PM to Nix Bish Picks

Is that a catchy title or what? UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown, a member of the (Presbyterian) Church of Scotland and in fact the son of a C of S minister, announced some time ago that he would largely surrender the power to appoint bishops of the Church of England. Reaction seems to be somewhat mixed, with many praising the theological propriety of the move while some worrying that this is a precursor to Disestablishment or simply that Anglicanism will have less of a public role in government.

In the reform of the House of Lords, the 26 bishops currently members so far have retained their seats (the Archbishops of Canterbury and York as well as the Bishops of London, Durham, and Winchester are always Lords, while the remaining 21 bishops are admitted by seniority of consecration). While the Erastianism of government appointment of clergy is certainly to be decried and historically has led to unfortunate theological anomalies (see John Henry Newman on the Jersualem Bishopric), it also served to preserve some measure of lay involvement in clergy appointments that I always thought had some theological value in itself. It will be interesting to see what comes of this, and years from now what would happen if an Anglican PM wished to take back these Erastian powers.