Statement on the Bishop of Oxford's "Together in Love and Faith"
In his essay 'Together in Love and Faith', Bishop Steven explains how he came to change his mind in relation to same-sex relationships and argues that they should be fully celebrated by the Church of England, with the ban on the marriage of same-sex couples in church being removed. We are grieved by this publication, believing that it departs from the clear teaching of the Bible in relation to sex and marriage.
We are grateful that Bishop Steven recognises “the validity and integrity” of the traditional view and affirms the ministry of those who uphold it, as bringing blessing in many ways “often including the welcome and care extended to LGBTQ+ people”. We also appreciate his recognition that a change in the Church’s position will require, not only the protection of conscience of those who could not support this, but also a differentiation of ministry and oversight. There are those in the Diocese who have already felt the need for this, believing these matters to be first-order issues and, very sadly, as a result of this publication, that number is bound to increase.
We encourage our members to engage with this debate with the same spirit of grace that Bishop Steven has himself exhibited. We should always remember that this is not firstly a political issue but, above all, a deeply personal and pastoral one.
Vaughan Roberts, writing from his own experience of same-sex attraction, has written a response to Bishop Steven’s piece, which is available for free download here.
Will Pearson-Gee (Chair)
Martin Davy
James Kennedy
Martin Kuhrt
Joy Mawdesley
Vaughan Roberts
Henry Scriven
ODEF Meeting on Thursday 23rd November 2023
Our Autumn ODEF meeting is being held on Thursday 23rd November at St Andrew’s Church, North Oxford. General Synod will have met and so this is a vital moment to take stock and discuss our responses
The agenda for our meeting is:-
09.30 - Registration & coffee
10:00 - Welcome, worship and Bible thought
10:15 - Notices
10:20 - 11:20 – Presentation on General Synod and the CEEC response – John Dunnett
11:20 - Break (and move cars)
11:50 -12:30 – Future options and Q&A
12.30 - 12.50 - Feedback
12:50 - The Oxford Good Stewards Trust
13:00 - Lunchtime regional groups and prayer
14:00 - Depart
Registration
Please contact admin@oxforddef.co.uk for details of how to register.
Parking
There are 2 & 3-hour free parking bays in Linton Road, Charlbury Road, Bardwell Road, Chadlington Road and Belbroughton Road, all within 5 minutes’ walk of St Andrew’s Church. Once the time is up, you can move to another parking bay in the same area.
There is also parking in Summertown Car Park but this is very expensive - £15.20 for 4-6 hours. A cheaper option if you are coming from the north or east is to park at Oxford Parkway Park & Ride and either catch the park and ride to St Margaret’s Road East (5 mins from St Andrews) or walk to the railway station and get the 2A to Linton Road or the S5 Gold to St Margaret’s Road East.
Annual ODEF meeting
The annual ODEF meeting is held each year in November.
Regional ODEF meetings
Regional meetings are held each year in May.
For further details of meetings, please check the website calender or contact your area leader via the link on the ODEF groups page.