Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby received backlash after claiming that same-sex is not sinful as long as it's within a committed relationship. On "The Rest is Politics" podcast hosted by former Labour spin doctor Alastair Campbell and former Tory MP Rory Stewart, Welby was asked whether he believes gay sex was sinful, a similar question to one he had asked Archbishop Welby in a 2017 interview for GQ magazine. When asked now if he had a "better answer" to that question, Welby said he did.
"What the Archbishop of York and I, and the bishops, by a majority, by no means unanimous, and the Church [of England] is deeply split over this — where we've come to is to say that all sexual activity should be within a committed relationship and whether it's straight or gay," said Welby.
"In other words, we're not giving up on the idea that sex is within marriage or civil partnership. We've put forward a proposal that where people have been through a civil partnership or same-sex marriage, equal marriage under the 2014 Act, they should be able to come along to their local, to a church, and have a service of prayer and blessing for them in their lives together."
"So we accept that. Now, I think this is a long way from church same-sex marriage ..."
According to The Christian Post, The Living in Love and Faith Process within the Church of England resulted in the decision to introduce prayers of blessing for same-sex couples.
The Prayers of Love and Faith (PLF) have been mostly controversial. They have put the Church of England in opposition to much of the wider Anglican Communion, which largely holds to a traditional interpretation of marriage and sexuality. However, the Church of England leadership has continued to maintain that the official doctrine on marriage and sexuality remains unchanged.
"It is a devastating statement because it marks a clear departure from the doctrine of the Church of England, the Anglican Communion, and every other major Christian denomination across the world believe," it said.
The Church of England Evangelical Council (CEEC) called Welby's latest comments "staggering" and expressed "disbelief" that the Archbishop of Canterbury used the podcast to say that sex is not limited to heterosexual marriage and that the Church of England should bless sexual relations outside of marriage.
"It is a devastating statement because it marks a clear departure from the doctrine of the Church of England, the Anglican Communion, and every other major Christian denomination across the world believe," it said.
In a critique written for the CEEC, theologian Andrew Goddard said Welby's comments were "simply wrong and misleading."
"The archbishop's answer might have been 'better' in the sense of probably being more appealing to Alastair Campbell. It is, however, in fact, so highly misleading and inaccurate as to suggest a disturbing level of some combination of ignorance, misrepresentation, dishonesty, and inaccuracy on the archbishop's part in his account of the [Church of England's] recent decisions, its doctrine, and its stated rationale for PLF," he said.
"Our dire situation as a Church is bad enough as a result of having been so divided because of the direction set by the archbishops and most of the bishops. The fact that there are such deep theological disagreements on these matters that need to be addressed cannot and must not be avoided."
"However, such significantly erroneous statements as these from no less than the Archbishop of Canterbury, unless swiftly followed by an apology and correction, can only add further to the widespread erosion of trust and growing sense of disbelief, betrayal, deception, anger, and despair now felt across much of the Church of England in relation to both the PLF process and our archiepiscopal leadership."
On the other hand, Lambeth Palace attempted to minimize the controversy by stating that Welby was simply sharing his personal perspective on the issue.
"Archbishop Justin was giving a personal view that reflects the position now held by himself, the Archbishop of York, and many other bishops regarding sexual intimacy. He has been honest that his thinking has evolved over the years through much prayer and theological reflection — particularly through the Living in Love and Faith process — and he now holds this view sincerely. It reflects his commitment to continuing to welcome, love, and include LGBTQ+ people more fully in the life of the Church," Palace said in a statement.
"However, there is no consensus among the bishops on this question, and the Church remains deeply divided. Archbishop Justin stressed his absolute commitment to those who hold a traditional view of having 'a full and undoubted place in the Church of England.'
"His answer does not indicate a changing of teaching from the House of Bishops. This is an ongoing conversation across the Church — and Archbishop Justin hopes that the bishops, together with clergy and laity, will keep praying and reflecting on these questions."
Photo Credit: ©Facebook/Archbishop of Canterbury
Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for CrosswalkHeadlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.