CHARLES DAVIS, 43, the priest who left the Church at the end of last year and married in February, is to emigrate to Canada at the end of this month with his wife. He has been appointed visiting Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Alberta. Edmonton, for a year from August 1. Fr. Edward Kennedy, C.SS.R., director of the Edmonton Catholic Information Centre, said about his Alberta University appointment: "As a scholar of international repute Charles Davis is of course welcome to our community.
`NO HINDRANCE' HOPE
"In the archdiocese we are making steady progress in renewal. We hope Charles Davis's presence will not hinder our efforts, or engage us in the special problems and tensions of the English Catholic community he has left."
Mr. Davis was an expert at the Vatican Council and editor of Clergy Review. When he renounced the Church he resigned as Professor of Theology at Heythrop College, Oxford. He had been a member
of the commission appointed by the Pope and the Archbishop of Canterbury to solve problems of Church unity.
ANGLICAN WEDDING Mr. Davis married an American, Miss Florence Henderson, 36, in an Anglican ceremony in February. She left the Catholic Church shortly before the wedding. The couple said they would not become Anglicans, but would remain Christians.
Since the wedding they have been living in a village near Cambridge, and Mr. Davis has been a visiting Fellow at Clare College; He has received many invitations to accept senior teaching posts.
His book, "A Question of Conscience", is to be published in November by Hodder and Stoughton at 30s. In it he explains why he left the Church.
Mr. Davies said this week: "This is a most interesting and attractive appointment from the point of view of work as it will give me an opportunity to develop my own thinking. Although the appointment is initially for only one year I hope something permanent will come at the end and I am sure it will."
IT wasn't the Eamonn Andrews Show. but at times you couldn't be blamed for thinking it was. There was Sir Alec Guinness looking rather intense, John Gregson of the "Gideon's Way" television series, agitated by the stifling heat, Margaret Savage of the "Black and White Minstrels" looking swinging in her miniskirt, Auntie Julie ( Nora Nicholson) from "The Forsyte Saga" with ready smiles for everyone.
The occasion was the special Catholic Stage Guild Mass at the Actors' Church of Corpus Christi In the heart of London's theatreland. Altogether, more than 300 people attended the Mass, celebrated by the Apostolic Delegate, Archbishop Cardinale (pictured above with the guild's president Eamonn Andrews).
Afterwards the actors, producers. writers and backroom, workers from cinema, stage.' television and radio gathered at the Africa Centre for coffee and an informal chat.
Only a few weeks ago Eamonn Andrews was warning the guild's '500 members that their days were numbered unless they gave more support.
Their monthly Masses were only drawing a handful of supporters. Both the spiritual and social strength of the organisation seemed to be waning. However, Sunday confounded the pessimists.
As one of the actors present said: "It's Impossible to get to a guild Mass on Friday evening. If I'm working in the West End Mass Is too close to curtain up.
Financially the guild is solid. It has a Drury Lane benefit each
year, as well as a "do" at the Dorchester. Interest level can rise sharply, too, when the need arises. Recently when there was talk of censorship in the guild the defenders of the "primacy of conscience" were quick to make their voices heard.
Barry Linnane, the guild's secretary, wants the society to go more ecumenical and stage a joint production with the Religious Drama Society, which the Dominican priest Fr. Simon Blake joined for a production of a mystery play in Southwark Cathedral.
Archbishop Cardinale cornmented enthusiastically on the proposal and said he would like to see more stage productions in places such as the Liverpool and Westminster Cathedrals,