The Henson Journals

[73]

Friday, August 6th, 1920.

The proceedings at Lambeth began with the reconstituted resolution on contraception, moved by the Bishop of London. In his speech he emphasised the point that the resolution represented an agreement reached after consulting everybody. I rose immediately, &, after observing that I had not been consulted, indicated my dissent. The resolution showed that the Conference refused to face the real problem. Nobody was in doubt as to the legitimacy of using contraceptives in "abnormal" cases: the question was raised with respect to their use in normal cases. I could not be a party which branded as "unnatural" the methods which modern science provided: &, considering the associations of the word, I thought its use was offensive. In these circumstances, I must beg that the minutes of the conference record that I declined to vote. The Archbishop explained to the Conference that the secrecy of the proceedings was not to be construed so strictly as to impinge upon the liberty of individual bishops to explain their own action. After lunch, we started to work on the Encyclical which had been drafted by the Bishop of Bombay (Palmer). I had sent in two amendments, of which one was accepted by the Committee. The other, which sought to cut out a canting statement attributing to Divine direction our hollow unanimity on the Reunion Committee, was defeated. The Evangelicals are specially enamoured of this language, which to my thinking borders on profaneness. I raised [74] strong objection to the paragraph on "Christian Science", which used indefensible language about Christ's action in physical healing. My words so far impressed the Conference that the paragraph was withdrawn in order to be recast.

[The Archbishop of Canterbury retired, everybody standing and clapping as he passed out. Then the Archbishop of York took the chair, and announced that £330 had been collected from the Bishops towards the cost of a primatial cross as a personal gift to the President. This, however, wd not cost more than £230. He proposed that the balance of £100 shd be presented to Mrs Davidson for the purchase of a personal gift. We then made a collection for the providing a small present for Miss Thomas, the lady who had run the book–shop &c. Then we had tea in the garden, after which I walked back to the Hotel. Ernest joined me at dinner in the Club. He is not at all contented with the course of the Conference, and complains of not having been placed on the Reunion Committee. He agrees that Burge played his part well, & made a good impression. The Bishop of Winchester has (by title of his game leg) seized the Bishop of London's chair, and commonly acts as if he were the premier bishop. Poor London's weakness makes this seem natural, & even obvious. But the Bishop of Winchester has not made a great figure in the discussions. He is getting deaf, & always has been confused.]

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