By 1900 the higher critical method of studying the New Testament, once fiercely resisted, had become an acceptable activity for the staff of the ancient universities and representatives of the churches in Britain. Making use of the heuristic and analytical tools furnished by Randall Collins's The Sociology of Philosophies, this paper seeks to explain the role of the ‘Cambridge Triumvirate’ of Lightfoot, Westcott and Hort, conceived as a distinct group operating at the centre of a wider intellectual network, to this change. It argues that social process as much as individual and collective achievement furnishes an historical explanation of their contribution to the acceptance of New Testament higher criticism in Britain.

Austin Farrer is highly praised but curiously under-read. Despite being recognized as ‘possibly the greatest Anglican mind of the 20th century,’ his influence in discussions of Anglican identity and theology is almost non-existent. As an attempt to remedy this deficit, this paper provides a sketch of Farrer's life and work, and then presents him as a specifically Anglican theologian through considering a sermon, a meditation on the Apostles' Creed, and a set of lectures to Oxford undergraduates. But presenting Farrer as ‘a specifically Anglican theologian’ is problematic if we cannot agree on the nature of Anglican theology. Therefore, the paper concludes by referencing a debate between Stephen Sykes and Paul Avis on this question, and asks if Farrer can function as a paradigm for contemporary Anglican theologians.

The ARCIC Statement on Mary features an underlying agreement on Mary as a basis for recommending that Anglicans accept the two Marian dogmas of the Immaculate Conception and the Assumption as matters of faith. In outlining the case it becomes clear that the place of Scripture, as expressed in Article 6 of the Thirty Nine Articles, is different in the two Communions. The two Marian dogmas shift the focus of the underlying agreement so that Mary becomes more aligned with Jesus than believers. Mary's sinlessness, which is the focus of the dogma of Immaculate conception, apparently involves her continuing virginity. Though perpetual virginity is assumed in the creeds and the Book of Common Prayer, it is not explicitly connected with Mary's purity or sinlessness. This move is consistent with the place of virginity and celibacy in the Roman Catholic Church. It is a serious difference from the Anglican position. In addition, ecumenical research brings into question the view that Mary remained ever a virgin recognizing children born to Joseph and Mary. Historically and exegetically the mother and brothers of Jesus are seen as believers and followers of Jesus.

In the last decade the sexual abuse of children by some clergy and church workers in the Anglican Church of Australia has become a serious public issue. There have been criminal convictions, civil litigation, inquiries, Church discipline and resignations. Initial responses in the 23 dioceses were reactive and inconsistent. Beginning in 2001 the General Synod took initiatives to develop national strategies to respond to this growing crisis. The culmination of these initiatives occurred at the 2004 General Synod. By the passing of several resolutions and canons the Church at a national level expressed a commitment to, and set out detailed comprehensive and uniform strategies for, the protection of children.

This short piece seeks to offer a theological framing to the issues raised by Garth Blake in his very fine article ‘Child Protection and the Anglican Church of Australia’. What are some of the theological issues behind the current state of affairs with regard to child protection, and the church's attempts to remedy past failures to protect the children in its care? Very briefly I want to mention several clusters of theological issues: responsibility, or the duty of care; forgiveness and betrayal of trust; sin and scapegoating; gospel and law; and the problem of meaning.