Britannia Radio

David Cameron to back homosexual nomination for Bishop   The Crown Nominations Commission, the body responsible for selecting bishops, meets on the 5th and 6th of July 2010 to decide on two names, in order of preference, to submit to David Cameron as the new Bishop of Southwark.   Prime Minister David Cameron has been tipped to give his backing to openly homosexual Dr Jeffrey John, the Dean of St Albans. Dr John is seen as the front-runner for the Southwark job. He entered a civil partnership in 2006. The Prime Minister has been actively promoting the homosexual rights agenda since he was elected leader of the Conservative Party.   Canon Chris Sugden comments on the possible appointment of homosexual Dr Jeffrey John as Bishop of Southwark   BBC Radio 4 'Today' 5 Jul 10 (7m 4s)     The move has upset many members of the Church who warned that it could by seriously divisive and damaging.  The Rev Paul Dawson commented: ‘Our view is that it would be a very serious step for the Church of England if he were to become a bishop and that it would cause very serious damage within the Church of England itself. We think that if this were to happen, then the sort of split that has happened in America would be precipitated here.’   Please e-mail a letter to the Prime Minister and the Archbishop of Canterbury as soon as possible at the following addresses:   Rt. Hon. David Cameron MP Prime Minister 10 Downing Street London SW1A 2AA   Email the Prime Minister’s Office   Fax: 020 7925 0918   The Most Rev. and the Rt Hon. the Archbishop of Canterbury House of Lords London SW1A 0PW   Tel: 020 7219 5353   Email: contact@lambethpalace.org.uk   When writing to the Prime Minister please note the following points: Britain is a historically Christian country and the majority of British citizens believe that marriage is between a man and a woman. Choosing a homosexual bishop who is in a civil partnership will be hugely damaging to the church of England and could lead to a split of the world-wide Anglican communion. Forcing the equalities agenda onto a church whose members overwhelmingly subscribe to orthodox Christian morality is placing a political agenda above the religious conscience of many, including many orthodox parishes and clergy in that Diocese. When writing to the Archbishop of Canterbury please note the following points: It is the orthodox and historic position of the church that homosexual acts are sinful. Dr Jeffrey John has been in a sexual relationship with a man before, and although he has stated that he is now celibate, he has never repented of his previous behaviour. Choosing a homosexual bishop who is in a civil partnership will be hugely damaging to the church of England and could lead to a split of the world-wide Anglican communion. As leader of the Anglican Church God has placed the Archbishop in a position of great authority and he is responsible for standing for truth and righteousness whatever the moral or political climate of the day. Please honour these two leaders in your letters and pray for them.  The Academies Bill The Academies Bill is progressing rapidly through the House of Lords and is due for Report Stage on the 6th and 7th of July, with a Third Reading on the 13th of July. It will allow existing maintained schools to convert to Academies. For the full CCFON and CLC briefing on the Bill please click here. An amendment has been proposed for a debate and/or vote on 6th or 7th July by Baroness Massey of Darwen and Baroness Flather (both Honorary Associates of the National Secular Society) making Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE) a curriculum requirement for Academies. This would mean that there would be compulsory sex education (including same-sex education) at Academies. Christian organisations campaigned to prevent PSHE becoming a statutory requirement in the Children Schools and Families Act 2010 and it would be a major setback if it came in by the backdoor through the Academies Bill. Please pray that this will be unsuccessful. The Academy arrangement is largely based on a funding agreement between the Secretary of State and a body called the “Academy Trust”. A potential pitfall for faith schools is that important issues might be omitted from the funding agreement. There are important statutory details found in existing education laws and regulations for maintained schools which should be included on the face of the Bill. These are matters such as allowing religious schools to teach RE according to their ethos, ensuring that schools comply with collective worship requirements and ensuring that parents have the right to withdraw their children from sex education lessons. Please pray that the Bill would include all of the necessary detail for the ethos of faith schools to be protected.  Andrea Minichiello Williams Christian Concern for our Nation http://www.ccfon.org