The Bishop of Warrington issued a Pastoral Letter to the Diocese of Liverpool yesterday, and this is now available on the diocesan website. It is copied below.
A Pastoral Letter to the Diocese of Liverpool from The Bishop of Warrington
My dear sisters and brothers
Many of you will be aware of the Channel 4 investigation which has now led to the retirement of the Bishop of Liverpool. Whilst the report did not name the bishop as myself, I can now confirm to you that I am the second complainant.
In March 2023, when, as your acting diocesan bishop, I was advised of a complaint raised against the Bishop of Liverpool and a subsequent investigation by the National Safeguarding Team, I raised what I believe were significant concerns, which included my own disclosure. The focus of my concerns centred around due process. Throughout these past 510 days I have remained consistent and persistent in my pursuit of proper and appropriate ecclesiastical judicial process. A bishop cannot be above the law. A bishop cannot be dealt differently from a priest. If anything, a bishop must be held to greater scrutiny. This is a biblical imperative.
I do not hold to the media serving as prosecutor, jury and judge. For these reasons, I have with intention distanced myself from the recent media activity. However, I regret we as a church have not properly and satisfactorily addressed concerns that have been raised. My prayer is that now things have been brought into the light, there will be no more defendedness but an honest scrutiny of what we are doing, how we are doing it, where the gaps sit and how we address them. Our aim as an institutional church should be to work together across disciplines and departments to ensure our church is a safe, grace-filled, Christ-centred, flourishing environment/workplace for all.
There are many questions that I have as a result of this very difficult experience. These are now being raised and I trust, will be listened to and engaged with by senior leaders from within the national church. This, I hope and pray, will be a kairos moment for the church – a time of honesty, humility, repentance, unity, hope and blessing – a time when we can tear down the idols that have disoriented us and raise up again the incarnate God, who was crucified, is glorified and who is the Lord of the Church – the Lord of all.
I am only too mindful of the turmoil, shock and bruising that you will be reeling from as a result of these past days and as you have tried to make sense of this and my long and terrible absence. For my part, I am deeply sorry for my absence and silence. It has been excruciating.
I would like you to hear from me that you have remained in my constant prayers and in my care and concern throughout. It has been like looking through an opaque window observing but unable to reach you. I would like you to be reaffirmed in your identity: Liverpool is unique, beautiful, colourful and precious.
Through these past 510 days, I have been so proud of the work and ministry you have remained committed to, seeking faithfully to serve the Lord, to sing his praises and daring to try new initiatives for the sake of the Gospel. I have shared your gratitude for the friendship and inspirational leadership of colleagues who have served this diocese so faithfully and sacrificially. I have shared the joys and losses involved in pastoral ministry in Liverpool.
I want you to know how much I admire and respect the ministry of clergy and laity, alongside our ecumenical and interfaith partners – so evident at the time of and since the Southport tragedies. And for the outstanding leadership of the Dean, the archdeacons, the chairs of House of Laity and Clergy and significant others. As a bishop and pastor, I thank you and I thank God for you.
I regret at this time I am unable to advise you of what the future holds for me. This will become clearer in the days ahead. What I know is God’s will be done.
I am also confident that considered excellent support will now be put in place for you. Please be confident that the eye of the Lord is upon you and his love surrounds you. Stay under his blessing. Please hold to the unity and in all things may the love and grace of our Lord Jesus Christ shine through you.
Goodness and truth will always prevail… and light shines into darkness for which we must not be afraid.
Throughout these past 510, a song that has given expression to my prayer and worship has been ‘The Goodness of God’. I hope it may be a source of comfort and blessing for you – maybe one day, we might sing it together.
Pray for Bishop John. Pray for each other and those with particular leadership responsibilities and please continue to pray for me.
With my love and constant prayer for you.
Bishop Beverley A Mason
The Bishop of Warrington
Could I ask whether +Bev approached Channel Four News to cover her story, or did they approach her and she consented, or did she effectively have no choice and is now trying to take back some control of the narrative by ‘outing’ herself before anyone else does. Given that she says in her letter ‘I do not hold to the the media serving as prosecutor, jury and judge’ and ‘I have with intention distanced myself from the recent media activity’ I’m going to assume, unless someone who knows tells me otherwise, that it’s not the first of those. If she’s… Read more »
Hmm…. not at all sure what the purpose of this missive is……..
What a tender, human and very moving statement Without naming names I contrast her language with that of her male colleagues who have recently been in the spotlight.
The Church of England is in crisis but I have no doubt that our female clergy are our greatest strength. Over and over again I sense very powerfully that God is speaking to us urgently and powerfully through the mouths of our female priests and bishops. I believe God is showing us a path out of the current mess and I pray we are going to take it.
In the thread below another contributor thanks Cathy Newman for her search for truth, in contrast to Jane’s concern that Channel 4 has done a very irresponsible thing and is not a friend of survivors I come from a totally different diocese but I would imagine that the absence of the bishop for well over a year must have been noticed, especially as she had been the acting Diocesan for a while. So what has been the story? What sticks in my memory is her phrase of waiting steadfastly for 510 days for a proper ecclesiastical judicial process as her… Read more »
So what is going on? Is she on sick leave or something? and drawing a salary? Is she still in ministry This should have been resolved many months ago.
“I do not hold to the media serving as prosecutor, jury and judge. For these reasons, I have with intention distanced myself from the recent media activity. However, I regret we as a church have not properly and satisfactorily addressed concerns that have been raised.” – +Bev
That’s my position too.
What this very long, and very sad, saga needs is some TRUTH. And the sooner the better for all concerned. . This letter is indeed very personal and moving but I’m struggling to see how it does anything more than continue to stir the pot. She says that “no bishop should be above the law” – which is self-evidently the case. But we don’t know what law – if any – Perambalath is accused of having broken. She also asserts that her concerns are focussed on process but we are unsighted on what the process has been – and continues… Read more »