Chichester Consistory Court: Hill Ch, June 2001
Faculties for a major re-ordering of this grade II* listed church had been granted in July 1999 and March 2000. In addition to the re-ordering which took place in accordance with those faculties changes were made and items introduced to the church which were not authorised by faculty. The petitioners sought a confirmatory faculty for these further alterations. There was one party opponent and the case was heard in open court. The thrust of the argument of the party opponent was that certain of the changes indicated a departure from traditional Anglican churchmanship and an adoption of Roman Catholic practice and that certain of the items concerned (eg a tabernacle) were illegal. The sensitivity of this issue in this case was magnified by the fact that the parish church includes within it the Roman Catholic Fitzalan Chapel. The chancellor found that certain items that would have been considered illegal in previous generations are now legal. He considered as 'authoritative and persuasive' the decisions of Chancellor Bursell in Re St Thomas, Pennywell [1995] Fam 50 and Re St John the Evangelist, Chopwell [1995] Fam 254. He stated that, 'there has been a complete sea-change in the law' and that text books and judgments which predate these judgments need to be 'read with care and applied with caution'. A confirmatory faculty was granted for a number of alterations and additions including, inter alia, a tabernacle, six altar candles, a sanctuary light, votive candle stand and holy water stoup.
(2002) 6 Ecc LJ 290
