Church of England to Admit 'Deep Grief and Shame' in an Historic Apology for Child Sex Abuse
By Jonathan Petre
The Church of England will acknowledge its ‘deep grief and shame’ over clerical sex abuse today when it votes to make an historic apology to victims. The move comes as The Mail on Sunday has learned of proposals being actively considered by the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby for the Church to set up its first national commission on abuse. In a strongly-worded joint statement issued before today’s vote at Church ruling body the General Synod, Archbishop Welby and the Archbishop of York John Sentamu said the suffering inflicted on children, young people and adults ‘is and will remain a deep source of grief and shame for years to come’. The Synod, meeting in York, is expected to back a motion offering an ‘unreserved’ apology to victims after a series of shocking cases involving senior clergy. It is also set to endorse a major overhaul of its laws and procedures surrounding abuse claims, and insiders said this could include allowing clergy to break the sacrosanct seal of confession – which, although not widespread, is heard in some C of E churches – so they could report major crimes they are told about in the confessional. The significance of today’s debate was underlined by the Archbishops’ statement in which they urge the Synod to fully support the apology, saying: ‘We cannot overestimate the importance of responding appropriately today.’ Their statement said a recent report on abuse cases in one diocese, which warned the Church that it faced a ticking ‘time bomb’, had exposed a ‘painful story of individual wickedness on the part of abusers. ‘It also highlights very serious and serial systemic failures by the Church in dealing properly with information about abuse as well as great suffering on the part of those who not only experienced abuse but then had to struggle for far too long before they were properly listened to.’ The motion, which will be debated this afternoon, urges the Synod to ‘endorse the Archbishops’ statement expressing on behalf of the Church of England an unreserved apology for the failure of its systems to protect children, young people and adults from physical and sexual abuse inflicted by its clergy and others, and for the failure to listen properly to those so abused’. It is only the second time the Synod has been asked to apologise to victims, the first being in 2006 over the Church’s involvement in the slave trade, and Synod members said it was ‘a big step’. 'There have been so many cover-ups, and the Church is not taking the concerns of survivors seriously that there is something fundamentally wrong in the system.' - Anne Lawrence, campaigner and clergy abuse victim The debate follows a string of convictions of clergy who abused scores of victims, and the arrest of former Bishop of Gloucester Peter Ball as well as accusations of a cover up against the retired Archbishop of York, Lord Hope. Senior Church figures are braced for further revelations as more victims break their silence about historic cases, mainly dating from the 1970s and 80s. Archbishop Welby and senior bishops are determined to tackle the issue before it further damages the Church amid accusations that its leaders’ first instincts were to protect its reputation rather than help victims. However, campaigners say an apology from the Synod will be insufficient without a Government-led public inquiry to uncover the full extent of the abuse, and they are angry they have been refused permission to speak in today’s debate. Campaigner and clergy abuse victim Anne Lawrence, who will be at the debate, said the extent of the failings in the Church were ‘as if we had dozens of clerical Jimmy Saviles in the parishes and many of them were known about but nothing happened. It is appalling’. Ms Lawrence said: ‘There have been so many cover-ups, and the Church is not taking the concerns of survivors seriously that there is something fundamentally wrong in the system. The Church is a powerful institution with moral authority but it has used that authority to cover-up serious crimes. There are so many unanswered questions.’ The Church has carried out a number of inquiries, including in 2008 a review of files to assess the handling of any past concerns about child protection, but victims say these steps are not sufficient. Sources said the proposed new ‘truth and reconciliation’ commission, which is at a very early stage, would not be an exact parallel to that set up in post-apartheid South Africa, which was presided over by Archbishop Desmond Tutu in the 1980s. But one said that, if it went ahead, it would provide ‘a process of the Church facing the truth that it didn’t do its job properly. It would involve representatives of the Church meeting survivors and acknowledging their responsibility and taking steps to enable survivors to move on’. He said: ‘The outcome should be that survivors come away feeling they have been heard and respected and there has been some measure of justice. We are at a moment in history where more and more people are coming forward. In the end the reputation of the Church is undermined by a denial of the truth.’ The bishop in charge of the Church’s safeguarding policies, the Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham Paul Butler, said: ‘The idea of a truth and reconciliation commission is one of a number of ideas being suggested in our continuing work with survivors. ‘After the Synod debate we will reflect on all suggestions but our main concern is for the survivors and what will be the most beneficial in the future. We will be in discussion with survivor groups on any future initiatives. At the Synod we will vote on ways to tighten up our procedures as well as offering an unreserved apology for the failure of its systems and for the failure to listen properly.’
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