The new Dean of St Albans - Canon Jeffrey John

The appointment of Canon Jeffrey John as Dean of St Alban's Cathedral was welcomed by the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement today 20th April 2004.

Speaking after the formal announcement the Revd Richard Kirker (general secretary) said:

All fair minded people believe Jeffrey John should be Bishop of Reading, only a few on the fringes of the Church of England believed otherwise. Sadly, they were able to dictate events and Rowan Williams must now rue the day he tolerated being forced to take on George Carey's advisers.

We see this appointment as a well aimed kick in the teeth for those Lambeth flunkies who so badly misread the mind of the middle of the road English Anglican. The women and men in the pew were outraged at seeing this mild mannered priest sacrificed to the baying hounds of fundamentalism.

Dr John is not totally to our taste. His acceptance of enforced celibacy, despite the fact he believes it to be unwarranted, may indeed be a tribute to his sense of Catholic obedience, though we believe it to be a betrayal of his God given nature and unfortunately this gives the appearance of pandering to hypocrisy.

In the end his loyalty to the Church's discipline was not recognised, had it been left to the ecclesiastical machine he would probably have been left in his Canonry at Southwark because of “sensitivities”. The appointment by Downing Street is an indictment of their callous behaviour.

“While Jeffrey is not our man, he is to be admired for many qualities. Not the least of which is his determination to carry on as an inspirational priest and teacher through all the difficulties. For a man whose name is known to most in these shores he has avoided the media with a passion. The people of St Alban's Cathedral are fortunate indeed to have a pastor of such devotion.”

Ends