Christian Today – July 2, 2021
The Bishop of Liverpool, Paul Bayes, has ramped up pressure on the Church of England to allow clergy to bless same-sex relationships by making the controversial call for a “gender neutral marriage canon.”
The call comes in advance of elections to the governing body, the General Synod, where evangelicals are seeking to increase numbers in a bid to protect the doctrine of the Church.
Speaking to a national conference on Saturday for revisionist activists in the CofE, Bishop Bayes said: “I want to see a gender-neutral marriage canon, such as they have in the Episcopal Church (in the U.S.) or in the Scottish Episcopal Church.
“And as a necessary but not sufficient first step I want to see conscientious freedom for the Church’s ministers and local leaders to honor, recognize and, yes indeed, to bless same-sex unions whether civil partnerships or civil marriages.”
Bishop Bayes was addressing the Movement of Supporting Anglicans for an Inclusive Church (MoSAIC), which launched in February.
The group announced: “The movement aims to have a presence in each diocese of the Church of England, where it will work with local clergy and laity on projects that promote inclusion for all those who are currently marginalized by the Church of England — whether that be due to race, ability, sexuality, gender or gender identity.”