A HEADLESS CHURCH OF ENGLAND?

November 2011 article by Jonathan Thompson

We might well ask why the Prime Minister, David Cameron, recently had to make certain remarks last week to Anglicans in Christ Church, Oxford about the moral leadership that the C of E should be taking! Is not that the role of the Archbishop of Canterbury?

What exactly did the Prime Minister say?

· He said he believed that Britain is a Christian country

· He warned against a secularist culture

· He defined Christian values as: responsibility; hard work; charity; compassion; humility; self -sacrifice, love; pride in working for the common good and honouring the social obligations we have to one another, to our families and our communities.

An editorial in the “Church Times” immediately attacked him for what it saw as his call for the Church to be a guardian for the nation’s morals (i.e. that the clergy should have condemned last Summer’s rioters) It said: “The Church is not a transcendental branch of the police force, and Christianity is not merely a moral code.”

We could be forgiven for wondering whether Christianity as practiced by many Anglicans today, is even a moral code. Its’ leaders are reluctant to make moral judgements - which perhaps explains the Church’s confused attitudes to, for example, homosexuality. Shamefully, the church won’t stand up for the institution of heterosexual marriage or promote the wisdom of the conventional family, even though both are part of Bible teaching and the perceived Christmas message.

Making judgement of theological principals is exactly what the Church of England should be doing and not pandering to minority groups whose non-biblical lifestyles are at odds with true Christian values, by remaining tight lipped!

To judge by the content of his speech last week, call me “Dave” is arguably more holy than much of the clergy of this states religion and more prone to see the true God given values he reads from the word of God.

2 Peter 3:3 “in the last days, mockers will come with mockery, walking after their own lusts; and saying, where is the promise of his coming?” NIV

To the clergy, theirs is a profession with the aim to not upset anyone and not to speak out against wrongdoers. Imagine if John the Baptist had been so inclined? He would not have spoken out against the tyranny of Herod, who had taken his own brothers wife as a mistress. He may have kept his head, but he would not have kept his faith, he would not have been true to God’s word and he would not have received the testimony from the Lord Jesus Christ who stated that “For I say unto you, among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than John.”

Finally, let us be reminded of the Apostle Paul’s advice to his flock at Philippi Chapter 4:8-9: Finally, brothers whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me – put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.”