The present moratorium on openly gay bishops, formally imposed last year by the House of Bishops, is facing a legal challenge....

The first stage of a challenge under employment legislation is the issuing of a questionnaire. It is un­derstood that this took place some time in the autumn of 2010. The church authorities reacted de­fensively: in December of that year, a briefing was issued to the Bishops by the Church House legal office giving a retrospective list of reasons why a priest in a civil partnership, as Dr John is, could be barred from the episcopate without falling foul of employment laws.

The list includes such questions as whether the candidate has expressed repentance for past sexual activity, and whether the appointment “would cause division and disunity within the diocese”.

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Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Anglican Provinces • Church of England (CoE) • CoE Bishops • * Culture-Watch • Law & Legal Issues • Sexuality • --Civil Unions & Partnerships • * International News & Commentary • England / UK

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