And that was in 2005.<\/p>\n
A report<\/a> produced 5 years ago by the University of Bangor found that 300 clergymen in the Church of England doubt that God exists. That makes about as much sense as a carpenter disbelieving in the existence of trees; you might think that 300 out of 9000 isn\u2019t bad \u2013 unless you happen to be in one of atheist-priest’s parishes, of course. The CofE fares much worse when it comes to Christian beliefs, with 1800 clergy disbelieving in the bodily resurrection of Christ and 3600 disbelieving in the Virgin Birth. That means, in 2005, at least 3600 CofE clergymen routinely and publically lied every Sunday when reciting the creed.<\/p>\n For those who think the current trials afflicting the Anglican church are about nothing but sex, these figures should serve as a salutary reminder that a disturbingly large number of Anglican priests in the UK do not believe in what they are peddling.<\/p>\n Things are far worse in Canada, of course: the Anglican Church of Canada makes the Church of England look like a hotbed of fundamentalism.<\/p>\n The report, published on the eve of the General Synod, refers to \u201cvery fragile faultlines along which the Church of England could be torn apart\u201d. Congregations are much more conservative than most of the comparatively liberal clergy preaching to them.<\/p>\n The report says that if committed Anglicans are clear about one thing it is the existence of God: 97 per cent have no hesitation in affirming His existence. Yet, it continues, one in 33 clerics doubts the existence of God. If reflected throughout the Church\u2019s 9,000 clergy the finding would mean that nearly 300 Church of England clergy are uncertain that God exists.<\/p>\n Equal numbers of clergy and laity, eight out of ten, believe in the bodily resurrection of Christ but more laity than clergy believe in the Virgin Birth \u2014 62 per cent compared with 60 per cent \u2014 and in the miracle where Jesus turned water into wine \u2014 65 per cent compared with 61 per cent. The biggest division comes over the issue of homosexuality. One third of clergy are in favour of the ordination of practising homosexuals as priests, compared with one quarter of laity. Nearly one third of clergy also support the ordination of gay bishops, but among the laity this falls to fewer than one fifth<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" And that was in 2005. A report produced 5 years ago by the University of Bangor found that 300 clergymen in the Church of England doubt that God exists. That makes about as much sense as a carpenter disbelieving in … Continue reading