Civil Partnerships - An Open Letter to English Bishops
8th August 2005
Rev Paul Perkin

At first sight the House of Bishops pastoral statement on Civil Partnerships appears helpful, and more reassuring than it might have been. However, the insufficiency of the statement in two important areas needs to be pointed out – they represent a weakness in the pastoral response amounting to a fatal flaw.

1. You affirm the Primates Letter 2003, on public rites for the blessing of same-sex unions: ‘We as a body cannot support the authorisation of such rites’. Moreover clergy ‘should not provide services of blessing for those who register a civil partnership’. However, ‘where clergy are approached by people asking for prayer in relation to entering into a civil partnership they should respond pastorally and sensitively in the light of the circumstances of each case’. Of course the clergy should always be pastoral and sensitive, but what is this saying? It suggests that homosexual unions may not be blessed publicly and formally, but may be privately and informally!

The rest!