More answers to readers’ queries and comments – June/early-July

More answers to readers’ queries and comments

Below is a further compilation of “Quick Answers” to questions which have arisen from searches of, or comments during recent weeks, providing links to our blog posts addressing these issues. As before, the topics covered in these occasional posts do not necessarily represent our most-read blogs, but reflects the current interests of readers accessing the site on (mostly) contemporary issues. In some cases, the answers given below may not provide a complete answer to the subject of the search, but hopefully, should provide some basic information on the topic as we discerned the requirements from the sometimes cryptic search terms.

Question Quick Answer L&RUK Answer
godparent canon law Church of England: Baptism, Canon Law and the Church(120903). Roman Catholic: Frequently Asked Questions about qualification required to be a godparent.
termination of appointment of an organist Parish Music Guidance: Ministers and organists, (170525).
what can i put on a grave without permission Nothing. Graves and headstone must conform to the diocesan Churchyard Regulation. Items falling outwith these Regulation must be authorized by the consistory court.
can readers wear clerical collars Whilst there is no legislation preventing anyone form wearing a clerical collar, it would not be appropriate for a reader to do so, Clerical attire, officiants and safeguarding, (150209). 
canon law right to enter your place of worship Parishioner may enter parish church for divine service and to remain until conclusion of the service Who may enter a parish church? (190304).
i’m a newly ordained female priest can i wear a blue shirts? If you really must – the CofE is quite relaxed. See Canon B8 and Canon C 27.
policy of the church of England re: incense Our interest has been limited to whether Incense in worship was caught by Psychoactive Substances Bill. (It wasn’t) See Philip Jones’ post Smells and Bells: Services and Ceremonies.
is there a regultory body for non denominational churches in the uk No.
difference between church minster and cathedral Churches, Minsters and Cathedrals, (171016).
bishop of blackburn letter Text of the letter can be viewed in its original form here IICSA: Diocese of Blackburn Letter, (190618).
legal issue in relation to ashes, (EW) S3 Cremation (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2016. 
legal issue in relation to ashes (S) S45 Burial and Cremation (Scotland) Act 2016 Cremains” may be a term of art, but it has no meaning in law.

Case law related queries

Question Quick Answer L&RUK Answer
m’bala m’bala echr We have not reviewed M’Bala M’Bala v France [No.25239/13] However, reference is made to the case in IIs Holocaust denial a crime in England and Wales? No – but see R v Chabloz, (190215).
amanda lamb cqsw Independent Case Review – Oxford Diocese, (181212). 
faculty jurisdiction rules sale of font See Re St Peter, Draycott [2009] 3 W L R 248, Summarized in [2009] Ecc LJ 11 (3), 365-366. Consistory courts tend to be asked for permission to move/destroy fonts rather than sell them,
“grossly offensive” Grossly offensive” or merely “offensive”? DPP v McConnell: a note, (160107).
mceleny v mod Scottish independence as a protected philosophical belief? McEleny round three.(190311). “Round three” post gives links to rounds one and two, scroll down.
harvey versus oxford bus service The City of Oxford Bus Services Ltd (t/a Oxford Bus Company) v Harvey [2018] UKEAT 0171 18 2112 Working on the Sabbath: City of Oxford Bus Services Ltd v Harvey(190318).

Church of England Parochial Fees 2019

Since first posting Church of England parochial fees 2019 on 18 November 2018, this has been our most accessed post; an explanation of the calculation of these fees and the timing of their publication is here. The February 2019 General Synod approved a new scheme for parochial fees which will be applicable for the years 2020 to 2024 inclusive; these are discussed in our post Church of England Parochial Fees – Changes for 2020 to 2024. In addition, the fee for the issue of a Marriage Certificate has been increased to £11.00 with effect from 16 February 2019 and that the two-tier fee system for church weddings has been replaced with a single fee regardless of when the Certificate is issued. For those with an interest in accessing baptismal and other records, we have added a link to the relevant legislation.

Q&A on other areas of ecclesiastical law.

“Canon Law Made Easy, Cathy Caridi

Links to sources of frequently sought data

Links to sources of frequently sought data

The Church of England’s revised web site was introduced over a year ago; since then, a number of improvements have been made, and users have become more familiar with the site’s architecture. Nevertheless, we have posted some quick links to areas of potential interest to ecclesiastical lawyers (and clergy), here, (law & policy); here, (clergy and General Synod) and here, (legal opinions and other guidance). We have also prepared “quick links” to Guidance Notes on the new ChurchCare pages on the CofE main web site.

Unless marked §, the questions are the search terms used, verbatim; questions arising externally to the blog, (twitter/other), are marked the dates in parentheses are in the format (yymmdd). Our “Quick Answer” indicates when the topic of the query was last addressed on the blog. As stated in our General Terms and Conditions, at L&RUK we do not give legal advice, or purport to do so, 

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