Rainbow flag on Synod live stream to be investigated
BEFORE the end of business on the Thursday, the Secretary General, William Nye, spoke briefly to address the appearance of a rainbow flag on the live stream after the completion of the Living in Love and Faith debate earlier that day. An investigation is under way into how this happened. The audio-visual team have assured Mr Nye that this was not carried out by any of them, and they were “horrified” by what had happened. Mr Nye said that he would publish the results of the investigation as soon as possible.
House of Laity convene historic meeting
THE House of Laity convened on Wednesday morning of the General Synod, before the order of business for the day began, to consider a schedule of “Gravamina and Reformanda”. It is believed to be the first time that the House has initiated such a procedure. The gravamen, proposed by Rebecca Hunt (Portsmouth), asserted that the House of Bishops had “avoided a process of synodical liturgical approval for the new forms of service”. She argued that the issue was of “great significance to the laity and clergy of the Church of England, and it is wrong not to consult them formally having committed to doing so during the LLF process”. The reformandum instructed the Bishops to withdraw the proposals for the blessing of same-sex couples and submit them instead for approval under Canon B2. A motion for the item to be discussed was put forward by Debbie Buggs (London), but was defeated in a counted vote — understood to be 73 in favour, 93 against — and so the debate did not proceed.
Standing Orders extended for hybrid meetings
AS A first piece of business, the General Synod voted to re-approve temporary provisions permitting remote sessions. Canon Joyce Jones (Ely), the chair of the Standing Orders Committee, introduced a motion to extend the temporary Standing Orders that allowed for some Synod members to join the session online. There were plans to make these provisions permanent, but, while that enabling legislation worked its way through the Synod, the temporary Standing Orders were needed in the interim. The motion was clearly carried, and the operation of the relevant Standing Orders was extended to 5 February 2026.
Board of Education Measure 2021 approved
THE General Synod voted in favour of the Diocesan Board of Education Measure on Wednesday afternoon. Moving the motion, Canon Simon Butler (Southwark) described the Measure as “a peak geek moment”. It would add church schools — “a crucial part of our ministry and mission” — to the regulations covering who could administer holy communion. This involved, he said, “a bit of tidying up” by providing a new definition of “church school” and “head teacher”. “We have to do this so our laws make sense.”
Synod prays for Syria and Turkey after earthquakes
WHEN the Archbishop of Canterbury prorogued the Synod until its next group of sessions in July, he led the Synod in prayer that the Anglican Communion would remain as one despite the Synod’s decisions earlier; for the forthcoming Anglican Consultative Council meeting in Ghana; and for all caught up in the earthquake disaster in Turkey and Syria.
New project to consider gender-neutral language for God
A NEW project will examine the use of gendered language in liturgy, after discussions between the Liturgical Commission and the Faith and Order Commission. In a written question, the Revd Joanna Stobart (Bath & Wells) asked for an update on the steps being taken to “develop more inclusive language in our authorized liturgy and to provide more options for those who wish to use authorized liturgy and speak of God in a non-gendered way”. The Bishop of Lichfield, Dr Michael Ipgrave, said that the two commissions would begin a joint project in the spring, after “several years” of dialogue on the question, but emphasised that any formal changes would require Synod’s approval.