Women to attend bishops' meetings
2013-02-08 21:15
London - Women clergy will be allowed to attend meetings
of the bishops who lead the Church of England for the first time in response to
the vote to block women from becoming bishops, it was announced on Friday.
At least eight senior women clergy will attend and speak
at meetings of the House of Bishops, although they will not be allowed to vote.
The move has been taken as England's state church deals
with the fall-out from the failed attempt to create women bishops in November
last year.
In its biggest decision since backing the introduction of
women priests 20 years ago, just enough lay members of the Church voted against
the measure to defeat it, following years of wrangling between traditionalists
and liberals.
Supporters of the planned change said one reason for its
defeat was the failure of the House of Bishops to consult women clergy about
drafting appropriate legislation to accommodate traditionalists who do not want
to worship under a woman bishop.
The decision on female clergy was made during a special
meeting of the House of Bishops, one of the three houses of the General Synod,
the Church's national assembly, at Lambeth Palace in London.
In a statement the Church said: "The House of
Bishops of the CofE has today expressed its encouragement and support for new
robust processes and steps in bringing forward to General Synod the necessary
legislation to consecrate women to the episcopate.
"It decided that until such time as there are six
female members of the House, following the admission of women to the
episcopate, a number of senior women clergy should be given the right to attend
and speak at meetings of the House as participant observers."
The issue of women bishops will be put before the general
synod in July, when modernisers hope to take steps to rectify what they regard
as an embarrassing episode.
