Divisions within the Church of England are coming to light: its members are debating on Wednesday a proposal to authorize the blessing of same-sex marriages, failing to actually celebrate these unions.
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After almost six years of consultation on the subject, the Protestant Church of England announced last month that it would not allow same-sex marriages.
On the other hand, it intends to offer them a blessing of their union or their civil marriage, an offer which satisfies neither the supporters of religious homosexual marriages, nor their opponents within the institution.
Gathered in general synod in London, the elected body which meets two or three times a year to settle questions of doctrine and policy, its nearly 500 members are called upon to discuss and vote on this proposal.
The debate comes after years of mounting political pressure on the Anglican Church to reform its approach to same-sex marriage, legalized in England in 2013.
The Anglican Church, dominant in the United Kingdom under the aegis of the Church of England whose monarch – Charles III – is the supreme governor, brings together 85 million believers in the world and is also present in many countries, especially some from sub-Saharan Africa where homosexuality is still considered a crime.
Prior to the synod, the Church of England also apologized to LGBT people for the “hostile and homophobic” attitude they may have faced in some parishes.
But the whole of this approach arouses criticism within the institution itself.
Synod member and LGBT+ activist Jayne Ozanne called the church’s apology “empty words.”
“We have heard apologies for years from our bishops, but no action,” she told AFP.
“It’s like an abusive relationship where someone keeps hitting you and then says, ‘I’m sorry, I’m sorry,'” she said.
Opposite, the very conservative Evangelical Council of the Church of England also opposes the reform, believing that it will create “more divisions” within the Church.
“We believe the Church of England’s responsibility is to serve the nation by reciting the Gospel, not to compromise with the dominant culture,” he said in a statement.
“Profound Differences”
The words of the Bishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, spiritual leader of the Anglicans, were thus badly perceived within certain Anglican churches abroad, which often defend a tougher position vis-à-vis the LGBT + community.
The latter acknowledged the “deep and passionate differences” on these issues on Monday at the opening of the synod, which is due to last four days.
“But let’s not caricature those of us who we disagree with, and those who try to build their lives away from God,” he said.
“Too many people, especially around sexuality, have heard words of rejection,” he added.
Although the proposal being debated on Wednesday is not intended to change Church of England law and therefore does not require a formal vote to approve it, synod members are called upon to vote on a motion of support and possible amendments.
And a rejection would make the proposed same-sex union blessings nearly impossible to implement.
The Church of England, while generally more liberal, is not the only Christian church to face tensions over this issue.
Within the Catholic Church, Pope Francis has created controversy by adopting a relatively liberal position on homosexuality, judging that those who criminalize it are “wrong”.
But it does not deviate from the line of Catholic teaching on marriage, defined as the union between a man and a woman for the purpose of procreation and in 2021 the Vatican reaffirmed that it considers homosexuality “a fishing”.