Date: Fri, 13 Jan 1995 05:02:45 +0100 (NFT) From: Bj|rn Skolander AUSSIE PAPER CLAIMS LIST IS TEN OUTED BRITSH BISHOPS Melbourne, Australia 7 January 1995 An Australian gay newspaper, the Melbourne Star Observer, claims that a list it has published contains the names of ten Bishops of the Church of England recently outed by the London activist group Outrage! Because of libel laws, the ten Bishops have never been named in the British press. The list, which appears in the 6 January issue of the Melbourne weekly newspaper, names: Timothy Bavin, Bishop of Portsmouth Michael Fisher, Assistant Bishop of Ely John Klyberg, Bishop of Fulham Michael Marshall, Assistant Bishop of London Brian Masters, Bishop of Edmonton John Neill, Assistant Bishop of Bath and Wells John Nicholls, Bishop of Lancaster John Saterthwaite, Assistant Bishop of Carlisle Mervyn Stockwood, Assistant Bishop of Bath and Wells, and Michael Turnball, Bishop of Durham. In publishing the list it claims is the ten outed Bishops, Melbourne Star Observer notes that none of the Bishops it lists has denied being gay, although one has denied having had gay sex. The newspaper also refers to remarks by British gay activist Peter Tatchell, who, since the outing, has been banned from speaking on BBC radio or television for fear he would name someone on air. MSO reports Tatchell saying that "until we named the bishops, the Church was refusing to discuss the issue (homosexuality and Christianity) at all. Since we named them, it has been discussing nothing else". The newspaper also notes that, since the outing of the ten Bishops, the Church of England has officially said that a homosexual orientation is not sinful, and that there is no bar to non-practicing gay men and lesbians being accepted by the Church. Official contact has also been opened by the Church with the lesbian and gay Christian movement in Britain. -- |Fidonet: robbie bates 3:634/381 |Internet: robbie.bates@f381.n634.z3.fidonet.org | | Standard disclaimer: The views of this user are strictly his own.