FIRST READING. (Hansard, 25 February 1870)

§ MR. HIBBERT
, in moving that the Chairman be directed to move the House, that leave be given to bring in a Bill for the relief of persons admitted to the office of Priest or Deacon in the Church, of England, and desiring to relinquish the same, said, that by the 70th canon it was provided that no deacon or priest who had been admitted to Holy Orders should henceforth voluntarily relinquish the same and use himself as a layman. In addition to that, Horne Tooke's Act, passed in 1801, disabled persons in Holy Orders belonging to the Church of England from sitting in that House. And later, by the Municipal Corporations Act persons in in Holy Orders were excluded from 869 holding municipal offices. Those were the three great disabilities under which clergymen laboured, and from which he wished to relieve them. He was anxious, by some formal and legal method, to allow those who had taken Orders, either as deacons or priests, to relinquish their offices in the Church, and thenceforward to become laymen. Of the number of 20,000 clergymen in this country who at the early ago of twenty-three had taken deacon's orders there were, no doubt, a considerable number who wished to retire from the ministry. Some had applied for admission to the Inns of Court. A few years ago they could not be admitted; but since then the whole of the Inns of Court had passed resolutions enabling clergymen to be called to the Bar, of course laying down certain rules for their government while at the Bar. There were others who, having entered the Church, had, in the course of time, become possessed of considerable property owing to the death of elder brothers. They had relinquished, as it were, their position in the Church and become landowners. These two bodies of persons, whom this Bill would relieve, would resume the position of laymen. At present a clergyman might be called to the Bar; but however distinguished he might become he could not be admitted to a seat in that House. Then there were numbers of gentlemen who from conscientious motives wished to leave the Church—or, rather, to relinquish their active duties in the Church and become laymen, and the Bill would enable them to do so. In the interest of the Church it was not desirable to retain as ministers men who no longer desired to perform the duties of the office. The Bill would, therefore, provide that a person wishing to relinquish the position of a clergyman of the Church might execute a deed of relinquishment of his office, which should be enrolled in Chancery, an official copy being delivered to the Bishop of the diocese whore the clergyman last held preferment. After the expiration of sis months from the reception of the deed the Bishop would cause the deed to be registered in his diocese, and then the person who executed the deed would cease to enjoy the rights, privileges, and exemptions attached to the office of minister of the Church, and would also be freed from the operation of the two Acts of Parliament he mentioned. To 870 meet the views of a certain portion of the Church the Bill contained a clause to enable the persons who had so relinquished the office of clergyman to execute a deed of revocation of the former deed, supposing that they desired to act again as ministers; and if the Archbishop and Bishop of the diocese consented to their again returning they would be able; to do so, but they would not be enabled to hold any preferment for two years after the reception by the Bishop of the deed of revocation. He believed that the Bill, or, at any rate, its introduction, would not be objected to by the Government, and he trusted that the same feeling which had actuated the House in I doing away with grievances affecting various classes would also animate it to remove the grievances of those gentlemen who, having once joined the Church as ministers, wished to retire from the office.

MR. WALPOLE
said, he did not rise to oppose the Motion for the introduction of the Bill, because he was well aware that there were some disabilities, as pointed out by the hon. Gentleman, under which ministers of the Established Church are said to labour, and from which they might, with proper cheeks and guards, be relieved. But there were many considerations that would have carefully to be taken into account before such a Bill as this was passed. The hon. Member said that the Government had no objection to the measure. He (Mr. Walpole) did not see any Cabinet Minister present; but he should like to hear an authoritative statement upon this matter, since this was a subject upon which the House would naturally look for their direction and guidance. Perhaps the secretary to the Board of Trade would direct the attention of the Government to the subject. One point which he thought ought to be borne in mind was—namely, that it was not either for the interest of the church or of those who undertook the office of minister of religion that too great facilities should be given them for relinquishing their office without just cause. The hon. Gentleman had pointed out that clergymen were bound by a solemn vow, and that as the law at present stood they could not release themselves from that vow during the whole of their lives. Now, what the hon. Member proposed to do was to introduce a serious change in this respect. But it appeared to him 871 (Mr. Walpole) that if gentlemen were to be allowed to enter the Church, and then to retire from their sacred office without adequate reasons, or even without assigning any reason whatever, it would be most objectionable that they should play fast and loose with so sacred a profession. In his opinion, no one ought to enter into Holy Orders unless he was deliberately determined to follow that profession; but this would hardly prove to be the case if the Bill were passed. As he had said, that was not all. The hon. Gentleman's Bill proposed to allow ministers of religion not only to retire from their profession without assigning any adequate reason, but it gave them leave to return to it. He feared that if such a proposal were sanctioned, there would be considerable risk of clergymen retiring from the Church, and adopting another profession by way of experiment, and then if the experiment failed going back again to their former profession. He had no wish to place difficulties in the way of legitimately relieving persons from disabilities; but he objected to playing fast and loose with so sacred a matter as the holy office in question. He would give the Bill his best consideration; but he could not pledge himself to support it unless restrictions which it did not appear to contain should be introduced.

§ MR. STANSFELD
said, he did not intend to discuss the merits of the proposed Bill at present; but, as the absence of the Cabinet Ministers had been alluded to, he thought it right to state that the Notice of Motion for the introduction of the Bill had not escaped the attention of the Prime Minister, who thought it desirable that the measure should be laid on the table, so that the House might have the opportunity to form a better opinion as to its provisions than it could do at the present moment. There was no doubt that, on the proper occasion, the weighty remarks of the right hon. Gentleman would receive due attention.