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lations: A Contribution to Discussion. The preface of this report was signed in July 1978 by the then Bishop of Gloucester. A year later, the Bishop of London, then the Bishop of Truer and Chairman of the General Synod Board for Social Responsibility, signed the forward too. The time that elapsed between the various grandees of the church signing the preface is very significant: it signified the division at the very heart of the Church of England and not least at the heart of the Board for Social Responsibility. The Bishop of Gloucester wrote:

“We do believe that the report and the attached critical comments can make an important contribution to the process of reforming the mind of the church. We therefore envisage a period during which widespread discussion takes place on issues raised in this document.”

A debate in the General Synod of the Church of England took place nearly two years after the publication of the report; but the‘widespread discussion’ did not – in spite of the motion being carried.It should be noted that at the time of writing the report, very few were satisfied. Very many among both the heterosexual community and the homosexual community disliked it. That was not to say that the report was badly written of researched; rather it meant that, in the words of the Bishop of Truer “diverse attitudes to homosexuality exist within the board reflecting a similar diversity within the Church of England,which therefore makes it impossible to contemplate a definitive statement at the moment.”

On such a subject as homosexuality and religion, feelings run high.It is a test for the church if it can even handle discussion on the subject. Perhaps the fact that their has been little or no widespread discussion of the subject, and that the previously cited report was allowed to go out of print could indicate that, for many years even after the sexual revolution and the social change that it brought, it could not handle such discussion. If that were a valid conclusion the nit would be most serious; for upon such a discussion rests the pastoral care of those who were homosexual, and perhaps, the health of the whole of the Church of England: it is not only homosexuals who need to discuss homosexuality; and it is not only the subject of homosexuality that needs to be discussed, but sexuality generally. Not to be able to discuss sexuality is to fail to discuss who we are and a major element of human life.

In November 1987 the General Synod of the Church of England notoriously debated the subject of sexual morality. The Synod failed to conduct the widespread discussion that should have taken place following the publication of the Homosexual Relationships report. The Bishop of Truer noted “we do not think the Church of England is yet ready to declare its mind on the subject of homosexuality”.

Conservative theologians within the Church of England view homosexuality as behaviour, something that you choose to undertake, and thus could choose not to undertake. The conservative members of the Church of England view homosexuality as unnatural and unnatural and something that was condemned by god as written in the scriptures. As far as the Church of England is concerned, therefore, any attempt to portray homos本论文由英语论文网提供整理，提供论文代写，英语论文代写，代写论文，代写英语论文，代写留学生论文，代写英文论文，留学生论文代写相关核心关键词搜索。