The atmosphere at the Church of England’s General Synod after it passed its shameful anti-Israel motion was frighteningly complacent. From where I was sitting in the press gallery on July 13th the members in the chamber seemed to be very pleased with themselves.
But unless these largely middle-class Anglicans had returned home to an enclosed-order monastery after their meeting in the York University central hall, how could they fail to register the impact of the nuclear bomb they had just let off?
The Jewish Chronicle reported on the vote:
The Church of England’s governing body, the General Synod, has voted overwhelmingly to encourage members to “engage with” a Palestinian-Christian document that accuses Israel of genocide, despite warnings from the Chief Rabbi and other Jewish leaders of the potential damage to interfaith relations.
Sir Ephraim Mirvis had condemned ‘A Moment of Truth: Faith in a Time of Genocide’ [also known as Kairos II], produced last year by Kairos Palestine, an ecumenical movement of Palestinian Christians, as a “shocking” document that contains “so much falsehood” against Israel, which “can only harm the cause of peace”.
This was echoed by Lord Carey, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, who said: “As supreme governor of the Church of England, and patron of the Council of Christians and Jews, the King could, through no fault of his own, find that the Church he represents is now committed to promoting a document that “risks undermining decades of careful relationship-building”, in the words of Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis.”
Mirvis posted on X after the vote:
It is shameful that the Church of England General Synod has recommended engagement with Kairos II. This is a document full of falsehood, which openly rejects dialogue, uses extreme rhetoric to challenge the very existence of Israel and objects to existing peace agreements in the region. Though it poses as a route to understanding, Kairos II in fact functions as an egregious barrier to it, reducing one of the world’s most complex conflicts to a single, warped narrative, which can only harm the cause of peace. This is a sad day for Jewish-Christian relations.
In a piece on her Substack headed ‘The Unfathomable darkness of the Church of England’, Times and Jewish Chronicle columnist Melanie Phillips explained why the vote matters:
In post-religious Britain, people assume that the church is irrelevant. It is not. Even among those who are resolutely secular, the assumption remains that priests of the church are a moral lodestar representing integrity, truth and conscience. So when they speak about Israel, people believe them. This has had a devastating effect, because for decades the church has been promulgating incendiary calumnies against Israel with a theological underpinning that casts the Jews as the party of the devil. Its importance in helping create today’s insane levels of Jew-hatred should not be underestimated.
Having watched the debate, I replied to Mirvis on X:
In the General Synod debate on Monday morning, three Church of England bishops expressed reservations about this shameful motion – Manchester, Blackburn and Lichfield – but no bishop voted against it. Five bishops abstained but 25 bishops voted for it. British Jews – or Jews living on the British Isles – are arguably more vulnerable now than they have been at any time since the Middle Ages. The speech by Free Speech Union General Secretary Toby Young last April outside Downing Street warned of the enormous loss to this country if British Jews were to leave. There is a price for this kind of posturing by the prelates of the Established Church but it won’t be they who have to pay it.
Elections for membership of the General Synod over the next five years are due to take place this autumn. These are likely to lead to an even larger Left-wing majority on the Synod, so unfortunately British Jews can expect an escalation of dangerous anti-Israel rhetoric from the established Church.
Julian Mann, a former Church of England vicar, is an evangelical journalist based in Lancashire.
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For over 50 years I have (a) been a very firm believer of the Bible (New and Old Testaments) and (b) a strong supporter of Israel, a people chosen from antiquity by God.
These two things have meant that I take no notice of what the CoE says about anything. It rarely quotes Scripture to support anything it says – it’s a purely political body now which is given too much oxygen.
A truly contemptible piece. If the established church is not to be allowed to call out the murder of tens of thousands in Gaza, which the reptile Netenyahu has now extended to the Christian state of Lebanon, we are ruled by the imps of hell supporting that . It has, except in the mouths of those imps, nothing whatever to do with the millions of right-living Jews everywhere. The state of Israel has been hijacked by Baal!
And the Archbishop has now put the safety of those right-living Jews at risk.
Now the C of E has become a meeting place for left wing social workers, where will Christian people worship now?
Maybe the Non Conformist churches. However, there may be an exodus to the a Church of Rome.
You do not need a middle man, least of all a woman who was not God. Try a direct approach – it’s free.
I was brought up CoE so I refused confirmation because they are a bunch of nasty hypocrites.
I went to a very evangelical CofE church in my teens, of my own volition, and was confirmed. However, I stopped going when I was judged for having a boyfriend – my first love – who was not a member of the flock. The middle – aged curate was also a liar who had fabricated something about me and a previous church – attending boyfriend. I didn’t give up on God, but I gave up on the CofE. A relative of mine is married to an ordained CofE priest who is a pathological liar. Of course, I am aware that he doesn’t represent the church per se, but from my own experience, I seriously wonder how many priests are actually Christians.
In my teens, I attended a very evangelical church of my own volition. I was looking for an alternative family as my home life was dreadful, and they talked a good talk. I was also confirmed. However, I stopped going when I was judged for having a boyfriend – my first love – who was not a member of the flock. The middle – aged curate was also a liar who for some reason didn’t like me, and who fabricated a story about me and a previous boyfriend who was one of the flock. I gave up on the CofE, but didn’t give up on God. A relative of mine is married to an ordained CofE priest who is a pathological liar and cheat. I know that he doesn’t represent the CofE per se, but I seriously wonder how many priests are actually Christians.
Sharing because I really wish people who write articles about a document would make it easy for readers to find the text they’re talking about. This web page links to a PDF of the full text of Kairos II:
https://www.sabeel-kairos.org.uk/new-kairos-ii-faith-in-a-time-of-genocide/
In my view the document lies, omits a lot of very relevant context, is manipulative and uses far too much language drawn from critical theory, so on balance I agree with the article. I just wish we’d been trusted to read it ourselves and not just informed of what we should think about it.
Is it me or does she look like a vampire?
Or a priestess of the mystery sects.
“Even among those who are resolutely secular, the assumption remains that priests of the church are a moral lodestar representing integrity, truth and conscience. “
Hahahahahaaaaaha!
The C of E is an utterly appalling anti Christian, anti Jewish and ultimately anti British organisation so full of bile, lying and hatred that it realistically could be condemned as treasonous.
I detest this apology for a church.
You and me both.
I still have the published photograph of new clerics praying beneath “Gaia” Mother Earth which dominated Ely Cathedral at the time, with their God-given faces bravely concealed beneath covid masks. Yes, I did complain.
I have never read anything so silly in all my 83 years, and I have been reading since I was three years old. The majority on the C of E bishops are right. Anyone but a blindly doctrinaire Zionist can see that the savage Israeli actions in Gaza, blasting homes, schools, hospitals, churches and mosques, are designed to make the country unliveable. You do not need gas chambers to be genocidal. Not even the Zionists would stoop that that far and that low. But their actions do amount to genocide, as leading UN officials, concurring with the UK bishops, so reasonably believe.
Internet ban lifted?
You need to get better informed.
Well I 100% disagree but respect the fact you stated what you think. Plus, I’ve read up and informed myself on the dreadful Hannibal Directive so I know Israel aren’t whiter than white by any means. Anyhoo, half time nearly over so I must dash..
The horrible persons are those who countenance the slaughter of mothers, babies and hildren by the many tens of thousand beneath the IDF rubble of Gaza.The Zionist crimes will rank alongside those of their Nazi mentors as you well know but shrink from admitting.
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Shall I call the men in white coats?
And the Palestinian terrorists who built their hiding places under schools hospitals and ordinary people’s homes, in order to generate just such a response if Israel fought back are blameless? As are their leaders who live in unimaginable luxury in the gulf states and Iran?
what is Israel to do, allow itself to be destroyed? Palastinian forces have openly declared that their goal is from the river to the sea and believe in death to all Jews. Isn’t that also genocide? Or like all woke rubbish, does it only work one way.
I guess that’s what you want too.
How arrogant we still are in the west.
it is not anything to do with us how two Middle Eastern states fight it out.
i would have more sympathy with the churches position if that declaration included the thousands of Christian’s being murdered raped and tortured in parts of Africa too, but hey; there’s not as much virtue signalling to be got out of that.
Britain is now a Muslim country and the establishment is well on board with that so it seems.
Perhaps if Hamas had not spent their billions on creating tunnels under schools and hospitals and firing endless unguided rockets at Israel but instead thought that they should help their people to create something similar to Sharm-el-Sheikh where they could have an economy that worked for them then it wouldn’t have been necessary to try to deal with Hamas between their human shields.
Always two sides to the story. And yes, I would prefer not to have had the level of killing in the Middle East but it seems impossible for certain people to behave in a civilised manner.
hear hear! so well said, it could have been the riviera but they are crazed
Reading is different from reading with comprehension and relevant knowledge. All you express is bias towards one point of view and you are old enough to know better.
Why don’t those nasty Israelis just let those oppressed, peaceful Hamas terrorists kill them all?
Disestablish the Church, it has absolutely nothing of any value in any debate of any kind in Britain.
While you’re at it tell the King to poke off and stop being a defender of any faith whatsoever especially the one that wants total submission.
Toby, “…warned of the enormous loss to this country if British Jews were to leave. There is a price for this kind of posturing by the prelates of the Established Church but it won’t be they who have to pay it.”
The AC; the CC; it is incredible that they ‘side’ with the Muslims (aka Palestinians) against the Jews. Part of this is due to the Israeli treatment of Christians and the destruction in Gaza of the Gaza Cathedral, churches and Christians. But….the 1400 Muslim Jihad targeted Christianity for destruction and ironically, was abetted in many places by the Jews (eg Visigothic Spain).
So what should the AC/CC do? The Churches need to side with Christians and protect our persecuted brothers and sisters from any all – especially the Muslims (branded in Gaza as ‘Palestinians’). There are no ‘sides’ to take, just your own side.