News release

1.10.09  For immediate use

Marriage Measure 'anomaly' challenged by church leaders meeting in Leeds

While the Church of England’s Marriage Measure, introduced last year,  has been widely welcomed as bringing more choices for couples wishing to marry in church,  an apparent anomaly is to be challenged by Yorkshire church leaders meeting in Leeds this weekend. Delegates to the Synod (or ‘parliament’) of the Diocese of Ripon and Leeds meeting at the David Young Community Academy this Saturday October 3rd, will be asked to support a move to allow couples with family connections to a parish to be married in any church in the ‘benefice’ with which they have a connection - not just the parish church itself.

A ‘benefice’ – for which an incumbent has responsibility – may include more than one parish, and couples living in one of the parishes in a benefice already had the right to be married in any of the churches in the same benefice.  However, under the Church of England Marriage Measure of 2008,  couples who now have a ‘qualifying connection’ *  to a parish church can still only be married in that specific church – not in any church within the benefice that church is a part of.

The Bishop of Ripon and Leeds will ask church leaders meeting at the David Young Community Academy next Saturday morning, October 3rd, to support a motion requesting the Archbishops’ Council “...to introduce legislation which would enable the Bishop to give directions allowing those who have a ‘qualifying connection’ with a particular parish (under the C of E Marriage Measure 2008) to marry in any church within the benefice of which that parish forms a part.”

The Rt Revd John Packer, said,  “I believe that when General Synod passed the original Marriage Measure most of us believed that the intention was that couples with a genuine qualifying connection to a church would be treated in the same way as couples who already  lived in that parish. But at the moment, for example, if two school friends wanted their weddings in a nearby church but one had moved away, the one still living in the neighbouring parish could have her wedding there, but the one with the ‘qualifying connection’ couldn’t. I don’t believe that Synod intended this anomaly when they framed the new Marriage Measure and I hope we can begin the process of changing the legislation.”

Marriage and Giving

In other items at Saturday’s meeting, church leaders will also be asked to give their assent to a new scheme, Giving for Life, aimed at increasing levels of giving by parishioners, and will hear of the church's new Wedding Project, aimed at improving even further the church's marriage ministry to couples and their families.

The meeting of the Synod next Saturday October 3rd will be the first of a new three year term. The ‘parliament’ of the diocese  has  120 lay and clergy members drawn from parishes and deaneries throughout the Diocese of Ripon and Leeds which stretches from south Leeds to the borders of County Durham and includes parts of the Yorkshire Dales,  the cities of Leeds and Ripon and towns such as Richmond, Catterick, Harrogate, and Knaresborough.  

Meetings are open to press and public.

ENDS

Note:  * Under the 2008 Marriage Measure,  a couples  ‘qualifying connection’ which now enables them to be married in a particular church could be one of the following:

• one of them was baptised or prepared for confirmation in the parish;
• one of them has ever lived in the parish for six months or more;
• one of them has at any time regularly attended public worship in the parish for six months or more;
• one of their parents has lived in the parish for six months or more in their child’s lifetime;
• one of their parents has regularly attended public worship there for six months or more in their child’s lifetime;
• their parents or grandparents were married in the parish.

Until 2008 couples could only be married in the benefice in which they resided or in a parish where they were on  the  electoral roll (which they could be entered  on after six months of regular worship).  Couples still have the right to be married in those churches.

You are invited to attend and report on  the meeting of Synod which takes place from 9.15am- 12.45pm this Saturday October 3rd. The venue is David Young Community Academy,  Bishops Way, Seacroft, LS14 6NU. Please liaise with John Carter on arrival. The Marriage Measure motion is scheduled to be tabled at approximately 12.25pm.

Issued by John Carter (Rev).
Press and Communications Officer, Diocese of Ripon and Leeds

jhgcarter@aol.com
01423 530369 or mobile 07798 652707