Archbishop Cranmer

Gender justice and LGBT equality: Martyn Percy demands female cardinals and gay imams

April 5, 2017
453 Comments

In another 5,000-word essay, the Very Rev'd Professor Martyn Percy, Dean of Christ Church, Oxford, demands "a thorough and wholesale review" of discrimination in the Church of England. And by…

Bishop of Sheffield: Martyn Percy asked for bread; Sentamu and Welby give a stone

March 27, 2017
625 Comments

No doubt there has been a lot of frantic to-ing and fro-ing between the palaces of Bishopthorpe and Lambeth since Philip North felt unable to take up the nomination as…

Discrimination and discernment: an exercise in relativist supremacy

March 13, 2017
313 Comments

This is a guest post by the Rev’d Dr Gavin Ashenden, former Chaplain to the Queen. ___________________________ In the great amphitheatre of Twitter a gladiatorial combat recently took place between…

Those who attacked +Philip North have made same-sex blessing compromise impossible

March 10, 2017
358 Comments

Remember that "radical new Christian inclusion" Justin Welby spoke of in the wake of Synod's decision not to 'take note' of the Bishops' report on marriage and same-sex relations? Well,…

Abstaining: Martyn Percy’s excellent (but flawed) Lenten reflection (on Sheffield)

March 8, 2017
479 Comments

Martyn Percy has written an excellent Lenten reflection on abstaining, in the context of the appointment of the next Bishop of Sheffield. We wait with bated breath to see if…

Safespacing the Church: revising doctrine to suit mental health

March 7, 2017
238 Comments

Mental health matters, right? Yes, of course it does. And the Church of England is right to focus on this often-neglected area of human flourishing and wellbeing, with speeches in…

If Philip North can’t be Bishop of Sheffield, the Church of England ceases to be catholic

February 25, 2017
620 Comments

The Dean of Christ Church, Professor Martyn Percy, has issued an ultimatum circumspectly entitled 'Questions of Ambiguity and Integrity'. It's quite long, but essentially it boils down to a choice:…

Rev’d Dr Gavin Ashenden resigns as Chaplain to the Queen

January 22, 2017
225 Comments

After a conversation instigated by officials at Buckingham Palace, it is with regret that the Rev'd Dr Gavin Ashenden – theologian, academic, columnist and occasional contributor to this blog –…

Is it wrong to judge a blog by the comments it attracts?

January 9, 2017
539 Comments

"I guess I find it hard to take that particular blog very seriously really," wrote the Rev'd Canon Andrew Godsall, ministry development adviser in the Diocese of Exeter, of the…

The Reformation 500 years on: do we need 95 New Theses for the 21st century?

January 2, 2017
670 Comments

‘Protestants’ acquired their name because they were first and foremost, protesters. They publicly declared their dissent. In the expressing of dissent from and rejection of prevailing mores, they understood themselves…

Daniel McArthur leads the UK’s Top 100 most inspirational Christians 2016

December 31, 2016
587 Comments

By popular democratic consensus (which some may term 'populism') Daniel McArthur has been chosen as the most inspirational Christian of 2016. The swell of nominations received for him eclipsed those…

Understanding the Ministry of the Church Today: a lecture in honour of the late Rev’d Canon Dr Ian Tomlinson

November 26, 2016
137 Comments

The Rev'd Canon Dr Ian Tomlinson died peacefully at his home on Monday 31st October. He had asked the Very Rev'd Professor Martyn Percy, Dean of Christ Church, Oxford, to…

Martyn Percy: Justin Welby “is preparing the ground for a complete volte-face on human sexuality”

November 15, 2016
141 Comments

Here follows Martyn Percy's response to Adrian Hilton's second letter on 'Renewal & Reform' and the ministry and leadership of Justin Welby. It was a simultaneous exchange with Hilton's third…

Would the appointment of Bishop Martyn Percy offer remedy against Justin Welby’s asserted theological ignorance?

November 14, 2016
20 Comments

Here follows Adrian Hilton's response to Martyn Percy's second letter on 'Renewal & Reform' (R&R) and the ministry and leadership of Justin Welby: Dear Martyn, Thank you for your letter.…

Martyn Percy: the Church of England is being “reformed by bankers.. theology is ruthlessly excluded.. populism and narcissism are in the ascendancy”

November 11, 2016
207 Comments

Following Martyn Percy's first letter and Adrian Hilton's response, here is Martyn Percy's response to Adrian Hilton's first letter: Dear Adrian, Thanks for your letter, which gave me plenty to…

“Is Justin Welby not showing the world Jesus?”

November 10, 2016
116 Comments

Here follows Adrian Hilton's response to Martyn Percy's first letter: Dear Martyn, Thank you for your letter. I appreciated the account of your conversation with the “senior commentator on religious…

Adrian Hilton on Justin Welby: “he is challenging the ‘principalities and powers’ of institutional existence”

November 8, 2016
141 Comments

Here follows Adrian Hilton's (yes, Ed.) first letter to Martyn Percy, reflecting on the mission of the Church of England and the character and leadership of Justin Welby, Archbishop of…

Martyn Percy on Justin Welby: “there is a marked absence of salient and resonant ‘God-talk’, or any persuasive public theology”

November 7, 2016
148 Comments

Here follows the first of a six-letter exchange between the Very Rev'd Professor Martyn Percy, Dean of Christ Church, Oxford, and Dr Adrian Hilton, Editor of this blog, on the…

New Bishop of Oxford enthroned with L-plates

October 1, 2016
99 Comments

Bishops don't much like the word 'enthroned' these days. Perhaps it's a bit too imperial or exalted for modern notions of accessibility and equatability. So now we focus on their…