THE P RTAL
January 2015
Much happening
in the C of E
UK Pages - page 15
Anglican
News
With the position in the Church of England changing almost
every week, The Revd Paul Benfield finds it hard to keep up!
I
t was
announced from Downing Street on 17th December that The Revd Libby Lane is to be the next
Bishop of Stockport, a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of Chester. She is currently Vicar of St Peter’s, Hale
and St Elizabeth’s, Ashley and Dean of Women in Ministry in the Diocese of Chester.
The Bishop of Stockport, being a suffragan, will
never, as holder of that see, be entitled to sit in the
House of Lords. However, in a separate development
a bill has been published to allow women diocesan
bishops to be fast-tracked into the Upper House.
At present the two archbishops, together with the
bishops of London, Durham and Winchester have
seats in the House of Lords. They are joined by 21
other diocesan bishops who take their seats in order of
seniority as diocesan bishops when a vacancy occurs.
This means that after becoming a diocesan bishop a
person will normally have to wait up to five years until
a vacancy occurs before taking his seat.
This, it could be argued, is a good thing, for it
enables the bishop to concentrate on his diocese before
She is also one of the eight ‘senior women’ who sit as worrying about matters in Parliament.
participant observers in the House of Bishops, being
elected from the North West region. My understanding the Bishop of Chichester
is that before General Synod made the canon allowing may never take a seat in the House
But this is not thought to be good enough for women
women to be consecrated as bishops other (male)
candidates had been shortlisted and interviewed but, bishops, who must be rushed into Parliament as soon
for whatever reason, no appointment was made. When as possible. If passed (which seems very likely) then
the process started again, it was possible to include the bill provides that, for a period of ten years after the
women on the list of potential appointees since the next General Election, when a vacancy arises for a Lord
Spiritual the place will be taken by a female diocesan
canon had by then been made
bishop who is not yet in the House, in preference to
special arrangements for
any male bishop (even if he has been in the queue for
Fr Philip North’s consecration
several years).
Mrs Lane is married to a (male) priest who is chaplain
at Manchester Airport. She will be consecrated in York
This could mean that the Bishop of Chichester, who
Minster on 26th January, the Feast of St Timothy and St is the only diocesan bishop opposed to the ordination
Titus, at a service at which the Archbishop of York will of women not yet in the House, may never take a
preside and be the chief consecrator.
seat because women overtake him. So one minority
(women) trumps another (traditional AngloThis will be a week before Fr Philip North, a catholics).
traditionalist Anglo-catholic, is consecrated as
Bishop of Burnley, also at York. It is inevitable,
Where is the equality there? How long before
therefore, that there will have to be special parliament alters its rules so that any gay bishop in a
arrangements for his consecration, but these have civil partnership will overtake others in the queue?
not been announced yet.
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