"What the Anglican Church's 'conversation' is engaged in... is the attempted rationalisation of sin in order to alleviate the reality of guilt which all those practising sexual immorality feel."
The Church of England is in an ongoing process of what it calls "shared conversations" to discuss different perspectives on acceptance of homosexuality and "help forge better understanding between different groups over the issue of sexuality", according to Archbishop of York John Sentamu.
Read moreThe stark calculations were revealed during discussions at the Church's decision-making General Synod, which has been meeting in London, about ambitious plans to tackle declining numbers.
It is preparing to pump £72 million into a "reform and renewal" drive which includes plans to ordain 6,000 more clergy in the 2020s to build a younger priesthood which is less male dominated and less white.
The Archbishop of Canterbury has also initiated a major drive to win new converts.
Read moreThe archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, who chairs the church's evangelical taskforce and has made mission work central to his leadership, said evangelism was "not a survival technique out of concern at the latest figures on church attendance", but a "commitment to renew the church".
Read moreThe spin included such elements as saying that the Primates had had their phones removed, and that they were being treated as children. Even some seasoned journalist believed this and printed it as fact.
It became quite a joke among us, with people waving their phones at me from time to time to indicate that my powers were limited. Neither were they treated as children. Secretary General, sit up and keep your hands still. [Laughter]
Read moreA well produced document details the complaints about the current situation in the Church of England, states what the group would like to see changed, and itemizes some action plans to bring about the revolution.
Read moreBoth churches are grappling with internal divisions, including a battle over homosexuality, and the service comes as several high-profile figures, including some members of the royal family and former Prime Minister Tony Blair, have left the Anglican Church. (In 2011, a ban on a British monarch marrying a Roman Catholic was lifted after more than three centuries, but Roman Catholics are still barred from taking the throne).
Read moreMs. Ozanne and others hailed this result as indicative of a shift in public opinion, as compared to a YouGov survey three years ago. At that time, 38 per cent of Anglicans said they supported same-sex 'marriage', while 47 per cent said they believed it was wrong.
Rev Peter Ould, a consultant statistician and Church of England priest, has joined others in questioning the accuracy of the way in which the poll has been represented.
Nominal Anglicans
Read moreMartyn Percy is well known as a liberal theologian and has a record of public statements that challenge orthodoxy, particularly in the field of sexual ethics. He is an outspoken advocate for full LGBTI inclusion in the life and ministry of the Church of England, and the revision of the Church of England's traditional understanding of marriage.
Read moreThat is why the UK Anglican evangelical network Reform would be advised to avoid the words 'homophobic' and 'homophobia' or explain clearly that biblically orthodox Christians ought to understand them very differently from Western politically correct social Marxists.
In its media statement following the Anglican Communion Primates' meeting in Canterbury, Reform echoed their communique:
Read moreIt brings together the most unlikely of bedfellows from Prince Harry to Gerry Adams and even -- in many depictions -- God himself.
Now the fashion for beards has been given the blessing of the Church of England, after one of the country's most senior clerics praised vicars who grow them to appeal to Muslim communities around them.
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