BRITAIN: Activist Peter Tatchell Threatens To Out Gay Bishops Over Marriage

I am considering outing gay @c_of_e bishops who discipline gay clergy who marry http://t.co/wtKDYO4oRv @LGCM @changingatt @LondonLGBTPride
— Peter Tatchell (@PeterTatchell) July 24, 2014

Via Pink News:

Gay hospital chaplain Jeremy Pemberton had his Permission to Officiate revoked by the Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham after he married his same-sex partner, while London vicar Andrew Cain said he “fully expects” to be punished for marrying last month. The veteran rights campaigner Peter Tatchell said this week that he would out any gay bishops who discipline their married colleagues. Speaking to Kelvin Holdsworth of St Mary’s Cathedral, Tatchell said: “I believe people have a right to privacy so long as they are not using their own power and authority to harm other people and when other people are being caused harm and suffering we have a duty to try and stop it. If this is the only way, it is certainly not the preferable way, it’s not the first option but as a last resort I think it is morally and ethically justifiable.”

BRITAIN: On Eve Of Legal Gay Marriage, Church Of England Softens On Issue

The Guardian reports that the Church Of England has softened its stance on same-sex marriage, which becomes legal in England and Wales at midnight today.

The Archbishop of Canterbury has signalled that the Church of England will mount no more resistance to gay marriage among churchgoers. "I think the church has reacted by fully accepting that it's the law, and should react on Saturday by continuing to demonstrate in word and action, the love of Christ for every human being." Justin Welby told the Guardian. His comments mark a shift in tone, if not substance, from a letter from the bishops last month that attempted to forbid the clergy from marrying same-sex partners, and which led to a furious backlash from supporters. At least seven clergy couples are preparing to marry in defiance of their bishops, though none are known to be planning a public ceremony.

Several gay couples are vying to be the first to marry tonight by timing their vows to be completed just seconds after midnight. (Tipped by JMG reader Eric)

BRITAIN: Church Of England Proposes "Blessings" For Same-Sex Marriages

Yesterday the Church of England unveiled a proposal that would allow clergy to offer "blessings" to same-sex unions, even though gay couples would still be barred from actually marrying in their churches.

Critics swiftly condemned the "blessing" proposal as contrary to the church's teaching on sexual conduct. The proposal was among 18 recommendations put forward by a working group set up two years ago amid growing tension over the church's approach to gay worshippers and clergy but could take up to two years of discussions before becoming policy. Acknowledging the issue was divisive, group chairman Joseph Pilling said the church needed to reflect rapid changes in society as senior clergy express fears of a looming crisis, with falling attendance rates and failure to attract young people. This year, parliament introduced new laws to allow gay marriages from 2014 after legalizing civil partnerships in 2005 and the church dropped its ban on gay clergy in civil partnerships becoming bishops. "You can make a church a cold place for gay and lesbian people ... or you can make it a more warm and accepting place," Pilling told a news conference.

BRITAIN: Former Archbishop Of Canterbury Proposes Separate Marriage Registry For Straight Couples

Gay Star News reports on the latest bid to torpedo Britain's marriage bill:

Former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord George Carey is trying to wreck gay marriage in England and Wales by creating a new gold standard only straights can be part of – ‘traditional marriage’.  As a member of the House of Lords, he is proposing to amend the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill so it recognizes ‘traditional marriage’ as only being between a man and a woman.  Opposite-sex couples will then be put on a separate official marriage register if they want, so they don’t even have to share a list – let alone the institution of marriage – with gay and lesbian couples. It’s just one of the amendments designed to wreck the bill as it goes through committee stage in the House of Lords.It’s just one of the amendments designed to wreck the bill as it goes through committee stage in the House of Lords. The unelected upper chamber of the British parliament has already approved the bill going ahead, after being passed it by the elected House of Commons.But now Lords get to scrutinize it and suggest changes.

The bill gets its third and final reading in the House Of Lords on July 15th.

Church Of England Surrenders On Marriage

The Church of England today formally announced that it will no longer object to Britain's same-sex marriage bill as it has become apparent to them that a clear majority of Parliament supports it.

In a short statement, the established Church said that the scale of the majorities in both the Commons and Lords made clear that it is the will of Parliament that same sex couples “should” be allowed to marry. The Bishop of Leicester, who leads the bishops in the House of Lords, said they would now concentrate their efforts on “improving” rather than halting an historic redefinition of marriage. 

It represents a dramatic change of tack in the year since the Church insisted that gay marriage posed one of the biggest threats of disestablishment of the Church of England since the reign of Henry VIII. And it comes despite a warning from the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev Justin Welby, that the redefinition of marriage would undermine the “cornerstone” of society. The climb-down comes as the newest diocesan bishop in the Church of England said that support for gay marriage was “understandable” because of the way gay people had been treated in Britain in the past.

Also announced today was that the Church of England will work through its bishops in the House of Lords to introduce a gay adultery clause into the marriage bill.

Under the current bill people in a same-sex marriages who discover that their spouse is unfaithful to them would not be able to divorce for adultery after Government legal experts failed to agree what constitutes “sex” between gay or lesbian couples. The bishops are also seeking to change a provision which says that when a lesbian woman in a same-sex marriage has a baby her spouse is not also classed as the baby’s parent. The result is that in some cases children would be classed as having only one parent.

Here is today's official statement from the Bishop of Leicester:

“Both Houses of Parliament have now expressed a clear view by large majorities on the principle that there should be legislation to enable same-sex marriages to take place in England and Wales. It is now the duty and responsibility of the Bishops who sit in the House of Lords to recognise the implications of this decision and to join with other Members in the task of considering how this legislation can be put into better shape.

“The concerns of many in the Church, and in the other denominations and faiths, about the wisdom of such a move have been expressed clearly and consistently in the Parliamentary debate. For the Bishops the issue now is not primarily one of protections and exemptions for people of faith, important though it is to get that right, not least where teaching in schools and freedom of speech are concerned.

“The Bill now requires improvement in a number of other key respects, including in its approach to the question of fidelity in marriage and the rights of children. If this Bill is to become law, it is crucial that marriage as newly defined is equipped to carry within it as many as possible of the virtues of the understanding of marriage it will replace. Our focus during Committee and Report stages in the coming weeks and months will be to address those points in a spirit of constructive engagement.”

BRITAIN: Bishops May Abstain On Marriage Vote In The House Of Lords

Britain's right-leaning Telegraph reports:

Despite vocal opposition from the Church to the Government’s plans to allow same-sex couples to marry, it is understood that senior officials have personally urged bishops to stay away from this week’s vote. They fear that a large bloc of clerics turning up to vote down the bill could rebound on the Church, reopening questions over the right of bishops to sit in the Lords and even raise the prospect of disestablishment.

They have also told bishops privately that they are convinced the bill, which includes legal “locks” to prevent clergy being forced to carry out same-sex weddings against their beliefs, is the “best” they could hope to achieve. It comes amid warnings of a “dangerous” constitutional stand-off between the Commons and the Lords if peers vote to reject the bill, which has already received strong backing from MPs.

The Church of England seats 26 bishops in the House Of Lords, which presently has about 750 members. Debate continues today and the vote is expected tomorrow.

LIVE VIDEO: The House of Lords comes into session at 2:30pm local time (9:30am NYC time) and there will be a live video stream here.

Church Of England: Gay Men Can Be Bishops As Long As They Are Celibate

Via the Guardian:

The Church of England has agreed that gay clergy in civil partnerships can become bishops so long as they remain sexually abstinent, a decision that looks likely to reignite one of the Anglican community's most bitter internal debates.  The decision was taken by the House of Bishops, the section of the General Synod responsible for church teaching. Evangelical Anglicans immediately signalled their opposition to the idea, leaving the church with the prospect of two simultaneous internal rows following the synod's decision in November to block women from becoming bishops.

You can have a boyfriend, you just can't have sex with him.

BRITAIN: Same-Sex Marriage Bill Set To Be Introduced Next Year

Pink News has the latest word:

Same-sex couples in England and Wales are set to be allowed to marry, under plans announced today by Culture Secretary Maria Miller in the House of Commons. Following a government consultation, legislation allowing same-sex marriages will be brought forward next year. Although the Catholic Church and Church of England is opposed to equal marriage, faith groups such as the Quakers, Unitarians and Liberal Judaism support marriage rights for gay couples and have stated they would like to provide the ceremonies. Mrs Miller said the proposals are designed to create watertight protections for religious organisations that do not want to conduct same-sex marriages, but will allow them to ‘opt in’ if they so chose.

The House of Commons is continuing to argue about the details.  At this writing the Guardian is running a quite lively live-blog.  It appears that the consummation issue has been resolved:

Maria Miller expects same sex marriage law in place by early 2014 with 60 % of Tory MPs at present backing her plans. Bill in January. Any same sex marriage conducted by CoE vicar, if CoE collectively opposed to such marriages, will not be recognised in law. Grounds for divorce in a same sex marriage will include adultery, but non-consummation will not be grounds for annulling a same sex marriage. There are footnotes in consultation paper on same sex marriage about "lesser acts of sexual gratification" that are quite vivid for HMG.

And then there's this:

BRITAIN: Anti-Gay Christian Group Backs Church Of England's Marriage Position

A spokesbigot from Christian Concern appeared on Britain's Channel 5 yesterday to support the Church of England's opposition to same-sex marriage.

BRITAIN: Church Of England Issues Statement Opposing Marriage Equality

Just issued by the Church Of England:

The Church of England cannot support the proposal to enable ―all couples, regardless of their gender, to have a civil marriage ceremony. Such a move would alter the intrinsic nature of marriage as the union of a man and a woman, as enshrined in human institutions throughout history. Marriage benefits society in many ways, not only by promoting mutuality and fidelity, but also by acknowledging an underlying biological complementarity which, for many, includes the possibility of procreation.

We have supported various legal changes in recent years to remove unjustified discrimination and create greater legal rights for same sex couples and we welcome that fact that previous legal and material inequities between heterosexual and same-sex partnerships have now been satisfactorily addressed. To change the nature of marriage for everyone will be divisive and deliver no obvious legal gains given the rights already conferred by civil partnerships. We also believe that imposing for essentially ideological reasons a new meaning on a term as familiar and fundamental as marriage would be deeply unwise.

Read the full statement (PDF).

Thousands Of Anglican Priests Defect To Vatican Over Gay-Friendly Policies

Last month Pope Palpatine invited the world's Anglican priests to join the Catholic Church if they disagreed with new gay-friendly Anglican policies. This weekend the first avalanche of thousands of defecting priests was announced.

Over 4,000 Anglican priests all over the world, including married ones, are expected to join the Catholic Church, Bishop Matthias Ssekamanya announced on Friday. Ssekamanya, who doubles as the chancellor of Uganda Martyrs University, said this does not mean that the Catholic Church is removing the requirement for priests to remain unmarried. “We are not becoming soft on celibacy for Catholic priests. We shall also not tolerate homosexuals and polygamous marriages in the Catholic Church,” he added. He was officiating at the 15th graduation ceremony of the Nkozi-based university. Vatican officials announced that married Anglican priests would be allowed to remain in the priesthood on a case-by-case basis as they join the Roman Catholic fold.

The Vatican’s decision to allow Anglicans to keep some aspects of their liturgy had raised questions over whether the Catholic requirement for celibacy might change. The Vatican this month released rules and guidelines, known as the Apostolic Constitution, as part of efforts to make it easier for disillusioned, traditionalist Anglicans to cross over to the Roman Catholic Church. Under the Vatican’s initiative, Anglicans, turned off by their own church’s embrace of gay clerics, women priests and blessing of same-sex unions, can join new parishes, called ‘personal ordinariates’, that are headed by former Anglican prelates.

Pope Invites Anti-Gay Anglicans To Join His Extra-Anti-Gay Church

Seizing upon the rift over gays in the Anglican Church, Ill Papa Palpatine has invited gay-haters to join his Super Hate Club.

In an extraordinary bid to lure traditionalist Anglicans en masse, the Vatican on Tuesday announced that it would make it easier for Anglicans who are uncomfortable with their church’s acceptance of women priests and openly gay bishops to join the Roman Catholic Church. A new canonical entity will allow groups of Anglicans “to enter full communion with the Catholic Church while preserving elements of the distinctive Anglican spiritual and liturgical patrimony,” Cardinal William Levada, the prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, said at a news conference here.

Though both Catholic and Anglican leaders sought on Tuesday to present the move as a more coherent, unified response to those seeking conversion, the Vatican appeared to have announced the move to the Anglican Communion only in recent weeks and as a fait accompli. And many Anglican and Catholic leaders expressed surprise, even shock, at something they said would undermine efforts at ecumenical dialogue and capitalize on deep divisions within the Anglican Church over issues like the ordination of gay bishops and blessing same-sex unions.

The move could have wide impact in England, where large numbers of traditionalist Anglicans have protested the Church of England’s embrace in recent years of liberal theological reforms like ordaining women bishops. These Anglicans, and others in places like Australia, might be attracted to the Roman Catholic fold because they have had nowhere else to go. If entire parishes or even dioceses leave the Church of England for the Catholic church, it will probably set off battles over ownership of church buildings and land.

The above-linked articles speculates about American Episcopalians that "proportionally fewer would be eager to join the Catholic fold" than members of Church of England.

Chaplain Of London Stock Exchange: Tattoo Sodomy Warnings On Gay Men

Rev. Peter Mullen, the chaplain of London's stock exchange, says that gay men should have warnings about the danger of sodomy tattooed on their bodies, much like the warnings on cigarettes.

Mullen, 66, wrote on his blog: "It is time that religious believers began to recommend ... discouragements of homosexual practices after the style of warnings on cigarette packets. "Let us make it obligatory for homosexuals to have their backsides tattooed with the slogan SODOMY CAN SERIOUSLY DAMAGE YOUR HEALTH and their chins with FELLATIO KILLS."

In a statement issued to the Evening Standard, a spokesman for the Bishop of London said: "While clergy are entitled to their own personal views, we recognise that the content of this text is highly offensive and is in no way reflective of the views of the Diocese of London." A source at the Diocese said the chaplain may now face a disciplinary inquiry over his comments. The source said: "These comments are now being looked at internally within the Diocese and he faces disciplinary procedures."

The head of UK gay rights group Stonewall has called for Mullen's resignation, saying, "If I was a member of the Stock Exchange I would be wondering whether he is the right person to be chaplain in the opening years of the 21st century. We have talked to one or two gay people in the City and they would be perfectly happy if he were to go."

Mullen now claims that he was joking and gives the usual "some of my best friends" disclaimer, but at the same time rails against militant homosexuality.