Bishop: It is entirely misleading to imply any defiance of the Church of Ireland marriage stance

(The web version of the story can be read here: ‘Same-sex marriage: Church of Ireland body declares gay people should be able to wed’)

I would repeat the information provided to your journalist, verbatim.

This was made in the context of a response to the Northern Ireland Office’s consultation on same-sex religious marriage and conversion entitlements:

• Religious officiants

This part of the Church and Society Commission’s response seeks extensive protection for clergy.

It affirms that religious officiants should not be able to solemnise a same-sex marriage in situations where their governing body has not approved same-sex marriage.

Even where a governing body has approved same-sex marriage and made provision for it, a clergyperson should have the right to refuse to conduct such a marriage (as a matter of personal conscience). Where a religious officiant refuses to marry a same-sex couple, that officiant should not be considered to have acted in breach of equality legislation.

• Civil partnerships

The church’s decision not to provide for same-sex marriage is unchanged.

The doctrine of the Church of Ireland is that marriage is between one man and one woman; this is therefore the only form of marriage which may be celebrated within the church.

Anglican doctrine is expressed through liturgy, and the Church has no liturgy in relation to civil partnership or same-sex marriage.

The context for the response is that there has been an alteration of the legal framework affecting a range of civil provisions, but this will not affect the church’s teaching.

Your headline is entirely misleading in implying that the Church and Society Commission has decided to defy the doctrinal position of the Church of Ireland; exactly the contrary was made clear in the response to the newspaper.

The House of Bishops, in its statement following the 2015 marriage referendum in the Republic, affirmed that the state is acting fully within its rights if it decides to alter its legal definition of marriage.

This does not affect or alter the church’s understanding of how it celebrates marriage.

The Rt Revd Dr Kenneth Kearon, Bishop of Limerick and Killaloe, chair, Church and Society Commission