London -- Church of England clergy will be able to enter into same-sex civil partnerships in Britain under national legislation set to come into force on 5 December, but they will be told that they must remain chaste. The position was explained at a media conference on 25 July by the Bishop of Norwich, Graham James, who headed an Anglican working group on the issue. He spoke on a pastoral statement by the Anglican House of Bishops on the country's Civil Partnerships law. This allows same sex couples to register a legal commitment to each other and enjoy equal rights and responsibilities on matters like maintenance, inheritance, pension and employment benefits.
The House of Bishops is one of the three chambers in the General Synod, the parliament of the Church of England. The other two are the House of Clergy and the House of Laity.
The statement noted that the bishops did not regard entering into a civil partnership as intrinsically incompatible with holy orders, provided the person concerned was willing to give assurances to his or her bishop that their relationship met the standards for the clergy set out in the document "Issues in Human Sexuality". This says homosexual clergy should abstain from sex.
Bishop James said the denomination did not want to exclude gay or lesbian lay people who were unable to accept a life of sexual abstinence. If they had registered a same-sex partnership they should not be asked to give assurances about the nature of their relationship before being admitted to baptism, confirmation and communion. However clergy would not provide services of blessing for those same-sex couples who registered a civil partnership.
The bishop told Ecumenical News International the church had no idea how many clergy might wish to register same-sex partnerships. He said they should consult with their bishops and it would be a matter of discussion between them.
If they refused to give an assurance on the nature of their relationship it might be dealt with under legislation relating to clergy discipline now before parliament. He emphasised that the new civil partnerships were not "gay marriage" and that the government had stated it had no intention of introducing "same-sex marriage".
The Rev. Richard Kirker, general secretary of the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement, said: "Those in the priesthood are singled out - with very dubious theological reasoning - for special scrutiny. To be faithful to their calling and to their partners they will have to lie. A church which forces its faithful clergy and bishops to lie is doomed."
