Taking a stand: how Armidale’s bishop is facing down his parishioners

An extraordinary row between Armidale’s bishop and his flock was sparked by a gay couple in the congregation. How will it end?

Peter Grace and Peter Sanders were living the quiet life in the charming NSW city of Armidale, drawing spiritual nourishment from their local church where Sanders was the organist and Grace served on a committee. They’d found each other later in life, were married in February last year, but say they were recently told they had to separate if they were to continue in their positions at the tiny church.

The Bishop insists: “This is not about punishing people, but trying to help them in their relationship with God.” The two Peters, and almost every one of their fellow parishioners, disagree. “We just want things to return to how they were, and for an apology,’’ Sanders says. There seems to be no easy solution to the standoff – a Sydney barrister has been engaged and mediation has so far been unsuccessful.