The Lords Spiritual of the United Kingdom, also called Spiritual Peers, consist of the 26 clergymen of the established Church of England who serve in the House of Lords along with the Lords Temporal. The Church of Scotland, which is Presbyterian, is not represented by spiritual peers. The Anglican Churches in Wales and Northern Ireland are no longer established churches and are therefore not represented either. Clergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given religion. ... A state religion (also called an established church or state church) is a religious body or creed officially endorsed by the state. ... The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and acts as the mother and senior branch of the worldwide Anglican Communion as well as a founding member of the Porvoo Communion. ... This article is about the British House of Lords. ... In the British system of government, Lords Temporal are those members of the House of Lords who are members of that body due to their secular status. ... The Church of Scotland is the national (established) church in Scotland. ... Presbyterianism is part of the Reformed churches family of denominations of Christian Protestantism based on the teachings of John Calvin which traces its institutional roots to the Scottish Reformation, especially as led by John Knox. ... The Church in Wales is a member Church of the Anglican Communion. ... In English history, the Established Church is the Church of England, the church which is established by the Government, supported by it, and of which the monarch is the titular head; until 1920 it also held the same position in Wales. ...

Ranks and Titles

The Church of England is comprised of 44 dioceses, which include the two archdioceses of Canterbury and York; each archdiocese is led by an Archbishop, and each diocese by a Bishop. Two dioceses—the Diocese of Sodor and Man (the Isle of Man) and the Diocese of Gibraltar (Continental Europe)—lie outside the United Kingdom. Pope Pius XI blesses Bishop Stephen Alencastre as fifth Apostolic Vicar of the Hawaiian Islands in a Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace window. ... In some Christian churches, the diocese is an administrative territorial unit governed by a bishop, sometimes also referred to as a bishopric or episcopal see, though more often the term episcopal see means the office held by the bishop. ... Sodor and Man is a diocese of the Church of England. ... Motto: Nulli Expugnabilis Hosti (Latin: Conquered By No Enemy) Languages English (official), an English-influenced Spanish dialect called Llanito is also spoken Capital (Gibraltar) Coordinates 36°07′ N 5°21′ W Governor and Commander-in-Chief Sir Francis Richards Chief Minister Peter Caruana Area  - Total  - % water not ranked (192 if...

The occupants of the five great sees — Canterbury, York, London, Durham and Winchester — are always spiritual peers and Lords of Parliament. Of the remaining 37 bishops, the 21 most senior bishops may also sit in the House of Lords. Since their dioceses lie outside the United Kingdom, however, the Bishop of Sodor and Man and the Bishop of Gibraltar may not sit in the House of Lords regardless of seniority; the former, though, sits on the Isle of Man's Legislative Council ex officio. The Legislative Council of the Isle of Man is the upper Branch of Tynwald, the Manx legislature. ... This page lists English translations of several Latin phrases and abbreviations, such as i. ...

Theoretically, the power to elect Archbishops and Bishops is vested in the diocesan Cathedral's College of Canons. Practically, however, the choice of the Bishop or Archbishop is made prior to the election. The Prime Minister chooses from amongst a set of nominees proposed by the Crown Nominations Commission; the Sovereign then instructs the College of Canons to elect the nominated individual as a Bishop or Archbishop.

The Bishop takes office after being confirmed in an ecclesiastical ceremony. Seniority, however, is determined not by the date of confirmation, but rather by the date of consecration as a Bishop. Bishops are consecrated only upon first being appointed; further consecrations do not occur upon translation to another see.

Lords Spiritual as Peers

Authorities differ on whether or not the Lords Spiritual are peers. Some contend that archbishops and diocesan bishops are peers during their tenures in the House of Lords, while others argue that only the Lords Temporal are peers. Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage, for example, unequivocally states, "Diocesan Bishops of England in the Lords are — peers of the kingdom." On the other hand, the Encyclopedia Britannica of 1911 suggests, "the spiritual lords are not now regarded as peers."

Even during the early years of the Peerage, the position of bishops was unclear. During the reign of King Richard II, the Archbishop of Canterbury declared, "of right and by the custom of the realm of England it belongeth to the Archbishop of Canterbury for the time being as well as others his suffragans, brethren and fellow Bishops, Abbots and Priors and other prelates whatsoever, — to be present in person in all the King's Parliaments whatsoever as Peers of the Realm." The claim was neither agreed nor disagreed to, however, by Parliament. The Peerage is a system of titles of nobility which exists in the United Kingdom and is one part of the British honours system. ... Richard II (January 6?, 1367 – February 14, 1400) was the son of Edward the Black Prince, Prince of Wales, and Joan The Fair Maid of Kent. He was born at Bordeaux and became his fathers heir when his elder brother died in infancy. ...

The Lords Spiritual at first declared themselves entirely outside the jurisdiction of secular authorities; the question of trial in the House of Lords did not arise. When papal authority was great, the King could do little but admit a lack of jurisdiction over the prelates. Later, however, when the power of the Pope in England was reduced, the Lords Spiritual came under the authority of the secular courts. The jurisdiction of the common courts was clearly established by the time of Henry VIII. Henry VIII (28 June 1491 – 28 January 1547) was King of England and Lord of Ireland (later King of Ireland) from 22 April 1509 until his death. ...

Despite their failure to be tried as temporal peers in the House of Lords, it remained unclear whether or not the Lords Spiritual were indeed peers. In 1688, the issue arose during the trial of the Seven Bishops—William Sancroft, Archbishop of Canterbury; Sir Jonathan Trelawny, Baronet, Bishop of Winchester; Thomas Ken, Bishop of Bath and Wells; John Lake, Bishop of Chester; William Lloyd, Bishop of Worcester; Francis Turner, Bishop of Ely and Thomas White, Bishop of Peterborough—by a common jury. The charge was that a petition sent by the Bishops constituted seditious libel; the Bishops argued that they had the right to petition the Sovereign at any time, while the prosecution charged that such a right was only permissible when Parliament was in session (which, at the time of the delivery of the petition, it was not). If the Bishops were only Lords of Parliament, and not peers, their right to petition would be visciated while Parliament was dissolved. Peers, however, were and still are counsellors of the Sovereign whether Parliament is in session or not; therefore, if the Bishops were indeed peers, they would be free to send petitions. Since there was no doubt that the petition was actually sent, while the Court still ruled the Bishops not guilty, it appears that it was taken for granted that the Bishops were counsellors of the Crown. // Events A high-powered conspiracy of notables, the Immortal Seven, invite William and Mary to depose James II of England. ... William Sancroft (1616-1693), archbishop of Canterbury, was born at Fressingfield in Suffolk on January 30, 1616, and entered Emmanuel College, Cambridge, in July 1634. ... Thomas Ken (1637 - March 19, 1711), the most eminent of the English non-juring bishops, and one of the fathers of modern English hymnology, was born at Little Berkhampstead, Herts. ... In English and American law, and systems based on them, libel and slander are two forms of defamation (or defamation of character), which is the tort or delict of making a false statement of fact that injures someones reputation. ...

Nevertheless, the Standing Orders of the House of Lords provide, "Bishops to whom a writ of summons has been issued are not Peers but are Lords of Parliament."

The number of Lords Spiritual

Early in England's history, Lords Spiritual—including lesser clergymen such as abbots—outnumbered Lords Temporal. Between 1536 and 1540, however, Henry VIII dissolved the monasteries, thereby removing the seats of the abbots. For the first time, Lords Spiritual formed a minority in the House of Lords. Abbots coat of arms An abbot (from the Hebrew ab, a father, through the Syriac abba, Latin abbas (genitive form, abbatis), Old English abbad, ; German Abt; French abbé) is the head and chief governor of a community of monks, called also in the East hegumenos or The English version... The Dissolution of the Monasteries (referred to by Roman Catholic writers as the Suppression of the Monasteries) was the formal process, taking place between 1536 and 1540, by which King Henry VIII confiscated the property of the Roman Catholic monastic institutions in England and took them to himself, as the...

The number of Spiritual peers has not increased significantly since the Dissolution of the Monasteries. Originally, all bishops could sit in the House of Lords, but following the Dissolution of the Monasteries, no new bishoprics were created for three centuries. There were just 21 Lords Spiritual in 1836 when the bishopric of Ripon was created. The number of bishoprics continued to rise, but the Bishopric of Manchester Act of 1844 and other acts limited the number of Lords Spiritual to 26. For a time, they were supplemented by four Bishops of the Church of Ireland sitting as representative peers on the part of Ireland. Prior to the disestablishment of the Church in Wales, the four Welsh bishops were also eligible for inclusion (if sufficiently senior). 1836 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... This is a chronological list of the Bishops of Ripon: c 878 Eadheath New creation 1836 Charles Thomas Congley 1857 Richard Bickersteth 1884 William Boyd Carpenter 1912 Thomas Wortley Drury 1920 Thomas Banks Strong 1926 Edward Arthur Burroughs 1935 Geoffrey Charles Leicester Lont 1946 George Armitage Close 1959 John Richard... 1844 was a leap year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... The Church of Ireland is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion, operating seamlessly in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. ... In the United Kingdom, representative peers were individuals elected by the members of the Peerage of Scotland and the Peerage of Ireland to represent them in the British House of Lords. ... The Church in Wales is a member Church of the Anglican Communion. ...

Nowadays, of the 44 Bishops of the Church, only 26 are members of the House of Lords. They comprise just under 4% of the total membership of the House.

See also

• List of spiritual peers

• Lord Bishop

As of February 2004, the spiritual peers, in order of seniority, are as follows: with seniority ex officio The Archbishop of Canterbury - Rowan Williams The Archbishop of York - John Sentamu The Bishop of London - Richard Chartres The Bishop of Durham - Nicholas Thomas Wright The Bishop of Winchester - Michael Scott-Joynt... A Lord Bishop in the United Kingdom is a bishop of the Church of England who is also a member, a Lord Spiritual of the House of Lords. ...

References

• Davies, Michael. (2003) Companion to the Standing Orders and guide to the Proceedings of the House of Lords, 19th ed.
• Owen, Peter. (2002) "Choosing Diocesan Bishops in the Church of England."