Church of England Bishops Refuse to Back Gay Marriage

By Tara E

The Church of England bishops have refused to change their teachings to allow priests to marry same sex couples. Although same-sex marriage has been legal in England and Wales since 2013, when the law changed, the church has decided not to change their rules.

There was a meeting to finalise their decision after around five years of discussions and debate on the Church’s view on same-sex marriages. Several Bishops at the meeting stated that the teachings of Holy Matrimony are only between one man and one woman

In November 2021, the Bishop of Oxford became the most senior Bishop in the Church of England and he decided to publicly revert to the Church’s old teachings that heteronormative marriages are the only ones that should take place in the Church. He had a group of supporters, but they remained in the minority.

These decisions has outraged many and are likely to spark campaigns for change within the Church. Some have already decided that they will ask the synod – a council of Christians denominations that meet to discuss issues of doctrine - to expunge the Bishop’s proposal. The Church did however confirm that “prayers for God’s blessing” on same-sex couples will be offered following a civil marriage but they will not be allowed to marry in the Church. Those who are in a same-sex marriage or partnership will be welcomed into the church with a service or declinations and acknowledgment of their relationship which is a progressive step and a big change from what the Church’s teachings used to be, but many remain upset with this, as it is not the type of marriage that they want to be accepted for.

Father of Missing Newborn is Registered Sex Offender

By Clementine L

Couple Constance Marten and Mark Gordon have been missing with their newborn-child since 5th January, when their car broke down and caught fire near Bolton, on the M61. They are reported to have fled the scene of the accident with their child, the safety of which remains unknown to the police. The pair come from very different backgrounds Marten is the daughter of wealthy aristocrat Napier Anthony Sturt Marten, and lived a more than comfortable life prior to becoming estranged from her family, whilst Gordon has served over 20 years in the US federal prison system following his conviction of a rape he committed when he was 14. He has been a registered sex offender in the UK since 2010, six years before meeting Marten. Marten, 35, and Gordon, 48, have been living a ‘nomadic lifestyle’ from the time Marten began showing early signs of pregnancy, and it is not thought that either Constance or her newborn child have been assessed by medical professionals.

After the disappearance of his daughter and granddaughter, Napier Marten has ‘begged’ Constance to turn herself in to the police. At the end of an interview with The Independent, he asks his child to “find the courage to present [herself] to the police as soon as possible” for the safety of his grandchild. Despite these calls for contact, Marten and Gordon have managed to evade the police with their use of cash, meaning they are not traceable through credit card records. Ms Marten building up this ‘slush fund’ suggests that their disappearance was planned mutually.

At present, police are focused on discovering the whereabouts of the family to ensure the safety of the child. They have been vaguely traced through reports from taxi drivers and CCTV footage, revealing that their last appearance was on January, near East Ham underground station, meaning that their location could be anywhere across the UK now.