A leader in the Church of England (CoE) has taken aim at the Lord’s Prayer, indicating it is “problematic” and “oppressively patriarchal.” Stephen Cottrell, Archbishop of York, was speaking at the CoE’s General Synod and discussed the passage, which is found in Matthew 6:9-13 and Luke 11:2-4. “For if this God to whom we pray is ‘Father’ – and, yes, I know the word ‘father’ is problematic for those whose experience of earthly fathers has been destructive and abusive, and for all of us who have labored rather too much from an oppressively, patriarchal grip on life – then those of us who say this prayer together, whether we like it or not, whether we acknowledge it or not, even if we determinedly face away from each other, only turning round in order to put a knife in the back of the person standing behind us, are sisters and brothers, family members, the household of God,” said Cottrell.

The archbishop’s speech was meant to be a call to unity, as he noted that the prayer united the believers as members of the same family, regardless of political and theological divides that have rocked many denominations. His comments about the use of the word “Father,” however, faced criticism. Canon Dr. Chris Sugden, chair of the Anglican Mainstream Group, said, “Is the archbishop of York saying Jesus was wrong, or that Jesus was not pastorally aware? It seems to be emblematic of the approach of some church leaders to take their cues from culture rather than scripture.” The Anglican Mainstream Group is just one of the conservative CoE groups that have been unhappy with some of the Church’s latest decisions. In February, the CoE voted to allow blessings of same-sex civil marriages. It still did not permit marriages within the Church, but the permitting of blessings was seen by conservatives as a slackening on the position of marriage between just a man and a woman. In April, the conservative Anglican group Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) announced that it had “no confidence” in Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury. There continue to be rumors of an impending split in the CoE, much like the Methodist Church, which is seeing churches leave after its support of same-sex marriages. The CoE is set to release guidelines for its new policy in November. 

Along with permitting blessings of same-sex civil marriages, the CoE announced that it would also be considering allowing “gender-neutral” language instead of referring to God as “He.” A commission was planned for the spring to present its recommendations in November. One spokesperson for the CoE noted that this was “nothing new. Christians have recognized since ancient times that God is neither male nor female, yet the variety of ways of addressing and describing God found in scripture has not always been reflected in our worship.” Rev Christina Rees, who has been pushing for female bishops, spoke in support of Cottrell’s statement, saying he had, “put his finger on an issue that’s a really live issue for Christians and has been for many years. The big question is, do we really believe that God believes that male human beings bear his image more fully and accurately than women? The answer is absolutely not.”