ENGLAND: Five million quid down the drain as Lambeth Conference ends
by Damian Thompson
The Telegraph
8/7/2008
Well, that was a waste of everyone's time. The Archbishop of Canterbury's spin doctors may pretend that the £5 million Lambeth Conference was an unexpected success because the 650 bishops didn't actually come to blows. Oh, please.
Was the Lambeth Conference really a success?
I'll tell you what was an unexpected success: the Gafcon meeting of anti-gay conservatives in Jerusalem, which managed to keep well within the boundaries of the Anglican Communion even though 230 of its bishops boycotted Lambeth.
Gafcon put the wind up the Lambeth bishops so thoroughly that most of them were more than happy to shift the blame for the troubles of the Anglican Communion on to gay-ordaining American Episcopalians. And, in the absence of votes, they didn't have to put their hands up in order to do so. They just vaguely assented to a smorgasbord of "structures" dreamt up by Rowan and his allies which are targeted at liberals but which will take years to come into force - by which time the Episcopal Church will be marrying and consecrating every gay and lesbian it can lay its hands on.
Rowan's cheerleaders were ready to declare the conference a triumph of statesmanship when Jonathan Wynne-Jones broke the story in the Sunday Telegraph that two senior bishops - Winchester and Exeter - were asking Dr Williams to organise a peaceful separation between the "core Communion" and the liberal fringe. Indeed, Bishop Michael Scott-Joynt of Winchester explicitly said that Rowan's "covenant" scheme was unlikely to work.
Later on Sunday, Ruth Gledhill of the Times reported on her blog that "whispers of discontent" about Dr Williams were circulating among Church of England bishops. She talked about a "photogenic youngish evangelical" being talked up as a possible successor. That strikes me as an excessively flattering description of James Jones of Liverpool, but he's ambitious enough, that's for sure.
More "successes" at Lambeth: Cardinal Walter Kasper, normally keen on observing ecumenical niceties, dropped in to announce that any hope of Rome ever recognising Anglican orders was now extinguished.
And then there's the bill: £5 million, of which the Anglican Communion is probably going to have to borrow over £1 million from the Church Commissioners. And nothing to show for it.
---Damian Thompson is a leader writer for the Daily Telegraph and editor-in-chief of a major Catholic newspaper.
| Poster | Thread |
|---|---|
| Cennydd | Posted: 2008/8/7 20:57 Updated: 2008/8/7 20:57 |
Home away from home   Joined: 2005/10/30 From: Los Banos, CA, Anglican Diocese of San Joaquin Posts: 6684 |
 Re: ENGLAND: Five million quid down the drain as Lambeth ...Seems like there's a slight difference in the amount of money wasted at Lambeth: Mr Thompson says 5 million pounds, while in her webcast today, Mrs Schori claims that they are only 2 million pounds short!
And ++Rowan Williams will probably come to the States for a fund-raising soiree to help make up for the difference! Guess where that money's going to come from! Cennydd |
| Ikerliker | Posted: 2008/8/8 1:38 Updated: 2008/8/8 1:38 |
Home away from home  Joined: 2007/1/16 From: PA Posts: 2046 |
Re: ENGLAND: Five million quid down the drain as Lambeth ... It probably cost 5 million pounds but they are short 2 million which is how it took it. Either way, the writer summed up the ridiculous spectacle that accomplished nothing. ++Akinola was right. It was an Episcopal Jamboree and nothing more.
If somebody doesn't jettison Rowan soon, I will totally lose all respect for the monarchy and the Prime Minister. I never thought I would live to see the day I felt this way. Total disgust! |
| Cennydd | Posted: 2008/8/8 2:21 Updated: 2008/8/8 3:15 |
Home away from home Joined: 2005/10/30 From: Los Banos, CA, Anglican Diocese of San Joaquin Posts: 6684 |
Re: ENGLAND: Five million quid down the drain as Lambeth ... Elizabeth II is by law the Defender of the Faith and Supreme Governor of the Church of England, but so far, she has shirked her duties to Christ and His Church. Just going to Church on Sunday mornings by worshipping in her Chapel doesn't cut it. Neither does making an occasional Royal Visit to St Paul's.
The Queen is by repute a Christian lady, and I understand that, by law, she cannot interfere in the affairs of the Church, but she can at least use the moral suasion of her office to influence Canterbury and York to keep the Church headed in the traditional direction. For whatever reason, she has chosen not to do that, and as a result, the Church is suffering because of her inaction. This is another good reason for her subjects to demand disestablishment. Cennydd |
| Drummie | Posted: 2008/8/8 5:21 Updated: 2008/8/8 5:22 |
Home away from home  Joined: 2007/9/27 From: Posts: 505 |
Re: ENGLAND: Five million quid down the drain as Lambeth ... Why is it that so many people feel as this weriter stated, "I'll tell you what was an unexpected success: the Gafcon meeting of anti-gay conservatives in Jerusalem."
Theh primates of GAFCON are NOT anti-gay. They are anti heresy. There is much more underfoot than Vicky Gene and his rump roast friend. Sure the GAFCON Bishops are anti gay in that they will no countenace same sex marriage or ordination of active homosexuals. They and we are not the bigots that the liberals try to paint them as. They are simply Christian Bishops which is more than be said about KJS, VGR, Archbishop of Canada and Archbishop of Canterbury |
