The Latest Missives

Any idea (hope, perhaps) that the hierarchy of the Church of England had got its act together after a recent series of mis-steps was scotched a couple of days ago when the Archbishops sent out what appeared to be a draft encyclical about arrangements for administering communion in churches over Christmas. Since the beginning of the pandemic we have got used to the laity receiving communion in bread only, an anomalous situation but one perfectly acceptable legally and theologically. Their Graces of Canterbury and York decided that this was a shame, as most of us agree, and wrote to the effect that the priest could intinct the Host before giving it to each communicant. They did this in a letter which had to be rescinded hours later in favour of an updated version which corrected the grammatical and legal errors, but that still left the basic issue untouched of how practical it is to dip a wafer or even a cube of leavened bread into a chalice and then hand it to a communicant without it dripping, without contaminating the wine, or without hands touching which they are not supposed to do, notwithstanding the excessive detail in which the letter described how it might be done. One might have the strange impression that neither of Their Graces had ever presided at the Eucharist before. The country echoed to the sound of diocesan bishops, to their credit, incredulously choking, stressing to their clergy that they had seen nothing of this before it was published, and stating that it was probably better if everyone continue as they were. 

The idea that the Archbishops are now trying to make policy on such a practical matter without talking to anyone outside their own offices is quite bad enough, but they also took the opportunity to advise what is arguably a complete breach of canon law. Non-alcoholic wine is permissible at communion, the letter said. Now Canon B17 defines wine as 'fermented juice of the grape', and it's a nice matter whether it remains that once you artificially remove the product of fermentation, that is, the alcohol. I have since seen Anglicans anxiously debating what is, and isn't wine, or what is brought to the table, as it were, by the alcohol. Now sacraments must in some way represent the thing signified: the matter they employ must be capable of bearing the symbolic meanings and resonances of the act, and canonical statements of what is or is not valid matter represent the consensus of the mind of the Church about what can or can't do so. You could see debates about the matter of other sacraments - whether you can ordain women, or celebrate marriages with two people of the same sex - as subsets of this issue. What seems clear, however, is that two metropolitan bishops can't change the Mind of the Church on their own as though they were a sort of Anglican Papacy.

Meanwhile the Diocese of Manchester is advertising for seven full-time Area Dean positions. This is a diocese that can hardly pay its stipendiary curates. Traditionally Area Dean is a thankless job that clergy do in addition to being a parish incumbent, but over recent years it has been drawn upwards into the hierarchy, transmitting and implementing the management initiatives of the new breed of activist bishops who think their mission is to 'transform' their areas of charge. The new Area Deans in Manchester are to 'play a significant part in our exciting transformation', 'to implement pioneering and strategic decisions', 'bringing about change and transformation to the way we are church'. 

At St Stephen's House I did a long project on 'Catholic Mission' and envisaged a time when stipendiary clergy would be something like little bishops in their own areas, tying together a series of Christian communities which would not necessarily be parish churches. To be honest, this would not be all that very different from the situation in many big parishes in the past: my reflections were helped on their way by the weeks I spent on placement in the parish of Poplar, which before World War Two had half a dozen churches and about ten curates all presided over by the Rector from his Georgian pile next to All Saints Church. Moving towards seeing the Area Deanery as the fundamental organisational unit, rather than the traditional parish, isn't a million miles away from what I was thinking about some 16 years ago now. 

I wouldn't mind that, although I am feeling old enough and tired enough not to look forward much to reorganising the way I think in this way. If the bishops, if our bishop, would be honest and talk humbly, realistically and genuinely about a way of advancing which might stand a better chance of making sure we are still bringing people into contact with the God who loves them in generations to come (presuming there are any generations to come, which must always be a caveat in these times of climate emergency), I would give them a hearing. But what we get - and forgive me because I am just sounding off, really - is management guff and corporate bollocks, and I'm very much afraid I am coming to the conclusion that there are few less honest and straightforward groups of people than the episcopal bench of the Church of England. And as the letter on intinction shows, an episode every bit as messy as trying to dip a bit of bread in a cup of wine and then give it to someone, they're not even very good at it.