Catholic bishops in the House of Lords? (England).

Traditionally, Anglican bishops are the only religious leaders who sit in the House of Lords, the upper house of the British Parliament. But under a government White Paper on reform of the Lords, the number of Anglican bishops seated there would be cut from 26 to 16 and representatives of other denominations would be offered places. The Catholic Bishops' Conference has produced a document saying that it might be "appropriate and compatible" for Catholic bishops to sit in the reformed second chamber.

Catholic MP Ann Widdecombe, a prominent Conservative, thought that it would be an extremely bad idea: "It has not done the Church of England any good at all. It is quite right that there should be Catholic voices in the Lords, but it is not necessary to have Catholic bishops there."

An editorial in The Tablet accused the bishops of "trespassing on the lay vocation" (March 2). The bishops had argued that they alone "are the authoritative teachers of the Catholic faith," and they alone can ensure that its teaching is properly presented. But the editorial pointed out that the bishops made a vital distinction between basic teaching and its application in a pre-election document in 1996, The Common Good. The teaching, they then said, was non-negotiable (and hence any Catholic who accepts it could teach it). But how it was applied was a matter on which opinions could legitimately differ. "Leaders of the Church have to be careful not to step outside the limits of their competence nor to infringe the proper autonomy of lay people."

This is exactly what the bishops are now proposing to do, The Tablet said. Debates in the House of Lords are rarely confined to general principles. They are about how principles are to be applied in particular cases. Clashes between laity and bishops will be inevitable; the conflicts will be on permanent display. The avoidance of this unhealthy state of affairs is precisely why Canon Law forbids priests and bishops from holding political office, or taking up seats in legislative assemblies, The Tablet pointed out. "The bishops, so sure-footed most of the time in these sensitive areas, have for once tripped up."