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2024 Posted on the 12th November 2024 in the category News
Over the last three days, 33 Society deacons and priests, many of whom are assistant curates, have gathered at the Anglican Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham to support one another and to participate in the annual Initial Ministerial Education phase two (IME 2) conference, led by the Bishop of Oswestry on behalf of The Society. The delegates expressed their deep gratitude to the Cleaver Fund, which so generously met the costs of the conference.
More photos
Posted on the 21st October 2024 in the category Statements
Dear Friends,
We are writing to you to make clear our opposition to the Assisted Dying Bill which was introduced to the House of Commons last week and which will be debated later this autumn.
Our resistance to these proposals is grounded both in what our faith teaches us about the dignity and value of every human life, and our conviction that this legislation will not serve the common good in our nation.
We know that the subject we are writing about is a very sensitive one. Like most of you, we have walked with families into the valley of the shadow of death and we are fully aware how, for many people, that can be a time of immense pain. Allowing medical professionals to end the lives of those who are suffering seems to many to be a sensitive response. But the unintended consequences of such legislation are deeply alarming.
The parishes we serve and the clergy who minister in them seek to pay attention to the powerless and give a voice to the most vulnerable in our society. Here we are led to find very real danger in this legislation. If assisted suicide becomes a legal possibility, it will inevitably follow that some who are dependent, aged, or dying, will feel under pressure to end their lives. Equally inevitably, those who will feel that pressure most acutely will be those who are income deprived and who fear becoming a financial burden on their loved ones.
Campaigners suggest that safeguards will be in place to protect people from such pressure, but the mere fact that such legislation exists will in itself impose intolerable burdens on people to opt for assisted suicide. What appears to offer choice to one set of people will take away choice from countless others.
Moreover, the example from every other nation is that, once a precedent has been set for a medical professional intentionally to end the life of one their patients, the relaxation of safeguards and an exponential increase in the number of people dying in this way follows. This is why so many medical professionals and disability rights campaigners, notably the Paralympian Tanni Grey-Thompson, have expressed such profound concerns about this Bill.
We are aware of the acute social care crisis in this country. Many tens of thousands of people who are close to death are unable to access proper palliative care. However, the solution to these problems is not to allow doctors to kill their patients, a decision that would change for ever the character of the medical profession. What is required is the political courage to invest responsibly in social and end-of-life care.
Life is God’s gift, not ours to possess. God is incarnate in the person of Jesus. Because God has united Himself with human life, so all human life is sacred, and every human person infinitely loved by God. The debate around this Bill is one that takes us to the very heart of the purpose and dignity of human life and, as Christians, staying silent is not an option. We would urge all who look to us for episcopal care to consider the following steps:
Write to your MP. Such letters have a demonstrable impact. It is best to keep letters short but personal, ideally drawing on your own experiences.
Talk about the issue. It is important to raise public awareness about this debate and it is a proper subject for preaching and teaching. The Christian life is about our preparation for death, so conversations about a good Christian death within a Church family are healthy ones.
Pray. Pray for those MPs who will soon have to decide how to vote. And pray for the dying, especially those whose death is a painful one.
It is a joy and a privilege to serve you as your Bishops. Please be assured of our constant prayer and our love for you all.
Posted on the 24th September 2024 in the category Events
For more details about this exciting free initiative, email Clare Williams who will send you more details, including the Zoom link for the meeting.
Posted on the 26th June 2024 in the category Statements
26th June 2024
Please pray for the forthcoming General Synod in York. Together let us call upon the Holy Spirit for the gifts of wisdom, patience, and humility, especially in the discussion of Living in Love and Faith (LLF).
This complex matter has intensified the need for serious consideration of the theological work already being done by the Faith and Order Commission (FAOC) of the House of Bishops and, subsequently, of the implications of that work for doctrine and ecclesiastical law, which are essential to the Church’s mission.
We recognise the toll that this is taking among LGBTQI+ Christians, who are strongly present in so many of the parishes we have been formed in and now serve. We also register and share significant and growing disquiet among our evangelical brothers and sisters, whose vitality enriches our partnership in the gospel.
The Church of England made bold claims for the LLF journey. General Synod has discovered that the LLF timetable, and its possible outcomes, are more complex than had been expected. This is a journey of discernment that is taking longer than anyone could have anticipated. Its outcome cannot be predetermined.
As bishops of The Society, we continue to reflect and take counsel with our clergy who share with us in our ministry as guardians of the sacraments, as teachers of the faith, and as those called to exercise oversight of the people of God committed to our care.
May God, who sent us the light of His Holy Spirit, grant us to have a right judgement in all things and evermore to rejoice in His holy comfort.
Posted on the 18th May 2024 in the category Announcements
Your prayers are asked for all candidates as they prepare for ordination in the coming months. In the context of The Society, your prayers are specifically asked for the candidates listed immediately below. A selection of prayers is available here.
In terms of the composition of the list, either the candidate is registered with The Society, or the parish / parishes in which the candidate serves / will serve is / are registered with The Society, or the ordaining bishop is a bishop of The Society and is acting in that capacity.
Any additions or corrections to this list of Society-related ordinations for 2024 are to be sent by email to director@forwardinfaith.com as soon as possible, please – thank you.
Ordinations to the DiaconateTim Newton at 11am on Sunday 23rd June at St Nicholas, Arundel by the Bishop of Lewes Calum Mullett at 10.30am on Saturday 29th June at Blackburn Cathedral by the Bishop of Blackburn Joseph Kochanski at 10.30am on Saturday 29th June at Blackburn Cathedral by the Bishop of Blackburn Mark Naylor at 11am on Saturday 29th June at Ripon Cathedral by the Bishop of Leeds William Allen at 11am on Saturday 29th June at St Andrew, Holborn by the Bishop of Fulham Simon Billington at 11am on Saturday 29th June at St Andrew, Holborn by the Bishop of Fulham Graham Hains at 11am on Saturday 29th June at Southwark Cathedral by the Bishop of Southwark Paul Sumner * at 6pm on Saturday 29th June at Lichfield Cathedral by the Bishop of Lichfield Ben Jennings at 2pm on Sunday 30th June at Manchester Cathedral by the Bishop of Beverley Alex Honey at 6pm on Sunday 30th June at St Michael, Heavitree by the Bishop of Oswestry Lee Dunleavy at 7pm on Sunday 30th June at St George, Nottingham by the Bishop of Beverley James Bartle at 7pm on Tuesday 2nd July at Newcastle Cathedral by the Bishop of Beverley Nicolas Boisson at 7.15pm on Thursday 18th July at All Saints, Northampton by the Bishop of Fulham Charles Cowper at 5.00pm on Saturday 7th September at St Luke’s, Holbrooks, Coventry by the Bishop of Oswestry
* Distinctive deacon
Ordinations to the Sacred PriesthoodRichard Keeble at 5pm on Sunday 9th June at St Saviour, Eastbourne by the Bishop of Lewes Ben Scott at 5pm on Sunday 9th June at St Saviour, Eastbourne by the Bishop of Lewes Joseph Harrison at 12pm on Saturday 22nd June at St John, Cudworth by the Bishop of Wakefield Michael Scholey at 12pm on Saturday 22nd June at St John, Cudworth by the Bishop of Wakefield Kenny Wickens at 3pm on Saturday 22nd June at St Marychurch, Torquay by the Bishop of Oswestry Raymond Parkin at 7.30pm on Saturday 29th June at St Leonard, Doncaster by the Bishop of Beverley Jean Kouacou at 4pm on Sunday 30th June at Blackburn Cathedral by the Bishop of Blackburn Duncan Hegan at 5pm on Sunday 30th June at St Andrew, Holborn by the Bishop of Fulham Roger Turner at 5pm on Sunday 30th June at St Andrew, Holborn by the Bishop of Fulham Gareth Gladman at 7pm on Monday 1st July at St Andrew, Spennymoor by the Bishop of Beverley Timothy Davies at 7.30pm on Monday 1st July at Bristol Cathedral by the Bishop of Oswestry Joshua Pollard at 5pm on Sunday 7th July at St Alban, South Norwood by the Bishop of Fulham
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