Sam points out that the overall picture presented by a survey is of C of E clergy working long hours for inadequate remuneration and at increasing risk of stress and burnout, and of an institution that is failing to respond to the material and emotional needs of its frontline clergy, even as it demands more and more from them.
Rev Fergus Butler-Gallie writes in the Daily Telegraph this week that cash-strapped parishes must be free to focus on their core mission, not tied-up in management jargon.
“The value of the parish system comes from the fact that it can reach out to all sections of the community across England. Yet, as many of your correspondents have…
An independent review of the last 6 years in Wigan has revealed that ‘Mega parishes’ have not been a success. When will the Bishops look at the mounting evidence against…
GS1312 is the report by the CofE on the consultation to the Church Closers’ Charter (GS2222). Read/download it here, and leave your comments.
“…despite many diocesan denials, Save The Parish (Cornwall) is correct that the finances and operations of TM and OTW are inextricably intertwined, and there must be a full honest and transparent audit of them to ensure millions of pounds are not wasted, many more priests are not axed, and our rural churches not closed. What the above also shows is that Save the Parish is also correct that OTW is very much a bishop-led, top-down, not bottom-up, process.”
“There is fine architecture: stained glass, sublime wood carvings, roofs adorned by angels, and handsome tombs and monuments. But a church is not merely an education in aesthetics; it is an education in history. It helps furnish a picture of society as it was.”