Bishop Joanne, who like Bishop Martin will become a member of the House of Lords where she will be able to champion issues close to Suffolk’s heart, said: ‘‘I care deeply about our churches being as healthy and safe as possible, in policies, practice, recruitment, training, and, most importantly in culture.

“We can all contribute to a culture where victims and survivors are seen, heard, cared for, and learned from,’’ she says, adding, ‘‘I am looking forward to working with safeguarding professionals and volunteers across the diocese.”

Prior to her role as Bishop of Stepney she served as Archdeacon in the Diocese of Portsmouth, Residentiary Canon and Director of Ordinands in the Diocese of Sheffield, and as an inner-city parish priest in Sheffield and Liverpool. She trained for ordination at Westcott House in Cambridge.

Bishop Joanne, who studied at Oriel College, Oxford and the University of British Columbia, Canada and was a lecturer in English at Oxford  until 1998, is married to the Revd Dr James Grenfell, 55, Chaplain to the University of East London; he will remain in his current role.

It is anticipated that Bishop Joanne will start in her new position during the autumn. 

Read it all.

"I am honoured to be called to this role, this is a beautiful diocese, with truly lovely people, and a grounded Suffolk sense of service and humility."

The Bishop of Stepney, Dr Joanne Grenfell, will be the next Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich.

📰 https://t.co/NpN2yzWYBY.

— The Church of England (@churchofengland) June 27, 2025

Nineteen Bishops are among more than 250 Church of England clergy who have signed a letter condemning a move to decriminalise women who induce their own abortion as “a dangerous change”.

On Tuesday, MPs voted by 379 to 137 in favour of an amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill brought by the Labour MP for Gower, Tonia Antoniazzi. This disapplies the existing criminal law relating to abortion from women “acting in relation to her own pregnancy”. The amendment does not change any law regarding the provision of abortion within a healthcare setting.

The letter, published in The Daily Telegraph on Friday, says: “We are troubled by the amendment voted through by the House of Commons on Tuesday to decriminalise terminations in utero up to full term. As many elected politicians move further away from the Christian moral values that have hitherto shaped much that is good in our national life, our concern is that the vulnerable and voiceless are increasingly overlooked.

Read it all (registration or subscription).

Nineteen bishops sign letter; @bishopoffulham and the Bishop of Oswestry also express ‘profound disquiet’https://t.co/0GtctjduOt

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) June 24, 2025

Parliament voted for the law to change on assisted dying “in the face of mounting evidence that it is unworkable and unsafe and poses a risk to the most vulnerable people in our society”, the Bishop of London, the Rt Revd Sarah Mullally, said on Friday.

Responding to the decision by the House of Commons on Friday afternoon to progress the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (News, 20 June), Bishop Mullally, who is the lead bishop on health and social care, warned that, “if enacted, this legislation would come into force amid serious shortfalls in adult social care, a postcode lottery in palliative care and well documented pressures on the NHS, multiplying the potential risks to the most vulnerable.

“It does not prevent terminally ill people who perceive themselves to be a burden to their families and friends from choosing ‘assisted dying’. And it would mean that we became a society where the state fully funds a service for terminally ill people to end their own lives but, shockingly, only funds around one third of palliative care.”

Read it all.

“Every person is of immeasurable and irreducible value, and should be able to access the care and support that they need.”

Read the Bishop of London's statement following the third reading of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill.

📜 https://t.co/74PloAghZ2.

— The Church of England (@churchofengland) June 20, 2025

In the House of Lords recently, there was a question about the rise in the number of old-age pensioners shoplifting. The peer who asked it was clearly trying to draw attention to the extent of poverty among older people. The Minister, Lord Hanson of Flint, in his answer, said that shoplifting by anyone, whether a pensioner or not, was “unacceptable” and should not be “tolerated”.

Why those words? Why not just say that it was wrong? For some time now, we have been frightened of using the word. We even talk about shoplifting rather than stealing. Those who use social media can be very judgemental, but, even there, words such as “right” and “wrong” do not necessarily come naturally.

For centuries, all children were taught the Ten Commandments; in many churches, they were written on either side of the altar. People grew up believing that they lived in a universe in which moral choices had to be made: it was not just a matter of what was legal or expedient, but what was right.

This certainly prevailed until the end of the 1950s….

Read it all.

Why are people reluctant to use the words ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ wonders Richard Harrieshttps://t.co/TR1q7hhsZZ

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) June 5, 2025

Distributing large sums of the Church Commissioners’ funds to dioceses through the Strategic Investment in Mission and Ministry Board (SMMIB) is a mistake, the Bishop of Hereford, the Rt Revd Richard Jackson, said this week.

Bishops would prefer to have sufficient funds to prevent further cuts to stipendiary clergy posts and pastoral reorganisation.

“When I talk to my colleagues, I think the reality is that a number of them are applying for grants from SMMIB for projects they are not that convinced are going to make a huge difference to the life of their diocese,” he said on Wednesday. “What they would really like is, ‘Just give me some more money so I can keep my stipendiary head-count up.’ There is very clear evidence that maintaining levels of stipendiary clergy leads to church growth.”

Read it all.

‘What will stabilise things is a well-motivated clergy workforce which is well-supported and well-financed’. My interview with Bishop of Hereford who’s calling for less of Commissioners’ money to be allocated through grants & more to prevent clergy cuts https://t.co/bt9dSr4rRH

— Madeleine Davies (@MadsDavies) June 12, 2025

The Suffragan Bishop of Islington in the diocese of London, Dr Richard (Ric) Thorpe, is to be the next Archbishop of Melbourne in the Anglican Church of Australia.

He succeeds the Rt Revd Philip Freier, who retired in February.

Dr Thorpe was elected by the Melbourne Diocesan Synod on Friday. He and three other candidates were proposed to the Synod by the Board of Nominators, made up of elected clergy and lay representatives (News, 16 May).

The other candidates, all from Melbourne diocese, were eliminated in two rounds of voting. They were: the Executive Director of CMS Victoria, the Revd Dr Wei-Han Kuan; the Vicar of St John’s, Diamond Creek, the Ven. Dr Tim Johnson; and the Vicar of Deep Creek Anglican Church, the Ven. Megan Curlis-Gibson.

Read it all.

The Suffragan Bishop of Islington in the diocese of London, Dr Richard (Ric) Thorpe, is to be the next Archbishop of Melbourne in the Anglican Church of Australia https://t.co/vPxaaWAHkI

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) May 27, 2025

From there:

So, when you take the Bread and the Wine, which the Minister of Christ has consecrated (that is to say, set apart for this sacred purpose), what shall you think? what shall you believe? The Bread is in itself just bread still, the Wine is just wine. But because the Lord has told you to take them ‘in remembrance of Him,’ and because you who take them humbly believe in Him, therefore, that simple Bread, that small drought of Wine, speak straight from Him to you. They are like the very sound of His Voice, saying: ‘All is true, all is yours. It is no dream that I died for you, and that you are saved by Me, any more than your eating and drinking is a dream.’ They are like the very grasp of His Hand taking hold of your hand, and meaning: ‘We are one, poor believing sinner. I have joined you, I have clasped you, to Myself. As surely as you touch and taste that Bread and Wine, so surely you, who believe in Me, are one with Me.”

Join me on #TheLeadersNotebook as I reflect on the Last Supper in Matthew 26. Communion is not just remembrance; it’s renewal. Through the sacred elements, the Holy Spirit ministers grace, healing, and restoration to the soul.
🎧 https://t.co/Cd6ZyUvMJp pic.twitter.com/Lqbu8m6J4p

— Dr. Mark Rutland (@DrMarkRutland) May 27, 2025

In the document, published on the diocese of Guildford’s website last week, Bishop Watson suggests that the decision not to use Canon B2 to introduce services of blessing for same-sex couples, but instead to allow their introduction after simple majority votes in the Houses of the General Synod, has caused several problems.

The most significant, he writes, is that “we have bypassed a serious attempt to discern the mind of the Church . . . so dramatically raising the theological and emotional stakes.”

Bishop Watson refers to a paper published by the Church’s Faith and Order Commission, which says that there is no agreement on the nature of the disagreement between those who support changes and those who oppose them. Many, Bishop Watson writes, believe that the disagreement is about “the role of scripture in shaping our theology, liturgy and daily life”.

Read it all (registration or subscription).

“Integrity” has been “trumped by expediency” in the Living in Love and Faith (LLF) process, the Bishop of Guildford, the Rt Revd Andrew Watson, has saidhttps://t.co/p463Nl4rR2

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) May 7, 2025

Bishop Rob served his curacy in Appleby Deanery before moving to the parishes of Dalston with Cumdivock, Raughtonhead and Wreay. He was Bishop’s Chaplain for three years and Director of Ordinands for two. From 2010 he was the Vicar of Holy Trinity Kendal and assistant Rural Dean for seven years prior to his move to the Diocese of Newcastle in 2020 to take up the position of Residentiary Canon Director of Mission and Ministry. He returned to Cumbria in 2022 following his appointment as Bishop of Penrith.

He was born and raised in Birkenhead on Merseyside and attended Birmingham University to study Ancient History and Archaeology, later completing his MPhil research in Archaeology. After working as an archaeologist, he worked for a church in Birmingham and then as a project manager in an IT firm before training for ordination at Wycliffe Hall in Oxford. He is married to Emma. The couple have three children: Ollie (23), Jemima (21) and Hal (19).

Bishop Rob and Emma are touring the county today, starting at Carlisle Cathedral before visiting Ivegill CE Primary School, where their children were once pupils. They will later meet staff and ecumenical leaders at the Diocesan offices, Church House, in Penrith before visiting a social action programme at St Mary’s Westfield. From there they will meet members of the farming community in Rampside in the South Lakes as well as members of the South Lakes Poverty Truth Commission before attending St Lawrence’s Appleby for Evening Prayer.

Read it all.

"It is such an honour to have been nominated as the next Bishop of Carlisle and to be able to continue to serve this county that I love."

The Bishop of Penrith, Rob Saner-Haigh, will be the 68th Bishop of Carlisle.

Read more at https://t.co/b3wCkmy9LI.

— The Church of England (@churchofengland) May 9, 2025

Young traditionalist ordinands with more than 40 years of ministry before them are one sign that their tradition is not ossifying, the Bishop of Fulham, the Rt Revd Jonathan Baker, said this week, at the chrism mass for parishes to which he ministers.

While expressing a reluctance to “engage with any controversy”, Bishop Baker addressed towards the end of his sermon remarks made by the Bishop of Croydon, Dr Rosemarie Mallett, during last month’s WATCH conference (News, 4 April). Within the Church there had been, she said, an “ossification, if not growth, of the viewpoints purported by those who feel unable to receive the ministry of women bishops or priests or those male bishops who have ordained them”.

“I have to say to my sister in Christ and fellow bishop who used that term — not by name, but by association — of me and all of you — very firmly: No!” he told the congregation at St Andrew’s, Holborn, in London, on Tuesday. “Why? Because the life of the Church Catholic — her scriptures, her sacraments, her creeds, her ministry — embodies and expresses the Spirit-filled, Spirit-led living Tradition received and handed on in every generation — living water, ever fresh, ever renewing itself.”

Read it all.

Young traditionalist ordinands with more than 40 years of ministry before them are one sign that their tradition is not ossifying, the Bishop of Fulham, the Rt Revd Jonathan Baker, said this week, at the chrism mass for parishes to which he ministers.https://t.co/MW16hPLjWE

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) April 16, 2025

The Church of England’s drive to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2030 is already reducing energy bills and making churches fit for the future, the lead bishop for the environment says.

Speaking to a gathering of diocesan environment officers at the British Antarctic Survey, in Cambridge, the Bishop of Norwich, the Rt Revd Graham Usher, said that acting to tackle the climate and nature crises was a sign of Christian compassion, and “the right thing to do”.

“There is a link here through compassion with Anglicans — with all people around the world — many of whom are on the front line of climate change and biodiversity loss,” he said. “If we truly believe that we are brothers and sisters in Christ, we should have a concern and a compassion for where biodiversity and climate-change loss is impacting people’s lives.”

Read it all.

The Church of England’s drive to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2030 is already reducing energy bills and making churches fit for the future, the lead bishop for the environment says https://t.co/HqvW3NE7TD pic.twitter.com/2bDaAog0hh

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) March 27, 2025

“Whoever becomes the next Archbishop of Canterbury will need to know, more than anything, that she or he can only undertake this role with the grace and comfort of Almighty God. I am praying that God calls a humble follower of Jesus who draws others to the abundant joy of Gospel life, a pastor and shepherd, and a gentle prophet for our time.”

The Archbishop of York will also sit on the CNC. Had he chosen not to, another bishop from the Province of York would have been elected to take his place.

The remaining membership of the CNC — including representatives of the diocese of Canterbury and the Anglican Communion — would be announced in early April, a Church House spokesperson said.

It is expected that the CNC will convene for its first meeting in May, and that at least two further meetings will take place in July and September. It is hoped that a new Archbishop of Canterbury will be announced in autumn.

Read it all.

"Despite speculation in recent months, I have felt no sense of inner calling to be Archbishop of Canterbury," the Bishop of Norwich, Graham Usher, said today. He'd previously been considered among the front runners to be the next Archbishop of Canterbury.https://t.co/C9YvwoR0gU

— Francis Martin (@PhrancisMartin) March 19, 2025

The Church Commissioners’ control over dioceses has been criticised by the Bishop of Rochester, Dr Jonathan Gibbs, who has warned of “significant and unsustainable annual deficits”.

The announcement this weekend that his own diocese had been awarded £11 million from the Strategic Mission and Ministry Investment (SMMI) Board did not deter Dr Gibbs from arguing that the increasing emphasis on grants “exacerbates the sense of control by the centre”.

“Everyone accepts that the Commissioners are brilliant at investing money and generating excellent returns,” he told his diocesan synod on Saturday. “But the reality is that the resources they now hold represent a significant net transfer not only of assets but also of financial control from the dioceses to the national Church, something which has become more and more evident over the last ten or so years.”

His comments echo those of other bishops in recent months. In the General Synod last month, the Bishop of Bath & Wells, Dr Michael Beasley, expressed frustration after time ran out for a debate on a motion from Hereford diocese calling on the Commissioners to transfer £2.6 billion of assets to diocesan stipend funds to support parish ministry (News, 31 January). Gloucester, Coventry, Bath & Wells, Blackburn, Chichester, and Lincoln diocesan synods had all passed motions in identical terms to Hereford’s.

Read it all.

Strong words from +Rochester this weekend, who says the renewed emphasis on grants from the central Church "with resources going only to special projects approved by the Board, further exacerbates the sense of control by the centre" https://t.co/6Q9o3320Qn pic.twitter.com/MM1et3BQyM

— Madeleine Davies (@MadsDavies) March 17, 2025

When asked to come to Liverpool to serve temporarily as diocesan Bishop, the Rt Revd Ruth Worsley “basically said no”, but promised that she would think about it.

“I wanted to do it on my terms,” she told the Church Times in an interview after her appointment as Interim Bishop of Liverpool had been announced.

After sleeping on the question, she proposed that, instead of “Acting Bishop”, the job should be more clearly defined as “Interim Bishop”, with a stated duration of at least two years.

“I’m not going to be on loan. I’m going to be there as a fully committed, paid-up player, joining in with all that the diocese is seeking to do,” she said.

Read it all.

New interim Bishop of Liverpool: ‘I like to keep it simple . . . a non-anxious presence’ https://t.co/YulEGBylDX

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) March 7, 2025

I have read many books by Alister McGrath, renowned scientist and theologian. I have appreciated all of them and, indeed, reviewed one very positively in these columns only a year ago (Books, 23 February 2024). This, though, is the best I have read (Feature, 21 February). It is quite simply brilliant, a must-read for those who want to reflect deeply on the whole question of belief. It will be particularly helpful to those who want to be able to defend their own. I remember Rowan Willams being quoted as saying something along the lines that it could be such a relief not to be made to feel foolish for embracing belief. No one who has read this book need do that.

The intention of the author is consider belief in general, not just religious belief. Demonstrating clearly that it just won’t do to pretend that we live in a “purely factual, belief-free world”, he concludes that “believing is not only intellectually defensible but existentially necessary” (his italics). He offers many fascinating references from a variety of disciplines as, with characteristic clarity and accessibility, he presents a highly sophisticated argument.

In powerful testimony, McGrath explains how, having been raised in Northern Ireland during the Troubles, he gave up on religion. His first love was the natural sciences; he became an atheist with a strong interest in Marxism. It was as an Oxford undergraduate — ironically, through reading the atheist Bertrand Russell’s History of Western Philosophy — that he began to realise that it was possible to hold beliefs without being able to prove them and, in fact, that to live life to the full it was imperative to do so. “Only shallow truths can be proven,” he writes, “not the profound existential, moral and spiritual beliefs that bestow dignity and significance upon human life.”

Read it all.

"It is quite simply brilliant, a must-read for those who want to reflect deeply on the whole question of belief." @BishopJohnInge reviews Why We Believe: Finding meaning in uncertain times by @alisteremcgrath https://t.co/njISQN0hnN

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) March 7, 2025

The person nominated to be the next Bishop of Durham has withdrawn from the process, it was announced on Monday. It has not been publicly revealed who the nominee was, or why they declined to take up the appointment.

A statement released by Church House on Monday afternoon said that the Crown Nominations Commission (CNC) for Durham had nominated a candidate, after interviews in November last year, but that this person had now “decided to withdraw from the nomination”.

The Durham CNC had agreed to reconvene “later in the year to continue the process of discernment”, the statement said, with a timetable to be issued in due course. A reserve candidate had not been chosen, which means that the process is likely to have to restart from an early stage.

The Suffragan Bishop of Jarrow, the Rt Revd Sarah Clark, will continue in her position as Acting Bishop of Durham, which she has held since the retirement of the Rt Revd Paul Butler last year 

Read it all.

The person nominated to be the next Bishop of Durham has withdrawn from the process, it was announced on Monday. It has not been publicly revealed who the nominee was, or why they declined to take up the appointment.https://t.co/UbR4Gp3jyo

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) February 20, 2025

The Church of England’s governing body has rejected a fully independent safeguarding model to deal with abuse cases.

Synod members instead adopted an alternative proposal described as a “way forward in the short term” ahead of a move to full independence in the future.

But child safety expert Prof Alexis Jay – who had called for a fully independent model – described the decision as “deeply disappointing” and “devastating for victims and survivors”.

The vote comes after a turbulent period for the Church, which has seen the resignation of former Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby over his handling of an abuse case and criticism of Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell’s links to another.

Read it all.

This is disappointing, short-sighted, and very concerning. Fully independent oversight of safeguarding is essential.

BBC News – Church of England rejects fully independent safeguardinghttps://t.co/2IzYb8sKYN

— Prof Michael Green FCCT (@Michael_S_Green) February 11, 2025

The six Central Members of the Crown Nominations Commission (CNC) — those elected by General Synod — are “unanimous in their disquiet” over how proposals on changes to Standing Orders, to be debated on Thursday, were developed.

A background paper confirms that the proposals, which include ending the secret ballot and giving an extra vote to the chair in the case of deadlock, came from the House of Bishops in the wake of the CNC’s failure to appoint in Carlisle and Ely.

Moving a take-note debate on the CNC report on Tuesday, squeezed into the agenda on a day dominated by safeguarding, the Archbishop of York said: “We have to accept that from time to time a nomination isn’t made.

“But at the same time, I recognise from the many conversations and communications I have had that, when this happens, especially when it happens twice, confidence in the CNC process is affected, which has caused shock and dismay inside and outside the Church.”

Read it all.

The six Central Members of the Crown Nominations Commission (CNC) — those elected by General Synod — are “unanimous in their disquiet” over how proposals on changes to Standing Orders, to be debated on Thursday, were developed https://t.co/ZbR0CEqVYt

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) February 12, 2025

“Detaching the Church of England’s safeguarding staff from their current employers will almost inevitably create additional barriers to communication and cooperation, harming service delivery. Given that ‘service delivery’ in this context involves protecting children and vulnerable adults, any barriers whatsoever could have the most serious consequences,” the letter says.

“There is no doubt that transferring staff from 85 current employers to one yet-to-be-created employer will be destabilising, expensive, and likely to take far longer than expected,” the letter argues. “No other equivalent organisation in the UK employs its safeguarding staff in a separate body.”

It continues: “The disruption to recruitment and retention of staff, to existing relationships, and to morale would be considerable. Moreover, new structures bring new problems: a large national organisation is at least as likely to multiply layers of management as it is to improve frontline service delivery.”

Read it all.

Safeguarding professionals across the Church of England have urged the General Synod’s members not to back a proposal to outsource their work to a new national body https://t.co/aXrKJSuLfH

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) February 5, 2025

Independent safeguarding was once unthinkable, but today few observers think the Synod can afford to vote down the proposals. Given the revelations of the past few months, it would be approaching institutional suicide for the Church to reject the opportunity to rebuild trust and demonstrate its determination to stop abusers and keep vulnerable people safe.

But in the desperate rush to be seen to be doing something to stop the relentlessly critical headlines, few have considered what independence will not fix. The same people who investigated Perumbalath and concluded there was no evidence he was a safeguarding risk will still constitute the safeguarding team; they will just work for a different employer. Safeguarding cases will still be based on the often-conflicting accounts of the only two people in the room at the time of the alleged incident. There will still be cases that cannot be resolved in the way survivors and their increasingly vocal advocates would like. Who will listen to and support dissatisfied and wounded survivors, if not the Church? And what happens when the independent safeguarding authority clears someone the CofE hierarchy believes to be guilty?

Safeguarding independence will not be an end the Church’s state of permacrisis. In fact, the Synod vote will probably create as many new problems as it solves old ones. The weary vicars wondering when they can stop bracing for the next scandal cannot relax yet.

Read it all.

"If the Church of England was not in crisis before, it certainly is now."

Tim Wyatt: There is no solution to the Church of England permacrisis https://t.co/T7bXLQP72Y

— The New Statesman (@NewStatesman) February 6, 2025

Bishop Philip North said: “I’m just devastated, really, that this mess that we’re seeing unfolding since the publication of the Makin review undermines good work.

“Tremendous, heroic work was going on at ground level with parish safeguarding officers and clergy going to tremendous lengths and taking safeguarding seriously.

“I can totally get why trust in bishops is at such a low ebb. It really is at a low ebb. And there are reasons for that. We’ve seen poor judgment. We’ve seen, quite possibly, poor behaviour. We felt trapped, I think quite often, by systems and structures.

“I can’t deny there’s huge reputational damage done to the church at a national level, to the standing of bishops and to the perception of the church and the Church of England, and we feel still to be very much on the back foot, very much on the defensive”.

Asked whether the bishops’ moral authority had gone after the scandals, he said most people had a knowledge of the Church of England through the parish church. Nationally, reputation needed to be restored.

Read it all.

College of Bishops ‘very, very deeply shaken’ by recent events in the diocese of Liverpool, media briefing hears https://t.co/g8xWYE4UZP

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) February 5, 2025

The Bishop of Warrington, the Rt Revd Bev Mason, has identified herself as the bishop who made allegations of misconduct against the Bishop of Liverpool, Dr John Perumbalath, who resigned earlier on Thursday.

In a letter sent on Thursday afternoon to clergy in the diocese of Liverpool, Bishop Mason, the suffragan in the diocese, writes that, in March 2023, she was advised of a complaint against Dr Perumbalath. The complaint and subsequent investigation “raised what I believe were significant concerns”, she writes, and this “included my own disclosure”.

Dr Perumbalath, announcing his resignation, reiterated his denial of allegations first published by Channel 4 News on Tuesday evening (News, 30 January).

On Tuesday, Channel 4 News reported that an unnamed bishop had made allegations of “sexual harassment”, and described the other allegation — on which more detail was published — as one of “sexual assault”.

Read it all.

BREAKING: The Bishop of Warrington, the Rt Revd Bev Mason, has identified herself as the bishop who made allegations of misconduct against the Bishop of Liverpool, Dr John Perumbalath, who resigned earlier on Thursday. https://t.co/7RYKfuLkid

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) January 30, 2025

Having received the news of the retirement of the Bishop of Liverpool, we acknowledge his decision in taking this step for the good of the Diocese of Liverpool. This is a deeply painful situation, and we hold all concerned in our prayers.

We will be liaising with the Archbishop of York in the coming days to establish interim episcopal oversight for the diocese.

Read it all.

BREAKING: the Bishop of Liverpool, Dr John Perumbalath, has resigned with immediate effect. He wrote to the clergy of the diocese on Thursday morning that, having sought permission from the King, he had taken the decision “to retire from active ministry" https://t.co/JjcHKbxFiG

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) January 30, 2025

Senior  leaders in the diocese of Liverpool said on Wednesday that the Bishop of Liverpool, Dr John Perumbalath, should step aside from all ministry in the diocese.

Their intervention follows allegations that Dr Perumbalath sexually harassed a female bishop and sexually assaulted another woman — allegations that he denies (News, 28 January).

In a statement sent to the Archbishop of York, the diocese’s Dean, archdeacons, and the chairs of the houses of clergy and laity, wrote: “Having listened to clergy, congregations and staff at the diocesan offices and the cathedral it is with deep regret that the senior leadership of the diocese of Liverpool feel that the position of the Rt Revd Dr John Perumbalath is currently untenable. We believe that the allegations made by the female bishop need to be fully and properly investigated. We also believe that while these proper investigations are conducted the Bishop of Liverpool will need to step aside from all ministry in the Diocese of Liverpool.”

Speaking to Channel 4 News on Wednesday evening, the lead bishop for safeguarding, the Bishop of Stepney, Dr Joanne Grenfell, said: “I think these are serious allegations. They need a proper process to look at them to be fair to everybody involved. But I do think that, while that happens, he [Dr Perumbalath], should step back from ministry to give the Church the space to do that properly.”

Read it all.

“Having listened to clergy, congregations and staff at the diocesan offices and the cathedral it is with deep regret that the senior leadership of the diocese of Liverpool feel that the position of the Rt Revd Dr John Perumbalath is currently untenable."https://t.co/c7nM099SD1

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) January 30, 2025

But our need for leaders to show us the way is also because, for humans, actions will always speak louder than words. Most of us have heard of the 7-38-55 rule, publicised by the psychologist Albert Mehrabian: that, in interpersonal communication, words account for just seven per cent of the impact made, vastly outweighed by the tone used (38 per cent) and the accompanying facial expressions and body language (55 per cent).

This makes intuitive sense to anyone who has ever been on the receiving end of a weaponised “I’m. Fine!” It’s also why, if you stand outside pointing up at a tower and say “Look at the ground,” everyone will look at the tower, because that is where you are directing your physical attention.

On Christmas Day, the Archbishop of York’s sermon called on the whole Church to “walk the talk” (News, 3 January) and translate its words into action: show me! So, how might contrition be shown? When Mary lavishes nard on the weary feet of Jesus, everyone is outraged. But they get the message, because what is needed to signal a change of heart is highly visible, extravagant contrition. And, today, this needs to come from the top — specifically, from the House of Bishops, whose collective silence has been deafening.

Read it all.

Why do few people believe that the Church of England’s leaders are truly sorry? Machiavelli helps to explain why, writes @evepoolehttps://t.co/pxacXxxdTu

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) January 17, 2025

Why? A believer myself, I’ve spent weeks talking to my fellow faithful and to clergy at all levels, trying to find the answer. St Paul distilled Christianity down to three things: faith, hope and love. In my many discussions, I found plenty of the first, although little agreement about what it was placed in; not much of the second; and the third, well, it was in short supply.

I came away thinking that, for the CofE, this really might be the end of days. The first horseman of this coming apocalypse is the ugliest: the church’s hideous record of abuse.

“We need to get to the heart of it,” says Chris Eyden, a retired vicar who is gay and spent 33 years in parish ministry. “Why do QCs beat young boys until they bleed? What is that?”

We’re talking about the case of John Smyth, an evangelical Christian whose sadistic sexual beatings brutalised more than 100 young men over four decades. It was the Makin report into the case that forced Welby to resign when it revealed that he had known Smyth for decades and had failed to report the case to police when he was made aware of allegations in 2013.

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Scandals, schism and decay: is the Church of England doomed?

Justin Welby and others have left in disgrace and the gaps between factions are widening. Stephen Bleach meets vicars across the country to see if the institution can be saved ⬇️https://t.co/jjTE0Fuk5s

— The Times and The Sunday Times (@thetimes) December 22, 2024

THE Bishop’s Council of the diocese of Truro has written an open letter calling for “real change” to safeguarding.

In a letter sent to churches and schools in the diocese, and published online on Wednesday, the council — which includes the Acting Bishop of Truro, the Rt Revd Hugh Nelson — endorse the Bishop of Newcastle, Dr Helen-Ann Hartley, describing her recent action as “prophetic”.

“Over the last three weeks the safeguarding failures of the Church of England have been laid bare yet again. We are hearing clearly from survivors and victims of abuse in this diocese and beyond that the national church response is causing intense pain,” the letter begins.

The signatories, which along with Bishop Nelson comprise the Archdeacons of Bodmin and Cornwall, the Dean of Truro, and the chairs of the diocesan board of finance, House of Laity, and House of Clergy — say that it they “join our voice to Bishop Helen-Ann Hartley’s prophetic call for us to be a different sort of church.

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Diocese of Truro calls for ‘real change’ to safeguarding https://t.co/hGdCpo6Sa3

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) December 20, 2024

Diocesan bishops are facing fresh demands for the abolition of their seats in the House of Lords. Parliament is considering new legislation to end the centuries-old presence of hereditary peers, and is questioning the presence of the Lords Spiritual (News, 1 November).

In the Second Reading of the House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill, debated over two sessions last week, Baroness Smith of Basildon, the Leader of the House, said: “The intention is crystal clear: to end the hereditary element of the second Chamber before embarking on further changes.”

On behalf of the Government, she explained how the proposed legislation had been part of the Labour election manifesto this year, and described the proposals to remove the 92 hereditary peers who currently sit as “a reasonable and well-trailed piece of legislation”.

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Diocesan bishops are facing fresh demands for the abolition of their seats in the House of Lords. Parliament is considering new legislation to end the centuries-old presence of hereditary peers, and is questioning the presence of the Lords Spiritual https://t.co/RfyHB0jAHO pic.twitter.com/Aa5WU00tEE

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) December 19, 2024

Lord Evans of Weardale, a former director-general of MI5 and a cross-bencher in the House of Lords, is to chair the Crown Nominations Commission (CNC) that will choose the next Archbishop of Canterbury, it was announced on Monday.

He is an “active and communicant member of his local parish church”, Downing Street says.

The vacancy-in-see committee for Canterbury met for the first time last week. It will consider what type of person is needed for the position, and elect three diocesan representatives to the CNC.

In parallel, a public consultation, overseen by Church House and Downing Street, will gauge general opinion about the offce of Archbishop and the qualities required. This is expected to begin in the new year.

Read it all.

Lord Evans to chair Crown Nominations Commission that will choose next Archbishop of Canterbury https://t.co/c5i9luPULL

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) December 17, 2024

“I know there are other bishops who felt the Archbishop of Canterbury should resign because I spoke to them in the days before,” [Bishop Helen-Ann] Hartley, 51, says. “So when I made the initial call, I fully expected one or two colleagues to come out and say, ‘we agree with the Bishop of Newcastle’. When, instead, there was this wall of silence, I was pretty exposed and did feel frozen out.

“I had a few private contacts, ‘hope you’re OK’, ‘just let me know if you want a cup of tea’, ‘thoughts and prayers’ but I really wanted colleagues — some colleagues at least — to speak out publicly to support my interventions.”

Confident, engaging and thoughtful, with a ready smile, Hartley confesses to feeling “a degree of vulnerability” after recent events. So much so that, in London this week to attend the House of Lords, she has been avoiding the Bishops’ robing room.

“I don’t feel able to go into the Bishops’ robing room at the moment on my own. You might say that’s an overreaction but I don’t feel confident enough to go into that room with colleagues present. So I’ve asked for my robes to be moved. And I’m really sad that’s the case but I have to look after myself in this too. I hope it’s temporary.”

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“The next archbishop has to … deal with the systemic issues of dysfunction both in the institution & its central capacity, but also in the House of Bishops in terms of cultures around power, privilege & entitlement that persist”https://t.co/9KKWui8SAe

— HouseofSurvivors (@HseofSurvivors) December 13, 2024