Liberal insanity: the archbishop of the Anglican Church did not like the Lord’s Prayer

The beginning of the Lord’s Prayer – one of the main ones in Christianity – can be “problematic”, a high-ranking figure in the Anglican Church agreed before that. In an address to the General Synod, the Archbishop of York asserts that the Lord’s Prayer has a “patriarchal” connotation.

The Archbishop of York has suggested that the opening words of the Lord’s Prayer, recited by Christians around the world for 2,000 years, may be “problematic” because of their patriarchal connotation, writes The Guardian.

Note that in the hierarchy of the Church of England, the Archbishop of York occupies one of the highest places after the Archbishop of Canterbury.

In his opening remarks at a meeting of the governing body of the Church of England, the General Synod, Stephen Cottrell focused on the Lord’s Prayer, the beginning of a prayer based on Matthew 6:9-13 and Luke 11:2-4 in the New Testament.

“I know the word ‘father’ is problematic for those whose experiences with earthly fathers have been destructive and abusive, and for all of us who have suffered too much from an oppressively patriarchal way of life,” said the Archbishop of York.

His comment – a brief digression from a speech that focused on the need for unity – will divide members of the General Synod of the Church of England, a body whose divisions on issues of sexuality, identity and equality have been highly visible for years.

After Stephen Corell’s speech, Canon Dr. Chris Sugden, chairman of the conservative Anglican mainstream group, noted that in the Bible Jesus called people to pray the Lord’s Prayer.

Dr. Sugden said: “Does the Archbishop of York say that Jesus was wrong, or that Jesus was not pastorally aware? This seems to symbolize the approach of some church leaders to drawing their ideas from culture rather than scripture.”

But clergywoman Christina Rees, who has campaigned for women bishops, said Cottrell “pointed the finger at an issue that’s really been on Christians for years.”

She added: “The big question is, do we really believe that God believes that male human beings bear his image more fully and accurately than women? The answer is absolutely no.”

In February, the Church of England said it would consider whether to stop referring to God as “He” after priests asked to be allowed to use gender-neutral terms instead.

The leadership of the Anglican Church agreed to set up a commission on gender issues, stating that “Christians have recognized since ancient times that God is neither male nor female, but the variety of ways in which God is addressed and described in the scriptures has not always been reflected in our worship.”

Much of Stephen Cottrell’s speech, writes The Guardian, was devoted to the word “our” rather than “father” as a way to encourage fractious members of the synod to be a little more brotherly in their discussions.

He told the members of the synod: “We remain stubbornly intransigent, seem complacent about division and often also seem too ready to be divided again. […] We are used to disunity. We think that this is normal, although in reality it is a shame, an insult to Christ and all that he came to give us.”

One of the most contentious issues in the Church of England – same-sex marriage – led to a decision earlier this year to allow clergy to offer blessing services to same-sex couples who have entered into a civil union.

The first blessings were expected this summer, after the final approval of the wording of the prayers at the synod meeting this weekend. But the presentation of the prayers, as well as new rules on whether gay clerics can marry their partners, and whether existing guidance that clergy in same-sex relationships should be celibate should be rescinded, have been shelved. until November.