George Carey

For other people named George Carey, see George Carey (disambiguation).
The Right Reverend and Right Honourable
The Lord Carey of Clifton
PC FRSA
former Archbishop of Canterbury
Church Church of England
Province Province of Canterbury
Diocese Diocese of Canterbury
In office 27 March 1991 (confirmed)[1]
– 31 October 2002 (retired)
Predecessor Robert Runcie
Successor Rowan Williams
Other posts Honorary assistant bishop in Swansea & Brecon (2004–present), in Southwark and in Bristol;
Life peer (2002);
Bishop of Bath and Wells (1987–1991)
Orders
Ordination 1962 (deacon)
1963 (priest)
Consecration 1987
Personal details
Birth name George Leonard Carey
Born (1935-11-13) 13 November 1935
London, UK
Nationality British
Denomination Anglican
Residence Newbury, Berkshire
Parents George and Ruby Carey
Spouse Eileen Hood (m. 1960)
Children 2 sons, 2 daughters
Occupation Theologian
Profession Bishop
Alma mater

King's College London;
Durham University Official website

Lords' homepage

George Leonard Carey, Baron Carey of Clifton PC FRSA (born 13 November 1935[2]) is a retired Anglican bishop who was the Archbishop of Canterbury from 1991 to 2002. During his time as archbishop the Church of England ordained its first women priests and the debate over attitudes to homosexuality became more prominent, especially at the 1998 Lambeth Conference of Anglican bishops.

Early life

George Carey was born on 13 November 1935 in the East End of London in the United Kingdom. He attended Bonham Road Primary School in Dagenham, then failed his eleven plus.[3]:14 He then attended Bifrons Secondary Modern School in Barking before leaving at the age of 15. He worked for the London Electricity Board as an office boy before starting his National Service at age 18 in the Royal Air Force as a wireless operator, during which time he served in Iraq.[3]:32

Conversion and ordination

Carey became a committed Christian at age 17 when he attended a church service with some friends. He said that "I had a conversion experience which was very real ... There were no blinding lights, simply a quiet conviction I had found something."[4]

During his National Service, Carey decided to seek ordination and after his discharge he studied intensely, gaining six O-levels and three A-levels in 15 months, before attending King's College London. He graduated in 1962 with a 2:1 Bachelor of Divinity (B.D.) degree and was subsequently ordained. He later obtained a Master of Theology degree and a Ph.D. from the University of Durham. Carey is the first Archbishop of Canterbury in modern times not to have been a graduate of either the University of Oxford or the University of Cambridge. The last Archbishop of Canterbury prior to Carey who was not a graduate of Oxford or Cambridge was Simon Sudbury (c. 1316–1381).

Offices

Carey was a curate at St Mary's Islington, worked at Oak Hill Theological College and St John's Theological College, Nottingham and became Vicar of St Nicholas' Church, Durham in 1975. Within two years he had trebled the congregation. He later wrote a book on his experiences there called The Church in the Market Place.

In 1982, Carey was appointed Principal of Trinity College, Bristol. He became Bishop of Bath and Wells in 1987; he was consecrated a bishop in December 1987 (by which point his election must have been confirmed) and enthroned in February 1988.[5]

When Robert Runcie retired as Archbishop of Canterbury the Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, encouraged by her former Parliamentary Private Secretary, Michael Alison MP, put Carey's name forward to the Queen for appointment. The religious correspondent for The Times, Clifford Longley, commented that "Mrs Thatcher's known impatience with theological and moral woolliness ... will have been a factor."[6]

Carey was confirmed as Archbishop of Canterbury on 27 March 1991[1] and enthroned on 19 April 1991.

On 31 October 2002, he retired from office and was created the next day a life peer as Baron Carey of Clifton, "of Clifton in the City and County of Bristol".[7] He was succeeded by Rowan Williams.

Carey is currently the Chancellor of the University of Gloucestershire and the London School of Theology. He is also an Honorary Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Scriveners and a Distinguished Fellow of the Library of Congress (Washington DC).

Theological and social positions

Carey's theological roots are in the Evangelical tradition of the Church of England. He strongly supported the ordination of women but also has close ecumenical links with the Roman Catholic Church, being chosen in 1976 to represent the Church of England at a meeting of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity in Rome.[3]:84

Carey is tolerant of divorce and divorced people and the remarriage of divorced people. One of his sons is divorced and he also supported the marriage of the Prince of Wales to Camilla Parker-Bowles, whose first husband is living. He opposed homosexual relationships among members of the clergy, although he admits to having consecrated two bishops whom he suspected of having same-sex partners. He presided over the Lambeth Conference of 1998 and actively supported the conference's resolution which uncompromisingly rejected all homosexual practice as "incompatible with scripture".

Carey was criticised for his lack of neutrality on the issue of homosexuality by those attempting to reach a compromise position which had been presented to the conference by a working group of bishops on human sexuality.[8] Carey also voted against an expressed condemnation (which had been present in the original form of the resolution) of homophobia. The resolution as a whole prompted one of Carey's fellow primates, Richard Holloway, Bishop of Edinburgh and Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church, to declare "I feel gutted, I feel betrayed, but the struggle will go on".[8]

Carey said: "If this conference is known by what we have said about homosexuality, then we will have failed."[8] The resolution, however, was the beginning of an escalating crisis of unity within the Anglican Communion around the question of human sexuality, a crisis that continues. This resolution is at the heart of current divisions within the Anglican Communion on the issue. In 1999 he was one of four English bishops who expressly declined to sign the Cambridge Accord: an attempt to find agreement on affirming certain human rights of homosexuals, notwithstanding differences within the church on the morality of homosexual behaviour.[9] In an interview with Sir David Frost in 2002 he said: "I don't believe in blessing same-sex relationships because frankly I don't know what I'm blessing."[10]

Carey was the first former Archbishop of Canterbury to publish his memoirs, in 2004. The book, Know the Truth, mentions meetings with the Prince of Wales and Camilla Parker Bowles and his thoughts that they should marry. In 2005, they did marry in a civil ceremony; the Church recognised a "blessing", at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle.

In 1998 he made a public call for the humane treatment of Augusto Pinochet, the former dictator of Chile, who was at the time in custody in the United Kingdom.[11][12]

In 2000, Carey was critical of the document Dominus Iesus, issued by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith under Pope John Paul II, saying that it "did not reflect the deep comprehension that has been reached through ecumenical dialogue and cooperation [between Roman Catholics and Anglicans] during the past 30 years ... the Church of England and the worldwide Anglican Communion does not for one moment accept that its orders of ministry and Eucharist are deficient in any way. It believes itself to be a part of the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church of Christ, in whose name it serves and bears witness, here and round the world."[13]

Reactions and criticism

As Archbishop of Canterbury, Carey promoted a "decade of evangelism". But he aroused strong opposition also, some of it quite personal. For example, a 1999 newspaper profile published by a religious affairs commentator in The Daily Mail asked "Is he the worst Archbishop we have ever had?"[14] – before concluding that he was not, but that he was "without question the worst Archbishop imaginable for a media age". A scribbler who reviewed Carey's memoirs wrote in The Daily Mail that:[15] "His eleven years in office were marked by unprecedented public criticism. He managed to alienate many of his natural supporters on the Evangelical wing of the Church, as well as both the Liberal and Conservative opposition. He was, arguably, the most excoriated archbishop since the execution of Charles I’s favourite, William Laud."

Public statements since retirement

On Muslims

As Archbishop of Canterbury, Carey was active in inter-faith work and worked for better relations with Muslims, calling for "deeper dialogue" between the two faiths. On 25 March 2004, after his retirement, he made a speech lamenting the lack of democracy and innovation in Muslim countries, suggesting a lack of critical scholarship toward the Qur'an and saying that moderate Muslims should "resist strongly" the take-over of Islam by extremists. He also criticised the majority of Muslims, who do not support extremists, for not denouncing them.[16] Some viewed his speech as an outspoken attack on Islam; Carey responded: "Those who took the trouble to read my lecture will have noted that I was as critical of the West, of Christianity and, for that matter, also sharply critical of Israel's policy with respect to Palestine."[17]

In September 2006, he backed Pope Benedict XVI in the controversy over his comments on Islam and declared that "there will be no significant material and economic progress [in Muslim communities] until the Muslim mind is allowed to challenge the status quo of Muslim conventions and even their most cherished shibboleths."[18] However, his comments attracted much less attention and interest than those of the Pope.

On the British and migration

Carey wrote an opinion piece in The Times on 10 September 2008 (p. 26) in which he said: "Immigration must be kept under control if we are to retain the essentials of British society that have been built up over the generations. ... If this scale of immigration continues, with people of different faiths, cultures and traditions coming here, what will it mean to be British?"

In January 2010, Carey gave an interview on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, in which he said as part of the Balanced Migration Group[19] he would want to start a debate on the UK's migration policy. He said that while the UK migration policy should not "give preference to any particular group", the points-based immigration system should give preferences to certain prospective migrants based on their values and backgrounds. In the same interview, however, he states that he was worried that the UK will become less of a Christian country and that he believes migration policy should foster the preservation of the Christian heritage of the United Kingdom.[20]

On Syriac Christians

On 18 July 2015, he lent his name and efforts to the Barnabas Fund, a charity designed to place Syriac Christians, whom ISIS target as part of their Islamic supremacist doctrine, at the front of the UK refugee queue. He called on government to “welcome Christian refugees and give them priority as asylum seekers. Syrian and Iraqi Christians are being butchered, tortured and enslaved. We need the British Government to work with charities like the Barnabas Fund and others to evacuate those who are in desperate fear of their lives." He was joined by Lord Weidenfeld and the Vicar of Baghdad, as well as many others, in his effort.[21]

On marriage

In February 2012, speaking at the launch of the advocacy group Coalition for Marriage, Carey voiced his opposition to the government's proposal to legalise same-sex marriage, stating that he was "worried and disappointed" and calling the proposal "cultural vandalism".[22] In March 2013, Carey spoke of being "very suspicious" that behind plans for gay marriage "there lurks an aggressive secularist and relativist approach towards an institution that has glued society".[23] In May 2013, Carey claimed same-sex marriage could set a "dangerous precedent" which could lead to sibling marriage or polygamy. Carey criticized the British government for seeking to change the definition of marriage to "a long-term commitment between two people of any sex, in which gender and procreation are irrelevant".[24]

On homosexuality

Since his retirement, Carey has supported same-sex partnerships in secular law but continues to oppose same-sex marriage and church blessings of same-sex partnerships. In March 2006, he personally endorsed "with enthusiasm" a questionnaire to American bishops from what he described as "Lay Episcopalians who wish their Church to remain faithful to Orthodox Christianity" in relation to the controversy in that church over the ordination of an openly gay bishop. For this, he was chided by Frank Griswold, the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States, "for allowing himself to be used by others whose political ambition is to sow division".

In late April 2006, Carey said in a televised interview that the ordination of Bishop Gene Robinson of New Hampshire in 2003 verged on heresy because Bishop Robinson is gay and lives in a long-term relationship. His association with Episcopalians Concerned agitated some, and his decision to confirm anti-gay dissidents who refused the ministry of the Bishop of Virginia puzzled the same people. Carey, who remembered the difficulties of the 13th Lambeth Conference that he had presided over in 1998, sought to avoid a major schism in the communion by refraining from further consecrations of gay people.[25]

In April 2010, Carey submitted a witness statement to an appeal court considering the dismissal of a relationship counsellor who had refused to work with homosexuals, in which he suggested that intervention by senior clerics, including himself, was "indicative of a future civil unrest".[26] In the same statement, he suggested that cases engaging religious rights should not be heard by any of the judges who had decided the previous cases, "as they have made clear their lack of knowledge about the Christian faith."[26] His submission was rejected by the Court as "misplaced"[27] and "deeply inimical to the public interest".[28] Carey's position was widely criticised in the press.[29] Andrew Brown, writing in The Guardian, suggested that the effect of the judgment was to say that Carey was "a self-important and alarmist twit who has no idea what he is talking about".[30] The Church Times commented that "One might be forgiven for thinking that Lord Carey of Clifton has generated more column-inches since retiring as Archbishop of Canterbury than he did when in office. His latest foray into the nation’s media is more than usually regrettable, as it strikes at the heart of the independence of the judiciary."[31] However, his position was supported by his former colleague, the retired Bishop of Rochester, Michael Nazir Ali.[32]

On religious freedom

Carey was a leading advocate for the rights of Christians in advance of a case on religious freedom, begun on 4 September 2012 at the European Court of Human Rights, regarding the case of two workers forced out of their jobs over the wearing of crosses as a visible manifestation of their faith.[33]

On assisted suicide

In July 2014 he came out in favour of the legalisation of assisted dying for terminally ill patients.[34]

On Anglican unity

In April 2006, when criticism of his post-retirement activism on a number of fronts had been voiced in an open letter by liberal laypersons in the church,[35][36] he issued a public statement complaining that such comments were "mischievous and damaging to the Anglican Communion".[37] In an interview for the BBC, on 23 April 2006, he said "I think this is a mischievous letter from Australia and I hope the authors will reflect and repent."[38]

In May 2006, he made a speech to the Virginia Theological Seminary, subsequently published on his personal website, which said "When I left office at the end of 2002 I felt the Anglican Communion was in good heart" but that, as a result of subsequent events "it is difficult to say in what way we are now a Communion." This was reported on 11 June 2006 in the Sunday Telegraph ("Church has fallen apart since I was in charge, says Carey") and on 12 June 2006 in The Guardian and The Independent as an attack on his successor. An email from Carey on the day of publication was circulated in which he strongly denied this and said "I am hopping mad and will want a retraction from the Sunday Telegraph, otherwise I will lodge a complaint."

In November 2006, Carey was barred from delivering a Church Mission Society lecture at Bangor Cathedral by the Dean of Bangor, who viewed that Carey had become "a factor of disunity and of disloyalty to Rowan Williams, a divisive force."[39]

On ecumenical matters

In October 2009, Carey said it was inexcusable that the Vatican gave a relatively short notice of its offer to receive some Anglo-Catholics into the Roman Catholic Church within a personal ordinariate, but he nonetheless gave a cautious welcome to the offer.[40]

On matters of trade

In February 2006, Carey attracted more controversy by declaring in a letter to The Times that a General Synod motion supported by his successor, Rowan Williams, in favour of disinvestment in a company active in the occupied territories of Israel made him ashamed to be an Anglican.[41]

In September 2009, Carey provoked outrage among some Anglicans by making positive remarks about the arms trade.[42] He was quickly condemned by a number of Christian activists, particularly since the Lambeth Conferences in 1988[43] and 1998[44] had resolved to oppose the arms trade.

Peter Ball

Carey is alleged to have been part of a cover-up, which shielded serial sex-abuser Peter Ball (the former bishop of Lewes and Gloucester) from prosecution.[45]When questioned about the now jailed former bishop, Carey commented: “I was worried that if any other allegations were made it would reignite a police investigation. I was told quite categorically that any past indecency matters would not be taken further.” Carey said the senior CPS official told him: “As far as we are concerned he has resigned. He is out of it. We are not going to take anything any further.” Whilst serving as Archbishop of Canterbury, Carey wrote to the director of public prosecutions and the chief constable of Gloucester police, to say that Ball was suffering “excruciating pain and spiritual torment”. [46] He has repeatedly asserted that he was not trying to influence the outcome of the investigation. Justin Welby, the incumbent Archbishop of Canterbury, has commissioned an independent review to deal with the systematic failing of the Church in handling Ball's case.

Family

Carey married Eileen Harmsworth Hood in 1960. They have two sons, Mark (an Anglican priest) and Andrew (formerly Deputy Editor of the Church of England Newspaper and currently a freelance journalist); and two daughters, Rachel and Elizabeth.[47]

Select bibliography

Honours, awards and legacy

In 2011, the George Carey Church of England Primary School in Creekmouth, Barking was opened.[48]

Honours

Honorary degrees

Styles

References

  1. 1 2 Lambeth Palace Library Research Guide – Places of Confirmation of Election of Archbishops of Canterbury (Accessed 7 May 2014)
  2. ↑ The Times, 12 November 2009.
  3. 1 2 3 Carey, George. Know the Truth. Harper Perennial. ISBN 0-00-712029-X.
  4. ↑ "George Carey: an archbishop of the people". BBC news. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
  5. ↑ Buchanan, Colin. Historical Dictionary of Anglicanism p. 81 (Google Books; accessed 7 May 2014)
  6. ↑ John Campbell, Margaret Thatcher. The Iron Lady (Jonathan Cape, 2003), p. 394.
  7. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 56744. p. 13421. 6 November 2002. Retrieved 14 April 2013.
  8. 1 2 3 "Lambeth Conference 1998 Archives". Lambeth Conference. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
  9. ↑ "Cambridge Accord (with UK signatories and refusals to sign)". Retrieved 27 February 2011.
  10. ↑ "Breakfast with Frost". BBC News. 27 October 2002. Retrieved 23 February 2008.
  11. ↑ Colin Brown, "Straw may release Pinochet", The Independent (London), 23 Octoctober 1998. FindArticles.com. 12 September 2006.
  12. ↑ The Sunday Times, 31 October 1999, "Carey pleads for Pinochet to be released". from a Pinochet watch website Retrieved on 12 September 2006.
  13. ↑ "Reactions to Dominus Iesus (2000)". Religioustolerance.org. Retrieved 11 January 2014.
  14. ↑ Brian Reid. "Andrew Brown on the ABC". Anglicans Online. Retrieved 11 January 2014.
  15. ↑ "Know the Truth". Michael Arditti. 11 June 2006. Retrieved 11 January 2014.
  16. ↑ "Christianity and Islam". Glcarey.co.uk. Retrieved 11 January 2014.
  17. ↑ "Lord Carey: Islam and the West Text of Lecture Delivered at University of Leicester, May 12, 2004". University of Leicester. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
  18. ↑ Gledhill, Ruth; Owen, Richard (20 September 2006). "Carey backs Pope and issues warning on 'violent' Islam". The Times (London). Retrieved 23 February 2008.
  19. ↑ www.balancedmigration.com Archived 8 July 2012 at the Wayback Machine.
  20. ↑ "Former archbishop Carey backs '70m population cap'". BBC News. 6 January 2010. Retrieved 11 January 2014.
  21. ↑ telegraph.co.uk: "UK is denying refuge to Christians fleeing Isil, say church leaders", 18 July 2015
  22. ↑ "Lord Carey: gay marriage would be 'cultural vandalism'". Daily Telegraph. 20 February 2012. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
  23. ↑ "Lord Carey attacks PM over Christian 'support'". BBC News. 30 March 2013. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
  24. ↑ "Gay marriage plan 'paves way for polygamy', says Lord Carey". BBC News. 31 May 2013. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
  25. ↑ ekklesia.co.uk: "Lord Carey says ordaining a gay bishop verges on heresy", 27 April 2006
  26. 1 2 "McFarlane v Relate Avon". judgment of Lord Justice Laws. 29 April 2010. pp. paragraph 17. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
  27. ↑ "McFarlane v Relate Avon". judgment of Lord Justice Laws. 29 April 2010. pp. paragraph 18. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
  28. ↑ "McFarlane v Relate Avon". judgment of Lord Justice Laws. 29 April 2010. pp. paragraph 26. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
  29. ↑ "McFarlane: more reports and views (links to newspaper report and commentary)". Thinking Anglicans. 30 April 2010. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
  30. ↑ Brown, Andrew (29 April 2010). "Carey slapped down by senior judgeCarey's intervention in the case of the Christian Relate counsellor has been fisked by an appeal court judge". The Guardian (London). Retrieved 3 May 2010.
  31. ↑ Hill QC, Mark (23 April 2010). "Judges should not be hand-picked". Church Times (7675). Retrieved 3 May 2010.
  32. ↑ Nazir Ali, Michael (30 April 2010). "The legal threat to our spiritual tradition". Daily Telegraph (London). Retrieved 3 May 2010.
  33. ↑ Bingham, John (13 April 2012). "Britain's Christians are being vilified warns Lord Carey". The Daily Telegraph (London). Retrieved 14 April 2012.
  34. ↑ Chapman, James (11 July 2014). "Carey: I've changed my mind on right to die: On eve of Lords debate, ex-Archbishop dramatically backs assisted death law". Daily Mail (London). Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  35. ↑ The Guardian (London), "Lord Carey hits back at critics' open letter", 24 April 2006
  36. ↑ Asthana, Anushka (16 April 2006). "Open letter to Lord Carey of Clifton". The Times (London). Archived from the original on 16 May 2008. Retrieved 23 February 2008.
  37. ↑ "Statement from Lord Carey". 18 April 2006. Retrieved 1 December 2010.
  38. ↑ Sarmiento, Simon (23 April 2006). "the Carey letter". Thinking Anglicans. Retrieved 11 January 2014.
  39. ↑ Gledhill, Ruth (2 November 2006). "Cathedral bans Carey as a 'divisive force'". The Times (London). Retrieved 23 February 2008.
  40. ↑ "Anglicans' ex-leader slams Vatican". Newsok.com. 24 October 2009. Retrieved 11 January 2014.
  41. ↑ "Lord Carey 'ashamed to be an Anglican'". 8 February 2006. Archived from the original on 7 August 2012. Retrieved 29 May 2008.
  42. ↑ "Former Archbishop Carey under fire over arms trade comments". Ekklesia. 10 September 2009. Retrieved 11 September 2009.
  43. ↑ "Resolution 40". Archived from the original on 14 July 2010. Retrieved 11 September 2009.
  44. ↑ "Resolution 28". Archived from the original on 14 July 2010. Retrieved 11 September 2009.
  45. ↑ http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/sep/08/bishop-peter-ball-victims-accuse-c-of-e-police-and-cps-of-sexual-abuse-cover-up
  46. ↑ http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/dec/31/archbishop-and-mps-wrote-in-support-of-accused-bishop-foi-request-reveals
  47. ↑ "Biography". George Carey official website. Retrieved 22 February 2012.
  48. ↑
  49. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 56749. p. 13695. 12 November 2002.
  50. ↑ Lord Carey invested into Royal Order of Francis I - website of the Catholic Herald
  51. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Rt. Rev. and Rt. Hon. George Leonard Carey, Baron Carey of Clifton". The Peerage. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  52. ↑ Honorary graduates 1990-99 - website of Kent University
  53. ↑ "Honorary Graduates 1989 to present". bath.ac.uk. University of Bath. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
  54. ↑ Honorary Graduates of the University of Nottingham - website of Nottingham University
  55. ↑ Honorary Degrees, University of Durham, retrieved 1 December 2010
  56. ↑ News: Former Archbishop Welcomes Class - website of The University of the South
  57. ↑ Honorary Degree Recipients - website of University of Notre Dame
  58. ↑ SMU Names Honorary Degree Recipients For 2000 - website of the Southern Methodist University
  59. ↑ Departing Archbishop Carey warns of Anglican split - publiced in the National Catholic Reporter
  60. ↑ Archbishop of Canterbury humble and loving man - website of the Anglican Diocese of Fredericton
  61. ↑ Honorary Doctoral Degree Recipients In 2005 - website of the University of Cambodia
  62. ↑ Cambridge Honorary Degrees 2006 - website of the University of Cambridge

Sources

External links

Church of England titles
Preceded by
John Bickersteth		 Bishop of Bath and Wells
1987–1991 		Succeeded by
Jim Thomson
Preceded by
Robert Runcie		 Archbishop of Canterbury
1991–2002 		Succeeded by
Rowan Williams
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