RMC Briefing: Bishop of Liverpool's departure and impact on city, church and nation
02/04/25 • 56 min
The sudden and shocking departure of the Bishop of Liverpool, John Perumbalah, following allegations of sexual abuse and sexual harassment against two women, one of whom was a bishop, has stunned the Church of England.
In this Religion Media Centre briefing, our panel discussed the impact of his retirement on the city of Liverpool, the wider Church of England and its standing in the nation, where it is the established church. There were stories of a crisis of trust in the church, with clergy in Liverpool feeling disillusioned. The role of the media was discussed, as it was journalists who told the story of the allegations after which the bishop resigned. He denied he had done anything wrong and criticised his "trial by media". The conversation highlighted the need for improved CofE safeguarding processes, with proposals coming up at the next General Synod meeting for an independent organisation to handle complaints and a new system for dealing with misconduct.
Ruth Peacock, Tim Wyatt, Mick Ord and Catherine Pepinster asked the questions. The guest speakers are: the Archdeacon of Liverpool, Miranda Threlfall-Holmes; Rev Stuart Haynes, Director of Communications for the Diocese of Liverpool; the Bishop of Blackburn, Philip North; Fr Alex Frost, podcaster and vicar of St Matthew the Apostle, Burnley, and a general synod member; Rev Canon Rachel Firth, Vicar of Huddersfield Parish Church, so a synod member; and Theo Hobson, journalist and author of Against Establishment: An Anglican Polemic (2003).
Links
Website: https://religionmediacentre.org.uk/
X: https://twitter.com/RelMedCentre/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/religion-media-centre/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCthZf6RVTqJki6oTQTB6qmw
Contact Information
[email protected]
(+44) 0203 970 0709
The sudden and shocking departure of the Bishop of Liverpool, John Perumbalah, following allegations of sexual abuse and sexual harassment against two women, one of whom was a bishop, has stunned the Church of England.
In this Religion Media Centre briefing, our panel discussed the impact of his retirement on the city of Liverpool, the wider Church of England and its standing in the nation, where it is the established church. There were stories of a crisis of trust in the church, with clergy in Liverpool feeling disillusioned. The role of the media was discussed, as it was journalists who told the story of the allegations after which the bishop resigned. He denied he had done anything wrong and criticised his "trial by media". The conversation highlighted the need for improved CofE safeguarding processes, with proposals coming up at the next General Synod meeting for an independent organisation to handle complaints and a new system for dealing with misconduct.
Ruth Peacock, Tim Wyatt, Mick Ord and Catherine Pepinster asked the questions. The guest speakers are: the Archdeacon of Liverpool, Miranda Threlfall-Holmes; Rev Stuart Haynes, Director of Communications for the Diocese of Liverpool; the Bishop of Blackburn, Philip North; Fr Alex Frost, podcaster and vicar of St Matthew the Apostle, Burnley, and a general synod member; Rev Canon Rachel Firth, Vicar of Huddersfield Parish Church, so a synod member; and Theo Hobson, journalist and author of Against Establishment: An Anglican Polemic (2003).
Links
Website: https://religionmediacentre.org.uk/
X: https://twitter.com/RelMedCentre/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/religion-media-centre/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCthZf6RVTqJki6oTQTB6qmw
Contact Information
[email protected]
(+44) 0203 970 0709
Previous Episode
RMC Briefing: The 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz and the restitution of lost music
The 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, the Nazi concentration camp, will be commemorated across the world on 27 January. 1.1 million people were killed there, mostly Jews, but also Polish people, Roma, Soviet prisoners of war, gays, and criminals. Auschwitz is a symbol of the Holocaust and 27 January is remembered as the International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
The images and stories of survivors are well documented, but less well known is that Auschwitz was home to at least six orchestras, formed of prisoners and commissioned by the SS. Musicians incarcerated there composed and arranged scores - many of their manuscripts are incomplete while others are damaged beyond recognition.
A young British musician, Leo Geyer, who has painstakingly restored and completed their work, joined the briefing to explain his discovery. Young musicians have been brought together to recreate the compositions, which they perform as the story is told in a documentary on Sky Arts on the evening of Monday 20 January.
Other guests are Holocaust survivor, Joan Salter, and Laura Marks, Chair of the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust. The host is Richard Allen Greene, formerly CNN's Jerusalem Bureau Chief, now training to be a Rabbi.
Links
Website: https://religionmediacentre.org.uk/
X: https://twitter.com/RelMedCentre/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/religion-media-centre/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCthZf6RVTqJki6oTQTB6qmw
Contact Information
[email protected]
(+44) 0203 970 0709
Next Episode
RMC Briefing: How the Church of England's parliament responded to a crisis
The Church of England's General Synod has met for the first time since the Archbishop of Canterbury resigned and the Bishop of Liverpool retired, events related to safeguarding which have shocked the church.
In this discussion, journalists who reported on the meeting reflect on how synod dealt with the crisis on its hands, fudging a vote on making safeguarding independent; tightening rules on clergy conduct which allow clerics to be sacked; refusing to back a suite of ideas to reform the way bishops are appointed; and applauding proposals to appoint more working-class people.
Our panel saw signs of a move away from a centralised machine in the church, little sign that the synod made any impact on the CofE's national standing, and more responsibility for local churches to just carry on.
Hosted by Ruth Peacock, the panel was: Francis Martin from the Church Times, Susie Leafe from Anglican Futures and Andrew Carey from the Church of England newspaper.
Links
Website: https://religionmediacentre.org.uk/
X: https://twitter.com/RelMedCentre/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/religion-media-centre/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCthZf6RVTqJki6oTQTB6qmw
Contact Information
[email protected]
(+44) 0203 970 0709
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