31 October 2025
A lot has been happening in recent weeks in the realm of ‘Living in Love and Faith’, the Church of England’s document on human sexuality, and we wanted to make you aware of recent developments.
On 15 October the House of Bishops issued a press update which caused considerable dismay to those committed to a more inclusive church.
The following day, the Bishop of Manchester issued to all clergy in the diocese a letter in response to that update, explaining his stance, particularly on the use (or non-use) of prayers of blessing for same sex partnerships.
In response to the House of Bishops’ update, Inclusive Church, of which St James and Emmanuel is a member, issued this open letter, which is available to sign online.
On 26 October, the Dean of Southwark Cathedral preached a very powerful sermon on the subject, which has attracted a great deal of online comment.
James Wilson, one of our Deputy Wardens, is a member of the General Synod of the Church of England. He sits on the Evangelical Forum at Synod, which attempts to cater for the needs of inclusive evangelicals. In November 2023, his address to Synod about becoming a radical inclusive church was widely shared.
James shares his thoughts on the recent developments:
For the last few years, the General Synod has discussed the ‘Living in Love and Faith’ process which proposed modest changes to make the Church of England more inclusive of LGBTQ+ people by introducing services of blessing for same-sex couples and allowing people in same-sex marriages to pursue ordination.
For many representatives on General Synod, like myself, who long for the day when LGBTQ+ people are fully and unconditionally affirmed by and included in the Church of England, these changes fall short of where we want to end up but, nonetheless, represented a step in the right direction and we hoped that these would be introduced next year.
Unfortunately, I and many others feel that both the recent House of Bishops update and the Bishop of Manchester’s letter amount to further delay and a kicking of these rather modest changes into the long grass.
We are also very conscious of the pain and feeling of marginalisation that this backtracking and further delay causes to many LGBTQ+ Christians – powerfully articulated in the Dean of Southwark’s recent sermon.
Inclusive Church’s open letter expresses disappointment at the recent statement on LLF, and calls on the Huse of Bishops to offer leadership and direction that honours the inclusive majority of the Church of England and truly values LGBTQ+ people. Please read the letter and consider signing it.
Finally, I know that whatever the Church of England does and decides nationally, the wardens and leadership at St James and Emmanuel are fully committed to making our church a church where everyone is welcome.
