The Diocese of Chichester has announced today that Wallace Benn, the Bishop of Lewes, will retire on 31 October 2012. The announcement takes the form of this exchange of letters between the Bishops of Chichester and Lewes.
In response to the announcement the Archbishop of Canterbury has issued this Archbishop’s Chichester Visitation – update.
Does this mean that the complaint against him and the reported disciplinary investigation ends? is abandoned? is left hanging?
Not before time. Perhaps now the diocese can begin to move on, get started on some serious reorganisation and renewal and acknowledge that we are in the 21st century. Hopefully too Bp Martin will fullfil his pledge and apppoint a bishop who will ordain women.
Lambeth Palace: ‘Those in senior leadership in the Diocese, including Bishop Wallace Benn, whose retirement is announced today, have already acknowledged a shared responsibility and made unreserved apologies to those who have suffered because of past errors, and no one member of the senior team carries sole responsibility.’
So, does the entire senior leadership share a bishop’s ultimate responsibility for oversight? Are we episcopal or presbyterian?
Does an unreserved apology and retirement close a public complaint to Lambeth Palace about an individual’s neglect of oversight in this case?
Iain – The Clergy Discipline Measure “applies to all who are admitted to Holy Orders of the Church of England, whether archbishop, bishop, priest or deacon. This includes those who are actively involved in ministry as well as those who are not” (to quote the Code of Practice). Bishop Benn’s retirement will not stop the consideration of the complaint against him.
I can only agree with Richard Ashby, Bp Benn’s retirement provides an opportunity for Chichester to move forward at least in support for women’s ministry. However the Diocese has to take on board the comments in the interim visitation report concerning the dire state of senior leadership and comms in general, if it is to have any chance of offering an effective Christian presence in the 21st Century
My first reaction was one of astonishment that Bp Benn is still in post. After all the fuss earlier in the year, I thought that he had slipped quietly into retirement during the summer. After the damning findings of the Abp’s visitation as to what had occurred in his episcopal area, he should have resigned or, failing that, been suspended.
Has +Martin pledged to appoint a bishop who will ordain women. I thought he’d said he wouldn’t rule it out. (But I may well have misremembered.)
Richard, I can’t remember what his actual words were, and while it might not have been a pledge, it was certainly more than not ruling it out. If he doesn’t there will be one hell of a fuss here. And I agree with Malcolm that the findings of the Abp’s visitation have to be implemented and the dysfunction of the diocese dealt with. I imagine that we will see the end of the ‘Area Bishops’ strategy which has been a major cause of the disaster, allowing Lewes to act independently and the marginalisation of the Diocesan on activities in that… Read more »
At the meeting I attended +Martin has said he is willing to appoint a suffragan who would ordain women, but did so in such terms that he is not absolutely committed to do so at the first opportunity. He would have a lot of explaining to do if the new bishop would not ordain women, given that it is the only vacancy he can anticipate filling in the near future. It is, of course, possible that +Mark will leave Horsham for a Diocesan appointment at some point, but until that happens there will not be another vacancy for +Martin to… Read more »
This BBC report on safeguarding in Chichester diocese from last month is worth watching.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wCpdIhxulo
Of course, I (qua both liberal and liberal pluralist) would be delighted if/when +Martin appoints a suffragan who would ordain women: shining example of Anglican compromise. Hope Father David would approve.