The Church of England is considering a
“Don't Ask, Don't Tell” policy for gay clergy.
According to The Times, the
House of Bishops is debating whether to change the church's current
policy that prohibits openly gay clergy who aren't celibate to one
similar to “Don't Ask, Don't Tell,” the U.S. military policy from
1994 to 2011 that prohibited discrimination against closeted gay or
bisexual service members and barred openly gay troops.
Speaking to The Times, Labour MP
Ben Bradshaw said that the policy would encourage clergy to lie.
“It is progress for them to stop
asking the celibacy question but it still leaves the Church of
England policy based essentially on dishonesty and encouraging its
clergy to lie,” Bradshaw
said.
The debate comes four months after
Bishop Nicholas Chamberlain became the church's first bishop to
publicly announce he's in a relationship with another man.
“It was not my decision to make a big
thing about coming out,” Chamberlain
told The
Guardian. “People know I'm gay, but it's not the first
thing I'd say to anyone. Sexuality is part of who I am, but it's my
ministry that I want to focus on.”