Church of England synod to decide on women bishops

From The Irish Times-

THE CHURCH of England General Synod is to decide today if it can go ahead with plans to appoint women bishops. This followed last-minute disagreements over a compromise that would allow objecting Anglicans to be ministered to by a man.

The issue has divided the Church of England for decades, despite the appointment of women in the Anglican Church. Some now fear it could lead to an exodus of traditional churchgoers to the Catholic Church. Dozens of clergy and hundreds of parishioners have already quit in protest, while significantly larger numbers are expected to go unless they get a guarantee they will not have to deal with a woman bishop.

Under the compromise to be put forward today, a male bishop would be appointed to have a “flying” role – co-ordinate jurisdiction, as it is called – in a diocese where a parish votes against having a female appointee.

If accepted, the compromise would significantly weaken the authority of a woman bishop. because her male counterpart would have a “co-ordinate” role rather than the one envisaged by Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams, where he would have operated under “delegated” powers from the woman bishop.

More here-

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/world/2012/0208/1224311465570.html