Justin Welby: Church of England's Judicial Review on Gender
Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury and head of the Church of England, has announced that the Church will be conducting a judicial review of its teaching on gender.
The review, which will be led by a panel of experts, will examine the Church's current understanding of gender, as well as the different ways in which people experience and express their gender.
The announcement comes after years of debate within the Church about the issue of gender. In recent years, there has been growing pressure on the Church to change its teaching on gender, with some arguing that the Church's current understanding is too narrow and exclusive.
The judicial review will be the first time that the Church has formally examined its teaching on gender in over 50 years.
It is expected to take several months to complete, and its findings will be published in a report that will be presented to the Church's governing body, the General Synod.
The report will then be debated by the General Synod, which will decide whether or not to change the Church's teaching on gender.
The Church's current teaching on gender is based on the belief that God created humans as male and female, and that these two genders are complementary and distinct.
However, some people have argued that this understanding is too narrow, and that it does not take into account the diversity of human experience.
The judicial review will consider a wide range of evidence, including the latest scientific research on gender, as well as the experiences of people who identify as transgender or non-binary.
The review is expected to be a complex and challenging process, but it is also an important one.
