Before peace, reconciliation and healing, there must come reckoning
Donald Trump is not a modest man. He is not polished, well read, stylish, university educated, 'sophisticated', or a paragon of moral virtue. But he is the duly elected President…
Accountability
Royal Assent: Crown neutrality on Brexit is unsustainable
The last time Royal Assent was withheld from a parliamentary bill was in the wake of the union of England and Scotland in 1707/8, when Queen Anne declined to support the Scottish Militia Bill. And she did so on the…
‘General Synod has no confidence in the Church of England’s capacity to regulate its own safeguarding culture’
The laicisation of former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick by the Roman Catholic Church was one more step on the long journey towards cleansing that institution of sexual abuse, much of it…
Speaker Bercow: the most powerful commoner in the land
The Speaker of the House of Commons is also known as the First Commoner of the Land, elected by MPs to chair their proceedings without prejudice or partiality, and to…
How far is Bishop George Bell’s reputation restored? When is a cloud not a cloud?
This is a guest post by Synod members Martin Sewell and David Lamming. _______ The Church of England has now published the Briden Report into the further allegations against Bishop…
Bercow, Brexit, conspiracy and coup: the inescapable feeling of betrayal
The most difficult controversies are those in which both sides have a point. Two well known historic examples come to mind. The English Civil War was contended on multiple controversies,…
Sentamu: ‘pure’ (‘real’/ ‘hard’) Brexit is “a childish dream”
On the BBC's Andrew Marr Show on Sunday, the Archbishop of Canterbury was asked about the disparity (/gulf) between the laity and clergy in the Church of England regarding the…
Election of Church Commissioners – how best to assess the candidates
The US Mid-Terms are not the only important elections about to be determined this autumn. The voting papers have just been sent out to the members of the Church of…
Synod – Reasons to be Cheerful (Pt 1): the secret to a contented flock
Sometimes we need to remind ourselves that the glass is half full, and I offer these thoughts on General Synod in the irrepressible spirit of the late Ian Dury, which…
It is time for General Synod to protest: victims of sexual abuse deserve better than ‘adequate’
Critics of the Church of England’s responses to historic sexual abuse can be fairly generous. Consider the words of David Pearson, founder of the Child Protection Charity CCPAS, who was…
CofE Safeguarding: General Synod is being managed, manipulated, duped and disrespected
Since the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse moved the focus of its hearings away from the Church of England until returning later in July, campaigners for the reform of…
Why is the General Synod of the Church of England so poor at holding Bishops to account?
Travel is said to broaden the mind, but occasionally it reminds us to pay more attention to what is closer to home, right under our noses. Many years ago, on…
Did Archbishop Sentamu fob off the Clergy Discipline Commission to protect bishops from allegations of misconduct?
As the police continue questioning the Most Rev'd and Rt Hon Dr John Sentamu over his alleged failure to respond properly to a report of clerical child abuse, here's a…
In Holy Week we should hold our Archbishops’ feet to the fire
Many years ago during the course of a philosophical discussion, an old writer friend of mine offered me one of the most simple yet incisive observations on the human condition.…
Welby condemns the church’s deferential culture of clericalism and tribalism
"I have seen afresh the insanity of clericalism and of a deferential culture and how we have to struggle against that," the Archbishop of Canterbury said yesterday in his evidence…
Abuse victim: “The cruel and inhuman treatment I have received from the National Safeguarding Team in Church House, and others in the Church of England hierarchy, makes what Peter Ball did to me pale into insignificance”
It has not been a good week for the Church of England. We were warned as much by our Lead Bishop for Safeguarding, Peter Hancock, when he led the safeguarding…
Brexit: the Bishop of Leeds asks “What’s it all for?” as he condemns the corruption of public discourse
The Bishop of Leeds the Rt Rev'd Nick Baines delivered a measured and thoughtful speech in the House of Lords on the EU (Withdrawal) Bill. His theme was basically the…
Carlile Report: Bishop George Bell has been traduced, and the blame lies squarely with Church House and Lambeth Palace
“The George Bell case represents the perfect storm from which injustice emerges. We had a church fearful and sensitive to allegations that it might be covering up abuse, a plausible…
Church U-turn on sex abuse: from the victim ‘must be believed’ to being ‘taken seriously’
This is a guest post by Martin Sewell, a retired Child Protection Lawyer. _____ The recent furore about the Parliamentary 'sex scandals' – which I prefer to think of as…
Child abuse in the Church of England: Justin Welby must either accelerate the change or carry the can
This is a guest post by Martin Sewell, a retired Child Protection Lawyer who takes a special interest in Safeguarding as a member of General Synod. _____ When I was…