by Martin Sewell and Linda Billenness
Clive Billenness was an important member of the Audit Committee which oversees risks to the reputation and credibility of the CofE Archbishops Council, For some time before his untimely death he had been deeply worried about the complete loss of independent oversight over the Council following the resignations and withdrawals of both the independent Auditors and the Committee Chair – all unexplained in the recently filed reports to Synod.
During a late-night Synod session on Sunday, members were invited to debate a motion identifying the lack of proper oversight as a governance “red flag” that had affected victim/survivors who Clive had supported. He had spoken with us of bringing a dissenting report to the Audit report which is a serious weapon in the professional Auditor’s armoury, one only to be used when s/he is profoundly worried by what they see in the exercise of their organisational constitutional duties.
Before he died, Clive had been disturbed by no fewer than four complaints brought by victim/survivors about the conduct or lack of action taken by both the Audit Committees and Archbishops Council; in two financial cases he had called for, and examined, all relevant correspondence and bank statement, and in one complaint of alleged forgery of a document, filed in Church legal proceedings, he had identified and shared a likely mismatch between the explanation proffered of tracked changes in the document, and the explanation he had been officially given.
Clive was a certified document examiner with expertise in computer cover-ups; he did not ask that his report be relied upon, but was urging that an external document examiner should review his own findings and report to the Trustees legally responsible for the Charity.
His meticulous approach and unwavering commitment to accountability were well known to those who worked alongside him. Clive’s capacity to listen with empathy to victim/survivors and pursue answers—often in the face of institutional indifference—marked him as a tenacious advocate for transparent governance. He refused to be placated by vague assurances or procedural platitudes, instead insisting that every grievance deserved proper scrutiny and concrete resolution. For Clive, the integrity of oversight was not a bureaucratic tick box exercise but a living trust owed to those the Church had harmed and a necessary part of redress
If a member of Church House staff has a grievance, there are a host of HR policies and protocols to guarantee good process; Clive could not see any parallel structures to ensure fair complaint handling for those who have a grievance with Archbishops Council itself – people who had already been damaged by their experiences within the Church – by both direct abuse and continuing systemic reabuse by faulty (or worse) process.
That lack of survivor protection was itself an unacknowledged reputational risk.
The motion, as brought, invited Synod to first recognise the problem, and proposed that when the new independent Audit members were in post, they should be required by Stnod to examine Clive’s recorded concerns and report back to Synod with an updated Audit report.
This serious motion was derailed by the procedural device to
” move to next business”; there was no ‘next business’ that evening.
The effect is that athe motion lapsed and a similar motion cannot be brought for the remaining life of the Synod. Potentially bad Audit news and/or governance malfeasance was successfully buried without Synod hearing, debating and evaluating the argument in the chamber. Everyone got to the bars earlier than if they had stayed to discharge their duty to “hear the complaints and take what they say seriously”.
It was a night when serious concerns were seemingly casually set aside, underscoring why alienated survivors are right to regard rhetoric about “Accountability and Transparency” as a CofE cliche
Readers may consider whether his kind of shenanigans denotes triviality or worse. It would take a special kind of evil to deny those hurt by this Church an opportunity to secure early independent oversight into their complaints against Archbishops’ Council.
Martin Sewell Linda Billenness
There are many survivors affected by gross irregularities in the administration of the Interim Support Scheme of the Archbishops Council. I am one of the survivors that had been working with Clive and he had seen all of the paperwork. He had been through the Archbishops Councils claims and had been compared them carefully against my paperwork and my bank records. He had done this for several people. The discrepancies were huge.
The basic allegation against the Scheme is that they claim to have sent far more money to survivors than is reality. They then bully survivors into trying to send receipts or account for money that we have NOT received. And these are NOT trivial amounts of money missing in action. Survivors had been working with Clive for 2 years before his death. He was painstakingly meticulous and forensic in his auditing. Nobody else in audit would even listen to us. If Clive said there was a problem, you can believe him. Another survivor is missing over 30 000! These are not small amounts missing.
It is deeply worrying how every time Survivors try and raise these issues that any debate is quickly shut down and members of synod are not allowed to debate or hear. Whilst I totally understand that Martin Sewell felt he had to resign from synod over this cover up, it is a sad loss of yet another voice of truth and justice.
There is no transparency or accountability. It genuinely IS a cover up. Most members of synod appear to have no grasp how important this is.
DARVO, KCJ, NDA and delay is the traditional Anglican way! To which we might add ‘sham-scam recruitment’.
People like the late Clive Billenness were opposed for good reason. Archbishops and Bishops have every good reason to detest professionals.
A system of dishcloth wringers wash out blood-sweat-tears and then bleach soiled garments. The key thing for Anglican Dioceses is to have no dirty washing to hang out.
Leicester&Aberdeen Dioceses, Church Army-Fresh Expressions-Pioneer ministry, General Synod and Crown Nominations Committee. All quite quiet about Vanessa Pinto?!?
Evangelical wizards in the C of E, famed for prophetic communication ability, are silent!
Why can the acting Archbishop of Canterbury not issue a comprehensive statement?
Why ‘cant’ the acting Archbishop etc….. I presume? Why not write one for him?
I’m sorry, I don’t understand your question. Why can’t the acting archbishop do what?
PROPOSED LETTER OF RESIGNATION FOR ARCHBISHOP-‘WEATHER COCKEREL’. -COTTRELL
Dear Anglican Church members,
I want to apologise unreservedly for the sinister cover up of multiple Anglican scandals. Our senior leadership teams have cynically used KCJ, DARVO, NDA and delay in countless situations. Bullying, harassment and abuse has been hidden on an industrial scale.
KCJ (Kangaroo court justice) is a blasphemous mockery of biblical principles of natural justice. DARVO (Deny Attack Reverse Victim and Offender) is an especially sick Church leadership outworking of KCJ. NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement), and other tactics, have long silenced Church victims or witnesses.
The evangelical wing of our community is once again defiled by yet another emerging scandal involving the Aberdeen Diocese and Leicester Diocese. Fresh Expressions, Pioneer Ministry and Church Army also had connection to the disgraced Venessa Pinto.
My own failure to ensure the introduction of independent safeguarding, even after personally seeing or being involved with situations like the Rev David Tudor scandal, now means that I have decided to resign as ‘acting’ Archbishop of Canterbury. Situations like the Jay Hulme v. Vanessa Pinto cannot continue to be hidden.
The criminal harassment of Jay Hulme, not properly investigated or dealt with by Leicester Diocese, has forced me to consider my position. The ill-treatment of children, adults, junior clergy, trainees needs to be addressed urgently. I will be pressing for the cancellation of ‘Project Spire’ and ‘Anglican Church reparations’.
I want the £100M-1000M ‘Spire Project’ monies to be redirected to a new protect called AHAB (‘Addressing Harassment Abuse Bullying’ in the Church.
Yours with profound sincerity and deep regret
The Anglican Primate , The Monkey Pen, Archbishopric of Canterbury
P.S. A weather cockerel is designed to point towards the wind. Likewise, an Archbishop’s beak needs to point towards abusers and bullies, and raise the alarm on abuse. Have all too many tail feathers been pointed at abusers and voices of alarm raised towards abuse victims or witnesses.
It was in relation to Shardys ‘Why can’ comment and presumed he Shardy was shy of a T.
Thanks.
Chat GPT
If Jesus were to respond to the events described, we can reasonably infer—based on his teachings and actions in the Gospels—that he would react with both deep sorrow and righteous anger.
1. Concern for the Vulnerable
Jesus consistently aligned himself with the vulnerable, the wounded, and those mistreated by systems of power—especially religious ones. His words in Matthew 18:6 are stark:
“If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.”
Clive’s advocacy for survivors of abuse, his attention to neglected grievances, and his effort to expose flawed or corrupted systems—these are all things Jesus would have praised. The Church’s apparent disregard, procedural dodging, and silencing of a motion tied to justice for victims would likely have prompted a public rebuke, just as he rebuked the Pharisees for hypocrisy.
2. Accountability of Religious Leaders
Jesus saved some of his strongest words for religious leaders who failed in their duties:
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth… but you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness.” (Matthew 23:23)
The failure to respond transparently to complaints, the unexplained resignations, the ignored warnings of a conscientious auditor—all signal not just negligence but possible cover-up. Jesus would not see this as mere mismanagement, but as a betrayal of the moral and spiritual responsibilities Church leaders are meant to uphold.
3. Justice and Truth
Jesus is portrayed as someone who confronted darkness with light. In John 3:20–21:
“Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light…”
Efforts to avoid scrutiny—procedural silencing, ignored reports, and vanished oversight—run counter to this ethic of truthfulness. Jesus would not have tolerated such obscuring of wrongdoing, especially when it compounds the suffering of those already harmed.
In Summary:
Jesus would have likely seen Clive Billenness as a faithful servant—someone who acted with integrity, compassion, and courage. The response of the Church hierarchy, by contrast, may well have reminded him of the very institutions he challenged in his own time: powerful, insulated, and more concerned with reputation than repentance.
He would have grieved for the survivors denied justice, and he might have said again:
“You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces.” (Matthew 23:13)
And to those who remain within the Church, he might issue a call—not to defend the institution, but to return to its core: truth, humility, and justice for the least among us.
Very well written. Whilst Jesus and those of us who simply try to obey and follow Him must side generally with the poor, vulnerable, broken and marginalised, it seems the leaders of the CofE at worst no different from the unaccountable in politics, business, Thames Water and the secular world of power. I always thought the CofE was just the ‘spiritual’ arm of the British establishment. Hardly a ringing endorsement in any way.
Im one of the survivors affected by this and had been working with Clive for a long period of time. He had forensically examined all the documents and was convinced there was a huge cover up.
Every time anyone has tried to raise this with the ISS we are just ignored and belittled.
In my case they say they have paid 40% more than the bank accounts show. One survivor is missing 30k that is rightfully hers. Subject access reports show its been allocated and paid to her and yet never received. The whole administration of the Interim Support Scheme has been a huge, evil, and abusive mess.
It has not been helped by a large turnover of staff, miscommunication, and break down in relationships.
It got to the point where I literally tried to kill myself over it, and was standing at a train station waiting to throw myself in front of the next train. Sadly Network rail saw me on camera crying and cancelled all the trains followed by lots of BTP personnel turning up!
Clive listened. He examined carefully. He KNEW there was a huge problem with the ISS. I am sad that Martin has resigned from Synod but totally understand why. It really IS a cover up of huge financial fraud by the ISS. Sadly no one will listen.
I’m so sorry for all your pain Tom. The CofE have pushed me to that place over 5 times. It is the most awful awful feeling. Take care Tom.
Tom, I’m so sorry for your dire and destructive experience. I’m glad railway staff were vigilant in preventing your suicide attempt – what a scandal that the Church isn’t similarly alert and compassionate. It really is another example of the good Samaritans being those outside the Church.
This makes for grim reading. After the gospel last week – the parable of the good Samaritan – we once again see the Archbishops’ Council passing by on the other side of the road. Yet again, an impotent General Synod passes by on the other side of the road too. None of these bodies is fit for purpose, or acts with moral courage, integrity or honesty. This is not just a dereliction of duty. It all amounts to a disgraceful abrogation of their Christian vocation.
Clive Billenness’ exposure of the likely corruption was crystal clear. Martin Sewell just wanted the allegations investigated. Hhas wisely chosen to resign from Synod rather than collude with the immoral complicity in the Dark Arts practised by Lambeth Palace.
No wonder people just leave the CofE to its own devices. No wonder that there is no trust in any bishop or the church leadership. Their conduct is disgusting.
There is clearly an institutional cover-up. There is simply no transparency or accountability. Too many members of the General Synod have an insufficient grasp of how corrupt their leadership is. They look the other way and carry on walking down the road hand in hand with the Priest and the Levite, leaving the victims for dead.
Thank you. This article is a tribute to Clive’s integrity. My condolences to his family and friends. I fear senior leadership may have sighed with relief that the possible, and likely corruption he was pointing to would not be brought to light. It is ironic that the Charity Commission are investigating possible financial misconduct in a parish church in Yorkshire but are not doing the same within the national church structures. Many of those who complain to the commission of safeguarding failures in their parish church to do not receive investigations. I have always thought that if financial misconduct was reported, it would have a better chance of investigation. So I am not surprised, but saddened that this investigation has been escalated whilst the problems found by Clive are ignored.Clive and Mike , along with a very few others, were the much needed leaven in Synod. Will we see their like again? As with Dame Jasvinder Sanghera and Steve Reeves, we cannot afford to lose the good, there are far too few of them, and they are not easily replaced. Thank you to Mike for battling on for so long. When the history of the recent and current Church and it’s corruption is written, I sincerely hope the names of the good will be included, shining out against the evil corruption so sadly prevalent.
‘Non-subscribing Anglicanism’ is a growing faction! To stay a communicant, but defer or minimise contributions, is one way to vote against cover up of BAH Bullying Abuse Harassment……
Don’t let money be your god. Find ways to give back to the work of your Heavenly Father in an open handed and generous manner. Local outreach to the homeless, asylum seekers, refugees or those in debt (CAP) are all worthy destinations for your giving, rather than supporting the flawed and unaccountable Diocesan structures of the CofE. Be careful how you volunteer within the CofE with its unsafe, unjust Safeguarding Procedures (KCJs).
Respect and thanks for Clive. And also to you Martin, and all the others who witness and who testify against this incredibly destructive evil.
I received an email from an incredibly prominent member of CofE staff in the last few days regarding trying to justify inactive in relation to the Spindler report which, like many before it, left me mute for period – unable to respond to what I was reading vs my own strong reality. I feel some respect for the individual who wrote it. I believe the message it carried came mainly from a different mindset. It carried a number of statements – versions of events which were so far from my own experience.
One was in relation to the Spindler report: “ Many of the recommendations from the Spindler Report have now been implemented, and we hope this brings some reassurance.”
There are 9 recommendations, the most important of which, and why the report was commissioned, have NOT been implemented. Recommendations 5 and 7. Of the other 7 recommendations, my own (lived) experience categorically shows that the vast majority had NOT been successfully actioned. The remaining recommendations (2) I could not categorically say whether they’d been implemented or not.
Then a comment regarding a visit from a survivor friendly Bishop:
“ Bishop X recently visited you to explore what pastoral support might be available. I hope that meeting provided an opportunity to discuss your needs and how we might continue to support you in a meaningful way.”
My reply was as follows:
You refer to the meeting with Bishop X as if it was useful and had a positive outcome. Sorry, but from my position, whilst I was extremely grateful to Bishop X spending the time with me, it was clearly and painfully made apparent that no pastoral or spiritual support could ever come from the CofE to me as your actions and harm towards me have completely taken away any moral standing, authenticity or ‘authority’ to be able to do so.
I ended:
In the context of statements made, your version of events is terribly inaccurate. However, both you and I know – and most probably all others reading this, that there is a much greater consequence to be in receipt of this. There should be no doubt in anyone’s mind that the result is further harm to me. Further evidence of a blanket refusal to be accountable and to give repair. It is another example of using power to abuse and why nothing around me feels secure.
I do not know how to continue to fight against such professionally executed, in the context, malice.
Thank you Martin and Linda for continuing Clive’s excellent work. Over the years we have come to realise the shocking practices of Synod and here they are outlined in this blog and comments.
I am affected by those who speak of the temptation of their own thoughts of suicide and there are probably others. Father Alan Griffin succumbed to this temptation and the then Archbishop of Canterbury, Welby, was called to account over it by the Coroner. He was made accountable for this death because of the way the church approached abuse cases and Welby was the head of this church. The Coroner told him,
” in my opinion, action should be taken to prevent future deaths and I believe that you have the power to take such action”. She then gave him a deadline of 3 September 2021 to do this.
He may have taken some action but obviously not sufficient enough to prevent people continuing to turn their thoughts to suicide as is witnessed in some of these comments in this blog.
I am, as many of you know, supporting a friend in a provable wrongful accusation of sexual touching. There are nine points in Father Alan’s case and of my friend which are almost identical. I wrote these in a chart and in 2022 sent them to the Diocesan Safeguarding Adviser and senior clergy in my friend’s Diocese. It was ignored by them all.
I have also alerted the Synod reps of this Diocese to the situation but only two have ever acknowledged receipt of the emails and said they could not help. Perhaps that is the reason Synod is singularly ill informed about the safeguarding issues; Synod reps do not take to Synod information they have received . What is their function if not to do that?
I have no further comment to make; the depth of callous inaction by them all speaks for itself.
Can anyone explain the lack of any action against Archdeacon Luke Miller for his apparently irresponsible and catastrophic role in the events leading to Fr Alan Griffin’s suicide? The July 2021 “Regulation 28: Prevention of Future Deaths report” by Senior Coroner M E Hassell (publicly available) paints quite a case for him to answer. The Robson report (a ‘learning lessons review’ – available on the London Diocese website) was explicity required not to address the responsibility of key players. Is this a double standard? One could expect more junior clergy being CDM’d. Again, can anyone explain? Am I missing something?
BBC website has:-‘Church of England criticised over suicide of falsely accused priest’ (16 July 2021).
The coroner’s statement you cite, with bits reported by the BBC, is unequivocal! A senior official with a legal office, the coroner, fully spills the beans! Why no-‘Mea culpa’-and a public apology from an Archbishop?
What are we to make of how BBC record comment from Sarah Mullally, Bishop of London? Dame Sarah Mullally said: “Alan Griffin’s death was a tragedy and my heart goes out to his family for all they have endured. I am deeply sorry for their loss. “Following the inquest, we have commissioned a ‘Lessons Learned’.
Two out of five trainee evangelists, in my 2015-2016 year group, complained that they felt falsely accused of sexual misconduct. No witness statements against either student was seen, no witnesses were named and neither student was given any fair chance to defend themselves. Two innocent women felt deeply hurt, with very good reason, at the accusations thrust against the two male students. Both ladies left Down and Dromore Diocese by Belfast, as did the ex-trainees.
Bishop McClay (then Archdeacon) appeared clueless or indifferent about respecting national law, Anglican Church rules and biblical principles of natural justice. A top flight minister from outside the diocese made contact and gave sound advice. They suggested how the victims needed to urgently escape Down and Dromore Diocese to avoid further risk of serious harm. They advised both students to insist on getting commissioned as evangelists, then urgently leave the diocese to avoid risk of harm. Has Bishop David McClay got a conscience, and does he ever listen to it?
Like many people, I am continually shocked but not really surprised at the corruption and constant bad story after another regarding those in some kind of power and authority and almost always how they escape or sidestep justice whilst other people are thrown to the wolves. I am not surprised because it is a feature of human life and society. To fight for a fairer society needs a number of things. One is accountability, another is the legal preservation of normal rights of ordinary people and of people in power being held to account, being stripped of jobs, wealth and acts of secrecy and anything else which almost always protects sheisters, bad uns and dodgy types in the upper echelons of society. That goes for everyone top to bottom.
As we see, the guilty in positions of power almost always slime their way out of accountability and any form justice whilst holding those who died or suffered to further forms of pain, suffering and unnecessary prolongation of getting justice. The Covid enquiry continues yet I doubt if anyone will get anything like a modicum of justice. Now the economic system itself is being used as a stick to beat certain groups with again whilst royals, the corporations, millionaires and billionaires get exponentially richer without any kind of scrutiny. The only thing those in power care about is money and doing exactly what they want. I believe we need to reform the systems that allow the powerful to go unchecked.
TYPO CORRECTED-coroner
The online report’s opening page begins:-
‘Regulation 28: Prevention of Future Deaths report
Alan Howard Foster GRIFFIN (died 08.11.20)
THIS REPORT IS BEING SENT TO:
1. Most Reverend Justin Welby
Archbishop of Canterbury
Church of England
Lambeth Palace
London SE1 7JU’
A question must follow! Why are Anglicans and the wider media not seeking an Archbishop level response? The coroner does not mince their words in this report. What the coroner skilfully spells out is-kangaroo court justice-no other way to describe it. I hope Bishop Mullally has very potent washing powder former Sunday vestments.
The online report’s opening page begins:-
‘Regulation 28: Prevention of Future Deaths report
Alan Howard Foster GRIFFIN (died 08.11.20)
THIS REPORT IS BEING SENT TO:
1. Most Reverend Justin Welby
Archbishop of Canterbury
Church of England
Lambeth Palace
London SE1 7JU’
A question must follow! Why are Anglicans and the wider media not seeking an Archbishop level response? The corner does not mince their words in this report. What the coroner skilfully spells out is-kangaroo court justice-no other way to describe it. I hope Bishop Mullally has very potent washing powder former Sunday vestments.
The online report’s opening page begins:-
‘Regulation 28: Prevention of Future Deaths report
Alan Howard Foster GRIFFIN (died 08.11.20)
THIS REPORT IS BEING SENT TO:
1. Most Reverend Justin Welby
Archbishop of Canterbury
Church of England
Lambeth Palace
London SE1 7JU’
A question must follow! Why are Anglicans and the wider media not seeking an Archbishop level response? The coroner does not mince their words in this report. What the coroner skilfully spells out is-kangaroo court justice-no other way to describe it. I hope Bishop Mullally has very potent washing powder former Sunday vestments.
Dear Eschaton
The coroner’s report is incredibly damning! Thanks for directing me to it. Apologies for me posting it more than once-just so shocked to read it, and was keen to place it below your response.
It was based on the information in the Coroner’s report in which I found the nine parallels of Fr Alan and my friend and, accordingly compiled my chart early in 2022.
I explained the reaction to it in my comment above.
I am now glad that attention is being drawn through these comments to that report and Father Alan Griffin. Perhaps there is hope that he, my friend and others wrongfully accused might receive justice.
Maybe Archdeacon Luke Miller, Bishop Mullally, and, in my friend’s diocese, the four bishops (yes four in this one diocese !), four canons, two Diocesan Secretaries, Diocesan Safeguarding Officer, Chair of the scrutiny committee, and the Core Group will be called to account for ignoring this chart and putting the life of my friend at risk.
………and the dean. All of them ignored the the Father Alan Griffin connection. For those who offered excuses it was the same, they could not override the decisions of the Diocesan Safeguarding Officer.
So, her colleagues lay the blame at her door.
I have been aghast at reading many of these blogs and comments, but not really surprised at all. What we see in the CofE and indeed many other religious organisations is what we see in the world too. Powerful people overstep the mark, cause dissension and suffering and even unnecessary deaths and somehow walk away from it all protected whilst the victims are left to suffer and endure official vilification and distress, loss of character and much worse.
I conclude that all Christians worth their salt get back to Christ and following and serving Him first before struggling to save corrupt and corrupted and worldly churches that are compromised by charlatans, money grubbers and the high born privately educated that seem to dominate in every worldly sphere.
Find a Christ focussed Bible believing church that lives and preaches a radical and uncompromising Gospel message and not a nice church of nice comfortable people or a hierarchical church full of wealthy people jockeying for position.
A Bishop Sarah Mullally statement on Fr Allan Griffin leaves me chilled. Does the Bishop of London sing a ‘woke chorus’ about dealing with homophobia? Yet she lets KCJ DARVO and secrecy surround the dreadful diocesan foul ups (deliberate and/or sloppy) which contributed to, or caused, the death of an innocent man? The sexuality ,or past practices of the deceased victim, are surely irrelevant. Why should any adult be the subject of safeguarding accusations and interest, in the absence of any factual evidence, when no VA or child misdemeanours have been reported? Would Sarah Mullally, in her earlier incarnation as a senior nurse, have shied away so quietly from the central facts if false allegations of sexual misconduct had seen an NHS nursing student commit suicide? NHS staff would be foaming at the mouth if this happened. As Anglicans we are all guilty of not whistleblowing on the bullying scandals collapsing our denomination. Good people just need to do-“nothing!”-for evils to prosper………….
Personally for me, the structures of all organisations need to change. But then here is the great problem. The church was warned in the Bible not to emulate or become like the world and yet in essence mainstream religion, and I’m talking about Christianity here, has become corporate and just like the institutions of government and like big business, but perhaps with a sheen of touchy feely ‘niceness’ and ‘vicar of dibley’ vibes and so on. No one believes the fantasy or the hype of anything like that about anyone but the image presented about the ‘great and good’ in all forms of power, influence and power structures is that these people in the upper echelons are always presented as good, kind, respectable and jolly good sorts, until of course we find out that they aren’t so nice for whatever reason.
I believe in England we’ve tied social class and the mores and idiosyncrasies of the English social system into some kind of state religion, and this in turn has become reflected in religion. As far as I am concerned, none of that is really truly healthy and never has been so as with politics, business, government and other institutions, the state church predicated on class and other worldly institutional lines will from time to time have scandals and cover ups and lack any real scrutiny and accountability because the people by and large in charge are the elite, the powerful, the wealthy and the connected or are protected by and operate on behalf of those elites. For me, it’s as simple and as deadly as that. If the body politic of an organisation is already corrupt per se, then it follows that corruption will ensue at times and sooner or later. This is not to point fingers at any individual, I do not know any of them personally but as ever we know people far more by how they act and behave far more than by what they say and promise to do.
Sadly, as the correspondence on this site over many years shows, good people (myself included), have done our best to blow whistles, lay fog detonators and put out danger signals – only to be ignored, disregarded and in some cases persecuted, to no avail.
How does this shambles continue to survive? And has God turned his own back on those of us who fight to uphold his standards?
Sadly, from reading the gospels and prophets, one could be forgiven for thinking that it was always so, and ever more shall be.
A Bishop Sarah Mullally statement on Fr Allan Griffin leaves me chilled. Does the Bishop of London sing a ‘woke chorus’ about dealing with homophobia?
Yet she lets KCJ DARVO and secrecy surround the dreadful diocesan foul ups (deliberate and/or sloppy) which contributed to, or caused, the death of an innocent man? The sexuality ,or past practices of the deceased victim, are surely irrelevant.
Why should any adult be the subject of safeguarding accusations and interest, in the absence of any factual evidence, when no VA or child misdemeanours have been reported? Would Sarah Mullally, in her earlier incarnation as a senior nurse, have shied away so quietly from the central facts if false allegations of sexual misconduct had seen an NHS nursing student commit suicide?
NHS staff would be foaming at the mouth if this happened. As Anglicans we are all guilty of not whistleblowing adequately on the bullying scandals collapsing our denomination. Good people just need to do-“nothing!”-for evils to prosper………….
It is hoped that these discrepancies in accounts will certainly be viewed as serious aggravating factors in the redress scheme for those that apply and are eligible. If these are flagged up by the complainants legal representatives or themselves on numerous occasions then the administering body may feel obliged to raise the issue with the Archbishop’s Council which may in turn help those who are not eligible for the redress scheme.
Perhaps that is why there was a quick rule change at synod, proposed by a senior clergy person, to not deduct the amount received from the ISS in the redress award because otherwise discrepancies would be highlighted. After all when has the church ever had generosity of spirit at its heart!
So, in short, accountability of those in power is being withheld. As with politics, business and other powers and institutions. Just as the Labour Party promised to tax the rich and then punched down at the poor, the disabled and vulnerable as the last lot did. Coincidence?
No, I see it as part and parcel of those who rule and run things, be it the (ahem) touchy feely and fluffy CofE top chaps or the more hardline politicians making ‘tough decisions’ that don’t affect them personally or the tax dodgers and big business gurus who run companies like their own personal fiefdoms and not in any way for us, the general public.
I’ve seen this writing on the wall for decades, the erosion of rights and redress for the majority and at the same time the lack of even basic accountability for those in positions of wealth and power. It is nothing new to me at any rate. Unfortunately, and here is the real problem, when the church ie those of us who are called to simply follow, obey and revere Christ as our Lord and Saviour derogate that responsibility and we stop being concerned for the poor, the vulnerable and marginalised in the broadest sense of those and other similar terms, we lose something of value in our faith. Real Christian faith is messy, earthy and we are meant to get our hands dirty. It is not hobnobbing with the great and good, officiating at royal weddings or being the spiritual arm of the comfy and self satisfied establishment, it is following Christ in whatever circumstances we find ourselves in, rich or poor, connected or not, elite or just one of the Joe and Joanna Ordinary that most of us are.
It must be obvious to more people that much of what passes for mainstream hierarchical religion is just pageantry and a sop to the rich and powerful. I can’t see it any better than that. I’m sorry if that offends but I believe it to merely the truth.
A deceased asbestos victim, and successful compensation campaigner, June Hancock (1936-1997) famously said: “No matter how small you are, you can fight and no matter how big you are, you can lose” (See Blue Plaque photo on BBC report: ‘June Hancock: Blue plaque for Leeds asbestos campaigner 9 June 2023’).
That’s a message which our Anglican Primates and Bishops need to learn, and are presently learning. Some are in the process of losing their credibility-authority-jobs, as a result of their contempt for ordinary Anglicans . Opposition to bullying bishops, and to abuse cover-ups by Archbishops, links a lot of strange bedfellows.
We also saw this with HS2 opposition, where the hard conservative right and the Labour or anarchist left, plus various other groups, came together. Crazy leaders sought to press through daft HS2 plans. But ordinary people, from all parts of the political spectrum, came together to oppose HS2 plans.
HS2 was blocked, at least in part, by the internet and clusters of opponents coming together. There is a recent and very good Radio 4 series of podcasts on the HS2 fiasco. Continued church cover-up of bullying+abuse by Bishops and Archbishops is an act of supreme folly. Archbishops who fail to address bullying and abuse cannot win. Anglican Primates in the Uk and Ireland are dropping like flies.
The Venessa Pinto shadow is cast over Church Army, Aberdeen Diocese, Leicester Diocese, General Synod, Crown Nomination Commission. A responsible Primate would seek an immediate and rapid inquiry led by a legal expert. Has Stephen Cottrell not learnt any lessons from the departure of Justin Welby, and from his own shameful role in the Rev David Tudor cover-up?
Sadly, it would seem that we have lost a good and valuable man, a true “Mr Valiant for Truth”. Why is it that the good go first, and only the duds are left behind?
“A word of truth outweighs the whole world” according to an old Russian proverb.
Proverbs 17:1 says: “Better is a dry morsel with quiet than a house full of feasting with strife.” Are there senior clerics with a lot of power and money, and a history of covering up sexual or other abuses (innocent people stitched up, abusers protected)? Do they stand at podiums asking the poor to empty their pockets, while they amass wealth and property empires? That seems to be how sections of the Church work. Some good items latterly on TheWeeFlea blog about malpractice in the visible Church.