From the Revd Alan Fraser
Sir, - Two things struck me about your coverage (News,
19/26 December) of the appointment of the Revd Libby Lane as
the first female bishop in the Church of England.
The first is your startling suggestion in the headline that the
diocese of Chester had won a "race". I, like most of the Church of
England, I imagine, was unaware that the appointment of bishops was
a competitive process in which dioceses sought to steal a march on
each other. I had laboured under the delusion that the appointment
might have been made after appropriate prayerful consideration.
Second, sadly, it would appear that an opportunity truly to
break with tradition and signal that we are serious about the
"radical reform" that Lord Green urged (News, 12
December) has been lost.
You reported (News,
5 September) that fully 50 per cent of bishops were privately
educated and 42 per cent had first degrees from Oxford and
Cambridge. This compares with seven per cent of the general
population who are privately educated, and less than one per cent
who went to Oxbridge.
At the time, it was taken to be axiomatic that these figures
needed to change. Many of us hoped that the elevation of women to
the episcopate would provide one mechanism to assist with this
process. Unfortunately, it appears that while Ms Lane may "break
the mould" in one regard, the Church has chosen to stick with what
is familiar in others. Not only was she privately educated, but her
first degree is from Oxford.
It is no good saying "We can't simply go on as we are if the
Church of England is to flourish," as Archbishop Welby is reported
to have urged elsewhere in your pages, only then to do precisely
that. I do not doubt Ms Lane's gifts, and certainly wish her well
in her ministry, but it is too easy for us to jump on the
apparently "obvious" candidates while not reflecting sufficiently
on why they might seem so obvious to us. All too often, it is
because they share and reflect our values and upbringing, and,
therefore, appear to be "one of us".
If these are the kind of "radical steps" we can look forward to,
to create the "bias to the poor" promised by the Archbishop, then
it does not bode well for the social diversity of the upcoming
talent pool.
ALAN FRASER
41 Hobhouse Close, Great Barr
Birmingham B42 1HB
From the Revd Adam Young
Sir, - Christmas and New Year are, for many, times of rejoicing,
but, to some, times of sorrow. How fittingly that describes the
recent announce-ment of the Revd Libby Lane as the first female
bishop: gladness for most and sadness for some.
I count myself among the former, but have great empathy for the
latter. I am glad Ms Lane is a parish priest and not a fast-tracked
business mogul. It is also good that the appointment was made
sooner rather than later. I just hope that the Bishops will now
keep their other promises to help biblical or traditional
complementarians flourish in the C of E.
While I have no idea what this will entail (probably more
bishops, for a start), my Christmas wish is, as it were, that we
would all be able to work humbly together to maintain church unity
for the glory and proclamation of Christ in 2015.
ADAM YOUNG
4 Oxford Street
Saltburn-by-the-Sea TS12 1LG
From Canon Margaret Guite
Sir, - I hope that among the first women bishops to be
consecrated there may be at least one who was originally admitted
to the order of deaconesses. If this hope is fulfilled, it would be
very appropriate for her to use as her episcopal pectoral cross the
distinctive silver deaconess cross bearing the chirho, which we
wore until 1987, when many of us were ordained deacon.
In this way, there would be a fitting and encouraging statement
that episcopacy incorporates the distinctive charism of this order
of ministry, which has served God and the Church of England
faithfully since 1862, as well as the charisms associated with
deacons and priests.
MARGARET GUITE
St Mark's Vicarage
Barton Road
Cambridge CB3 9JZ