A North East bishop who led the call for the Archbishop of Canterbury to resign said today (Sunday Nov 17) it does not solve “profound” safeguarding failures in the Church of England.
Justin Welby, the former Bishop of Durham, stepped down on Tuesday (November 12) in the wake of the damning Makin Report into prolific child abuser John Smyth, a barrister who was associated with Church charities.
The review found the Archbishop “could and should” have reported John Smyth’s abuse of boys and young men to police in 2013, after taking over the leading role in the Church of England.
The Bishop of Newcastle, the Rt Rev Helen-Ann Hartley, was the only bishop to publicly call for Mr Welby to resign.
She said an “old school” culture put the reputation of the Church, “before the protection of the vulnerable”.
(Image: Diocese of Newcastle) Smyth, a prominent barrister who died in South Africa in 2018, ran summer camps for young Christians.
The Makin Report accused Smyth of attacking up to 30 boys he met at the camps during the 1970s and 1980s, in what was described as, “a clearly sexually motivated, sadistic regime” of beatings.
(Image: PA) Bishop Hartley said: “This resignation does not solve the Church’s profound failure over safeguarding and the ongoing trauma caused to victims and survivors of church related abuse.
“Nor does it excuse others whose neglect of their duties is exposed by the Makin Report.”
She said she remained “deeply concerned” by a letter of October 31, which she received from Archbishop of Canterbury and the Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, and, “what its tone and content says about the realities of the culture in our Church that still exist”.
(Image: Reuters) Bishop Hartley previously said the letter indicated, “a complete lack of awareness of how power dynamics operate in the life of the church”.
Mr Welby declined to comment and a spokesperson for Mr Cottrell said the letter was not intended to be coercive.
In her statement, Bishop Hartley said some progress in changing safeguarding culture had been achieved, but it was being, “undermined by the arrogance of a few”.
“We need to pause and pray for the victims we let down and commit to changing the culture of the old school, a culture that put the reputation of the Church before the protection of the vulnerable,” she said.
Speaking earlier on BBC Radio Newcastle, Bishop Hartley said she felt “compelled” to call for the Archbishop’s resignation after reading the report.
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But she said he should not be made a lone “scapegoat” as, “there were quite a lot of other people who covered up the abuse that occurred.”
Bishop Hartley also said there needs to be a “more consistent” approach to safeguarding issues across the Church of England, as she said there are 42 dioceses making independent decisions.
She added that she found it, “a bit strange” that despite his resignation, the Archbishop has not stepped down and may remain in post for up to six more months due to the lengthy process of selecting his successor.