Evidence submitted by Church of England
Evangelical Council
I realise I am probably too late to submit anything
further on the issue of where the Lord Chancellor's Patronage
rights might go if the Office is to be abolished, but I am involved
with patronage within the Church of England and would like to
throw in my pennyworth. I have been a Patronage Trustee with the
Church Pastoral Aid Society for eight or so years. Through the
three trusts which make up its patronage work, CPAS is responsible
for some 500 parishes finding new vicars when they fall vacant.
We have considerable experience.
I would be keen to see the Chancellor's rights
not given to Diocesan Bishops or to Diocesan Patronage Boards.
There is already too much centralisation in this way, and frankly
Bishops are too busy to do this work well. Inevitably they are
agenda'ed to see things from an episcopal/diocesan point of view
both as opposed to the local church vantage-point (where the coal-face
for mission and ministry, people and money are) and as opposed
to a national dimension (eg drawing people from all over). There
are well established Patronage bodies on both evangelical and
catholic wings of the C of E, though naturally I am considerably
more in touch with those affiliated to the EPCC (Evangelical Patronage
Consultative Council) of which CPAS is by far the largest. These
bodies are experienced, well-networked around the country, independent
in the best sense, but with a profound sense of serving the local
churches that go to make up the Church. I would have so hesitation
in offering CPAS as a worthy recipient of the Chancellor's rights
of patronage, esp of those parishes in a historically evangelical
tradition, since CPAS is itself thoroughly representative with
the whole spectrum of evangelical Anglicanism.
Revd David Banting
Vicar of St Peters, Harold Wood
CPAS Patronage Trustee
General Synod
Church of England Evangelical Council
January 2004
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