([London] Times) Worshippers ”˜drove out’ parish priest who tried to end drinking culture

5 comments on “([London] Times) Worshippers ”˜drove out’ parish priest who tried to end drinking culture”

1. James Manley says:

   January 24, 2014 at 8:27 pm

   The Mirror has the story with no subscription required:

   http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/father-simon-tibbs-quit-st-3054758#.UuJ3cRAo7rc

2. David Keller says:

   January 25, 2014 at 3:51 am

   Did some former ENS writer become a stringer for the Mirror? I have absolutely no idea what this story is about. I’m pretty sure it doesn’t have anything to do with the headline. I suspect the bishop sent a low church evangelical to an aging Anglo Catholic parish and neither liked the other. That is not a good thing for anyone involved, but I sincerely doubt the congregants were were binge drinking at church. The idea of evensong with a mosh pit is a little scary.

3. Pageantmaster Ù† says:

   January 25, 2014 at 6:52 am

   It is not Anglo Catholic; it, or its current priest is liberal catholic:

   Welcome to the website of Saint Faith’s Church, Great Crosby, Liverpool. We are an outward-looking inclusive community formed in the liberal Catholic tradition of the Church of England and the world-wide Anglican Communion

   The original report was:

   Although the precise nature of the allegations against Fr Tibbs could not be confirmed this week, one parishioner, who did not want to be named, said the priest was “not blessed with skills to develop relationships” and had “upset several parishioners” who wrote to the Bishop to complain after he sacked a popular Sunday School teacher.

   +Stephen Lowe is no wallflower either and has rather put the boot in:

   Bishop Stephen said: “Simon challenged something about the culture of St Faith’s and upset some key members of the ‘inner circle’ of St Faith’s power.”

   The report goes on to describe this ‘inner circle’ as “a group of long standing members of St Faith’s who have felt that the maintenance of the historical legacy of the church rests with them and any attempt to change it should meet with fierce and organised resistance”.

   “Simon’s critics clearly believe ‘the Church that trained an Archbishop of Canterbury’ and ‘has the biggest quota in the Deanery’ should remain untouched.”

   Bishop Stephen also raises the issue of political differences between the priest and his congregation, stating that “there is evidence of some political division between a left-leaning priest and some small number of very right-wing members whom your visitor found extremely difficult.”

   Members are also criticised for non-attendance at the church, failing to support St Faith’s financially and a lack of what Bishop Stephen calls “spiritual discipline”.

   Clearly the beatings must continue until morale improves.

4. Pageantmaster Ù† says:

   January 25, 2014 at 8:03 am

   Oh dear, +Stephen Lowe’s bluff report has to be seen to be believed. No notes or records of interviews taken, long on critical opinion but short on detail and evidence, indeed bereft of specific detail [dates, times and content], naming and accusation of individuals without supporting evidence given or a record of their response to the accusations, it is a model of how not to write a report, although possibly appropriate for an article in a tabloid newspaper.

   Curiously on the face of the report no detailed examination is made of the two complaints of parishioners apparently made to the bishop regarding the sacking of the Sunday School teacher and whether this was dealt with properly, nor of the complaints of dealing difficultly with church members.

   Strangely the Bishop appears to believe that it is the binding duty and obligation of parishioners to pay large sums of money to the church however they are treated because they are well off and can afford it, though it has to be said he is not alone in this view.

   Whatever the details and merits of the case and situation, the way it has been dealt with by +Stephen’s report does not on its face give anything much in terms of detail to support his trenchantly expressed conclusions nor to inspire confidence in it and its writer.

5. Sarah says:

   January 26, 2014 at 4:10 am

   RE: “Strangely the Bishop appears to believe that it is the binding duty and obligation of parishioners to pay large sums of money to the church however they are treated because they are well off and can afford it, though it has to be said he is not alone in this view.”

   Heh.

   Heh heh.

   Oh that is *so* true in TEC.