Message from the Bishop of Willesden
“One of the least of these”
| Dear friends, How do we pray in the aftermath of violence, abuse and failure? What do we collectively say amen to? I suspect that there aren’t any easy answers to these questions. The events of the past few days have sent shock waves across our church following the publication of the Makin Review exposing the prolific and heinous abuse at the hands of John Smyth in the UK, South Africa, and Zimbabwe and the conspiracy of silence within the Church of England. In his statement, The Archbishop of Canterbury invokes both personal and institutional responsibility as motivations for his resignation. In this, I read a call for all of us to assess our collusion with systems, structures, and cultures that perpetuate patterns that repeatedly disfigure “the image of God” (Genesis 1:27) in the most vulnerable and assault their intrinsic dignity. As we wrestle with the implications of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s resignation and contend with clamours for more heads to roll, I am reminded that in English, resignation could refer to the act of stepping down as well as an act of abdication. Abdication is not and should not be an option in our individual and collective responses to the imperative of safeguarding. We owe it to those who bear enduring physical and emotional scars because of despicable abuse suffered while under the care of our church. The question remains, how do we pray in the aftermath of violence, abuse and failure? What do we collectively say amen to? The psalms of lament have a compelling way of reminding us that, at times, we should resist the temptation of rushing to healing. They force us not to try and make pain behave. They call for us to be perplexed, angry. They steer us to a place of responsibility and accountability. Above all, they remind us of what a rightly ordered world should look like and our individual and collective responsibility in enabling the emergence of such a world. Equally, the prophetic tradition in the Hebrew scriptures constantly challenge and threaten with divine judgement individuals and institutions that perpetuate cultures of abuse against the most vulnerable. We also know that Jesus profoundly identified with the children, the poor, the needy, the vulnerable, suggesting that our personal response to them would have consequences on our eternal destiny (Matthew 25:31-46). This makes Safeguarding, for all of us, a pressing priority in every parish. It is as much about familiarity and compliance with Safeguarding standards as it is about developing a culture that will lead us to being a safer church. I urge us all to take an active part in training that is offered by the diocese. Through the protection and care we show to all, especially the most vulnerable in and outside our communities, and through the compassion, healing and justice we offer to those who have survived abuse, we must continue to renew, rebuild and restore faith and hope in a God whose primary concern is “for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine”. By this and a firm commitment to responsibility and accountability we may offer faith and hope to one another. In her powerful Litany for Those not Ready for Healing, Dr Yolanda Pierce concludes with these words that I offer to us all as we resolve to be a safer church: God, in your mercy… Show me my own complicity in injustice. Convict me for my indifference. Forgive me when I have remained silent. Equip me with a zeal for righteousness. Never let me grow accustomed or acclimated to unrighteousness. |
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