Priests could stop using male pronouns 'He' and 'Him' when referring to God

07 February 2023 , 20:17

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A radical change would have to be agreed by the whole of the church's governing body, called the General Synod. (Image: Getty Images)

Priests could stop using male pronouns 'He' and 'Him' when referring to God.

A project based on 'gendered language' in the Church of England is set to be launched and debated this spring, with the possibility it could include suggestions on the use of 'He' and 'Him' in reference to God.

It may also suggest dropping or rephrasing 'our Father' from the start of the Lord's Prayer.

However, changes are likely to spark strong pushback from traditionalists who are against breaking away from words used in the Bible.

The landmark proposals were presented to the Liturgical Commission.- a committee that develops the wording used in church services.

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A radical change would have to be agreed by the whole of the church's governing body, called the General Synod (Getty Images)

The Rev Joanna Stobart, a vicar in the diocese of Guildford, Surrey, said: "Please could the Liturgical Commission provide an update on the steps being taken to develop more inclusive language in our authorised liturgy and to provide more options for those who wish to use authorised liturgy and speak of God in a non-gendered way, particularly in authorised absolutions where many of the prayers offered for use refer to God using male pronouns?'

In response, the Bishop of Lichfield, the Rt Rev Michael Ipgrave, said: "We have been exploring the use of gendered language in relation to God for several years, in collaboration with the Faith and Order Commission.

"After some dialogue between the two Commissions in this area, a new joint project on gendered language will begin this spring.

A radical change would have to be agreed by the whole of the church's governing body, called the General Synod (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

"In common with other potential changes to authorised liturgical provision, changing the wording and number of authorised forms of absolution would require a full Synodical process for approval."

Women and the Church (WATCH) said: "WATCH welcomes the start of another project in the Church of England to look at the development of more inclusive language in our authorised liturgy.

'We hope that a proposal will be brought to Synod soon, as we believe that a theological misreading of God as exclusively male is a driver of much continuing discrimination and sexism against women."

The Bishop of Lichfield, the Rt Rev Dr Michael Ipgrave (Diocese of Lichfield)

But Synod member Rev Dr Ian Paul said: "The fact that God is called 'Father' can't be substituted by 'Mother' without changing meaning, nor can it be gender-neutralised to 'Parent' without loss of meaning. Fathers and mothers are not interchangeable but relate to their offspring in different ways.

"If the Liturgical Commission seek to change this, then in an important way they will be moving the doctrine of the Church away from being 'grounded in the Scriptures'."

He also said Christians do not believe that God has a specific gender.

Abigail O'Leary