"AS DELIGHTED as I am for the outcome of this vote, I am also
mindful of those within the Church for whom the result will be
difficult and a cause of sorrow."
The Archbishop of Canterbury had in mind on Monday evening the
group of conservative Evangelicals who, throughout the debate,
continued to voice their dissent.
One complaint was the failure to appoint a single bishop who
shared their views on headship, despite, one speaker said, 69
appointments' having been made in the past seven years.
The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, said after the vote:
"The traditional Catholics have got PEVs. They can see what we have
done with them over the last 20 years." The Archbishops have
pledged to address this concern with urgency.
Other grievances were aired in the debate. Susie Leafe, the
director of Reform, gave an unhappy account of the facilitated
talks, during which she was told that her deepest concerns were
"off the table, because the . . . Church thought I was wrong".
The group was most unhappy when speakers referred to changes in
society.
"How will we prevent the argument that says scripture applied
then, but it no longer applies now when we come to other sorts of
arguments and situations?" asked the Revd Angus Macleay.