THE
P RTAL
August 2015
Goings on
in the CofE
Page 12
Anglican
News
The Revd Paul Benfield keeps us up to date with the General Synod
F
riday 10th July saw members of the General Synod arriving in York for the last group of sessions
of the current quinqennium. The Convocations of York and Canterbury met separately at lunch time to
approve new Guidelines for the Professional Conduct of the Clergy.
These are similar to those which exist at the moment,
having been updated, principally to take account of
changes on safeguarding.
mentioned which includes a duty on clergy to
undergo and co-operate with a risk assessment in
certain situations.
Safeguarding came up quite a lot over the weekend
with the Safeguarding and Clergy Discipline Measure
given final approval , and the announcement that
the Archbishops’ Council budget provision for
safeguarding for 2016 shows a twelve-fold increase
over that for 2015.
a talent pool for clergy
Saturday afternoon saw a debate on a private
members’ motion from Fr Simon Kilwick, Chairman
of the Catholic Group in Synod, on senior leadership
in the Church of England. Synod had been annoyed in
February that it had not been allowed to discuss the
Green report which proposed a talent pool for clergy
I do not understand the question
seen to have potential for senior leadership. This report
The Archbishop of Canterbury did not have a good (by a former banker) had not made any reference to
first evening. In Question Time he gave somewhat the Faith and Order Commission Report on the same
evasive answers to some supplementary questions and subject.
then simply replied to one supplementary by saying, ‘I
do not understand the question’.
The main motion was amended by a friendly
amendment which called on the bishops to bring for
When the supplementary was repeated (instead of scrutiny by Synod a report assessing the effectiveness
being re-phrased as would have been better), he again of the new arrangements, which are already being
said, ‘I do not understand the question’, though most implemented, and requiring a debate on that report
people could see what the questioner was getting at. It not later than July 2016.
was suggested to me by a fellow member that bishops
should be advised to answer questions in the way
A few years ago a motion from Canon Kilwick would
that they would expect a question from them to be have been unlikely to have got far, simply because of
answered by a government minister in the House of what he stood for on matters of Catholic Order. Now
Lords.
his motion gained overwhelming support from all
sides. It was Synod reacting against the Archbishop’s
The next day Archbishop Justin apologised to Synod Task Groups.
for his conduct the previous evening.
delegated powers
ethical maters
The whole of Monday was spent on the environment,
with debates on climate change and ethical investment
policy. Then the archbishops announced that pursuant
to writs received from Her Majesty the Queen they
had made instruments dissolving the Convocations of
York and Canterbury at the end of that day’s sittings.
Statute provides that when the convocations are
dissolved General Synod is also dissolved.
Saturday morning was spent in various legislative
matters. This is what Synod is really for. It has been
delegated powers by parliament to legislate on
church matters and this it does very well. So we
dealt with new faculty rules, investment on a total
return basis by diocesan stipend funds, regulations
which allow parishes to deal with certain property
transactions without getting the consent of the
diocesan custodian trustee and changes to the
So I am, for a few months at least, no longer a proctor
Common Tenure regulations. This was in addition in the Convocation of York or a member of General
to the Safeguarding and Discipline Measure already Synod!
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