Concern over C of E civil union advice
THE new dean of Dunedin’s St Paul’s Cathedral, the Very Rev Dr Tony Curtis, is concerned that recent pastoral advice from the Church of England on gay or heterosexual civil unions could leave many Christians feeling excluded.
Bishops in the Church of England recently stated that sex in gay or heterosexual civil unions ‘‘falls short of God’s purpose for human beings’’.
In its recent pastoral statement the Church of England House of Bishops restated its support for traditional teachings on sex and marriage and the value of ‘‘sexually abstinent friendships’’ in civil unions.
Approached for comment, Dr Curtis said the Church of England was ‘‘on a journey’’ regarding civil partnerships, and a large consultative study of human sexuality, titled ‘‘Living in Love and Faith’’, was due to be completed by the church later this year.
He emphasised that the Anglican Church in New Zealand and Polynesia shared culture and traditions with the Church of England, but was an independent body and not simply a ‘‘branch’’ of the Church of England.
Individual parishes and bishops were still working through related issues in New Zealand, but the synods in New Zealand had taken an approach which was different from England’s.
His own personal view was that the recently issued pastoral advice in England could leave many Christians feeling excluded, although it was ‘‘not my business’’ to comment on the different English church situation.
Englishborn, he was previously the Vicar of Shiremoor in Newcastle Diocese, England, and had recently shifted to Dunedin with his wife, Rachel Slade, and their two children, Gabriel and Ziva, taking up his role as dean two weeks ago.
He was keen to include more children in the life of the cathedral and wanted the church to ‘‘reach out beyond its walls and build bridges across the community’’.
Since the former St Paul’s Cathedral dean, the Very Rev Dr Trevor James, retired in 2018, the Anglican Bishop of Dunedin, the Rt Rev Dr Steven Benford, has also been the cathedral’s acting dean.
Dr Curtis has just completed a PhD in theology — on divine agency and the role of the outsider in the Hebrew Bible — at Durham University.
He has been a campaigner for gender equality within the church, and was also a regional ambassador for Inclusive Church in North East England.
He has a long history of involvement with church choral music — at his Cambridge college and at Newcastle Cathedral.
Dr Curtis will be formally installed as dean in a service at the cathedral at 4pm on February 23.