prayers.
The discussion followed a presidential address by the Bishop of Exeter, the Rt. Rev’d Robert Atwell, in which he said: “Living in Love and Faith (LLF) has been the biggest consultation exercise the Church of England has undertaken in living memory.
Middle Way
“For the last nine months, the Church of England’s bishops have been engaged in an intense process of sifting responses from across the country and finally brought to General Synod a series of proposals, including a provision for clergy (if they so wish) to offer public prayers of thanksgiving, dedication and God’s blessing for same-sex couples entering upon a new stage in their relationship.
“What the LLF process has revealed is that the established position of the Church of England on same-sex relationships is no longer sustained and supported by a consensus of Anglicans in this country.
“With strongly held opinions on all sides, the challenge is to find a way forward in the face of the absence of consensus. Some thirty years ago, the Church of England fashioned a pastoral accommodation for the remarriage of divorced persons in church. In a similar way, a second pastoral accommodation is in the process of being shaped in this contested area, which clergy can opt into as their conscience dictates without fear of censure. What are the building blocks of this new polity?
“First and most importantly, the teaching and canons of the Church on holy matrimony will remain unchanged. Same-sex marriages will not be solemnized in the Church of England but, as I said, provision will be made for clergy to offer public prayers of thanksgiving, dedication and God’s blessing for same-sex couples entering upon a new stage in their relationship.
Bishops Committed to Serving All Churches and All Clergy
“A new working party, appointed by the Archbishops, will be tasked with drawing up new guidance to accompany the ‘Prayers of Love and Faith’, building on all that has been discerned over the last six years, and a second working group on ‘Pastoral Reassurance’ will be tasked with shaping the pastoral and legal framework of this new pastoral accommodation.
“I and my colleagues on the diocesan senior staff recognise that there are contrasting and competing voices in the Diocese about all this.
“We ourselves are in different places in the spectrum of opinion. We recognise that the decisions made by General Synod go way too far for some people and not nearly far enough for others.
“We hear the anxiety of some clergy attempting to hold together divided congregations and of others who, if they decline to offer such public prayers, fear that they will be the subject of unwelcome media attention.
“Whatever decisions individual clergy take and whatever the convictions of us as bishops, Bishop Jackie, Bishop James and I are committed to serving all the churches and all clergy of this Diocese, respecting and supporting those who want to use these resources in their church community and those who do not. Be assured: no clergyperson will be disadvantaged or discriminated against for following their conscience.
The Church for Everyone
“Wherever we stand in the current debate, I believe that the Church of England must be the Church for everyone: those who find it difficult to contemplate any change in the Church’s traditional teaching and discipline, those who campaign for radical change with same-sex marriages solemnized in church, and those who find themselves somewhere in the middle.
“There may also be some who feel they cannot, in all conscience, live with this emerging compromise. If that is the case, then the Church of England will need time to consider if and how provision might be made for them.
“Speaking personally, I hope that the honesty and care with which these proposals have been framed and voted on by General Synod will contribute to a more generous welcome to LGBTQI people in our churches. It is my view that the recommendations of the bishops, as affirmed by General Synod, embody a classic Anglican via media, a middle way.
“In this contested area of belief and practice, we have to learn to live with difference as we have had to do with other issues in past centuries. What I hope and pray is that the ‘Prayers of Love and Faith’, together with the new Pastoral Guidance, will give us a framework to move forward together. Today I invite you not to look back in anger, but to look forward in hope and to walk with me on this journey.”
The new pastoral guidance to accompany the draft Prayers of Love and Faith is due to be published in July.
If you would like to speak to someone about the proposals please email
