VirtueOnline caught up with the Rev. David Phillips in England and asked him about the event that is scheduled to take place in November at a parish in London.

VIRTUEONLINE: Rev. Phillips, since you blew the whistle on this event have you had a response from Lambeth Palace?

PHILLIPS: No. We did write to the ABC but we have not yet had a response from Lambeth Palace.

VIRTUEONLINE: What tipped you off to this revelation?

PHILLIPS: Someone sent us the brochure of the meeting. It was not posted online.

VIRTUEONLINE: Are you shocked and surprised?

PHILLIPS: Not really. The timing of it is particularly bad. I would have thought that with Dr. Williams going to the U.S. House of Bishops that this would be considered very sensitive and ill timed. It also confirms what we have always felt about the archbishop, that he agrees with the revisionists and what they stand for.

VIRTUEONLINE: Would you say he is basically an Hegelian in the way he does theology?

PHILLIPS: He may be in how he works as ABC, but not in terms of his own views. We opposed his appointment. He has not repudiated anything he wrote in "The Body's Grace" and also his statements in books he has written and his interpretation of Scripture we have seen no move towards evangelical orthodoxy. It seems to us that when he says these are his personal views which he would not espouse as the leader of the Anglican Communion, then this dichotomy fails. In the end his public and private views coalesce. You cannot separate public and private morality. We are in broken communion with him and we cannot accept his spiritual oversight.

VIRTUEONLINE: In your view, should Lambeth take place next year?

PHILLIPS: I hope not. To have fellowship with those promoting error is wrong and the meeting is being portrayed as about fellowship. I hope orthodox Bishops will stay away. But if it were a business meeting where decisions were being made, it would be important to be there.

VIRTUEONLINE: Do you think there should be an alternative Lambeth?

PHILLIPS: For those bishops who remain orthodox, there is some wisdom in meeting together to talk about the future. I am not sure it is wise to make it an alternative Lambeth.

VIRTUEONLINE: Do you think the Church of England will split?

PHILLIPS: There is quite a lot of division in terms of fractured relationships, but because of our structure and our relationship as an established church that is unlikely. It is not the same kind of fragmentation you are seeing in the U.S.

VIRTUEONLINE: What would you like to see the American HOB do this coming week in New Orleans?

PHILLIPS: We want a statement of repentance and a new direction for the American Episcopal Church.

VIRTUEONLINE: Do you think we will get it?

PHILLIPS: No.

VIRTUEONLINE: In your opinion should the TEC split?

PHILLIPS: It is already splitting up.

VIRTUEONLINE: What do you think of the possibility of a North American Orthodox Anglican Province?

PHILLIPS: I think that would be a good development as long as it stands on the ground of historic Anglicanism. What all this says is that Dr. Williams is not neutral in the issues of sexual behavior and that he has been, all along, in sympathy with the revisionists.

VIRTUEONLINE: Thank you, Rev. Phillips.

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