Tuesday, January 09, 2007

ITV's Christian hour

Seems like ITV has got a bit of a Sunday late night 'Christian' slot on the go at the moment - good thing that there is coverage that some people will actually see, and that will hopefully at least keep Church / Christian things in some people's thought and discussion habits! However I do worry about the image that is being portrayed sometimes. I didn't actually see much of the 1st programme about the recent Church leaders pilgrammage to Bethlehem. The 2nd programme though was basically a look at goings on in Canterbury Cathedral during Holy Week last year. 1 thing that was happening was an opportunity for various ordained people (I'm guessing of the Canterbury diocese) to re-dedicate themselves to / renew their ordination promises. What saddened me was that it had to be done in 2 separate services - 1 by a bishop brought in specially to conduct this ceremony for ordained men who cannot accept the ordination of women to the priesthood and would not share this ceremony with ordained women whose position they did not recognise, and 1 conducted by Archbishop Rowan for all the others. I don't want to get into a theological debate about the rights and wrongs of women's ordination here, but I am happy to describe myself as an evangelical Bible-believing Christian who is very much in favour of the ordination of women. What worries me is that there are a number who can't bring themselves to accept that the wider Church to which they have committed and work for has accepted the ordination of women, and work with that. Surely we all at times have to deal with and work in certain situations, even when we don't agree with certain things? Just because women were making the same commitments in the same service, did those who took part in the separate service really feel they could not make their own commitments irrespective of what they thought of others? It saddens me that such division is a reality and there for all to see, is it really the sort of image that God would have his church portray? Any thoughts, opinions and disagreements welcomed!

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