NO NEW lead bishop for the Living in Love and Faith (LLF) process is to be appointed “presently”, it was confirmed last week.
In June, the Bishop of Leicester, the Rt Revd Martyn Snow, stepped down from the position of lead bishop, saying that, while he hoped that the Church would have the option to search out a way forward “on matters of sexuality, relationships, and marriage . . . I don’t think that may occur under my leadership” (News, 6 June).
In a press release on the time, thanking Bishop Snow for his work, the Archbishop of York, and the Bishop of London, the Rt Revd Sarah Mullally, said that the LLF Programme Board of bishops would proceed to oversee the method.
Asked on 26 June whether a recent lead bishop was to be appointed, the secretary-general of the Archbishops’ Council, William Nye, said that there was “no news” on this. An update on LLF published that day, as a part of the papers for the July meeting of the General Synod, made no reference as to whether a recent lead bishop could be appointed.
On Wednesday, nonetheless, an update posted on the Church of England website confirmed that Archbishop Cottrell and Bishop Mullally “don’t intend to appoint a recent Lead Bishop for LLF presently”.
The position of lead bishop was previously held by Bishop Mullally. Bishop Snow was appointed to the position in November 2023, initially because the co-lead bishop alongside the Bishop of Newcastle, Dr Helen-Ann Hartley. He proceeded to steer the LLF implementation process alone after she stepped down firstly of February last 12 months (News, 1 February 2024).
At the time of Dr Hartley’s resignation, Bishop Snow said that he would remain within the position provided that one other co-lead was appointed. The Church Times understands that a alternative was sought, but none could possibly be found. Instead, the Programme Board of bishops was appointed to oversee the method.
Last week’s update confirmed that the Programme Board “will take collective responsibility for leading the method”, and would prepare draft proposals that are to be delivered to the House of Bishops later this 12 months.
The update listed the present membership of the Programme Board: the Bishop of Sheffield, Dr Pete Wilcox; the Interim Bishop of Liverpool, the Rt Revd Ruth Worsley; the Dean of Bristol, the Very Revd Mandy Ford; and the Bishop of Oxford, Dr Steven Croft.
The board is chaired by Archbishop Cottrell, and has 4 ex officio members: the chair and the vice-chair of the House of Laity, Dr Jamie Harrison and Alison Coulter; and the 2 prolocutors of the House of Clergy, the Ven. Luke Miller, and Canon Kate Wharton.
The staff team supporting the Programme Board will, from August, be led by the Revd Helen Fraser, on secondment from her current position as Deputy Director and Head of Vocations within the Ministry Development team at Church House.
The previous programme director, Dr Nick Shepherd, is moving to a recent position as Deputy Director for Insights and Engagement.
The update also reiterated the expectation that, within the autumn, the House of Bishops would consider a “package” of proposals on standalone services of blessing for same-sex couples, together with “pastoral reassurance” for individuals who oppose their introduction.
These proposals are to be delivered to the February 2026 meeting of the General Synod, for approval.
Simultaneously, the House of Bishops is predicted to “agree a timetable for consideration of the query of clergy entering same-sex civil marriages”. This would also “likely have to be discussed at a General Synod”, but no indication is given within the update as as to whether that is prone to be in February next 12 months.
In October 2023, the Church Times revealed that the House of Bishops had held an indicative vote, behind closed doors, on permitting clergy to enter same-sex marriages; there was a small majority (18-15) in favour of a change in policy (News, 26 October 2023).
LAST week’s update included details of “informal diocesan consultations” on LLF. Some dioceses had “now decided to postpone these to a later date”, it said, while others are choosing conversations “without the detailed consultation and formal feedback”.
“The Programme Board recognises that different dioceses will take different approaches and that some dioceses may decide to pause holding these. However, the Programme Board would value feedback, in whatever form, to assist with the duty of developing proposals,” the update said.
The Church Times understands that, at recent diocesan synods in Winchester and Oxford, attempts were made to “Move to next business”, which might forestall any discussion of LLF.
In Winchester, the motion passed, and so no consultation took place. In Oxford, it fell by a narrow margin, allowing the discussion to proceed.
In his opening remarks on the diocesan synod, the Bishop of Winchester, the Rt Revd Philip Mounstephen, said: “We will spend time taking a look at the LLF process on this meeting, and rightly so. But I believe there’s an increasing feeling that the method has reasonably run into the sand, and I’m not entirely sure where we go together with it next. But it is unfortunately true that this has been an attritional process, and eroded trust and increased divisions across the Church.”
At the London diocesan synod, the Church Times understands that feedback was presented which suggested that a majority of parishes wouldn’t opt into the scheme that Bishop Snow had proposed — which involves selecting to have oversight from a bishop who shares the views of the parish — on the premise that such provision wouldn’t be “sufficient”.
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