CHURCH “SCANDALS.”

Otago Witness, Issue 3590, 2 January 1923, Page 41

CHURCH “SCANDALS.”

NEGLECTFUL CLERGYMEN. t PROTEST BY A BISHOP. The Bishop of St. Albans speaking at a Diocesan Conference recently, condemned the present law of the Church of England which enabled crying scandals to go on the while the bishop of the diocese stood k “The present law of the Church of England, which is supposed to deal with incumbents who neglect their duty or do t thoroughly inefficiently is not only wholly inadequate, but, • I believe, a soandal to the Church.” he said. It was true that a bishop of a diocese could institute proceedings in his Court against an incumbent for neglect of his duty and if the Court found him guilty the bishop could inhibit him, either for a stated or indefil “So good, but what then? Is he deprived of all the emoluments accruing from the endowments attached to the hv-ino-s Not at all. The b-shop can claim a certain portion of the stipend wherewith to pav a eurate-in-charge: never more than two-thirds of the whole stipend and wdiere the population does not exceed 500 not more than £2OO per annum. “Thus the inhibited incumbent draws what is practically a pension for life, just because he lias shown himself utterly and scandalously neglectful of his duty; an thj s law has been allowed to go on for ye “ Though the bishop knew of these scandals. his hands were tied by the laws which the people of the Church of England had tolerated for years “The fact that the churches at Sundon tnd Streatlev in this diocese haye been allowed to fall into phactical rum is a gross and crying scandal, but as the law stands to-day T am advised bv the lee-al authorities that, as bishop of this diocese I am utterly powerless m the matter. All T can sav is the sooner the law is amended the better.” # Discussing other scandals in our power to remove,” the bishop said: ■ “First I believe every form of however’ mild, is a wholly method of raising funds for the upbuilding of extension of Christ’s Kingdom and that deliberately breaking the law of the land for the purpose of increasing Church funds j s cimnlv pla.ving into the hands of the d evil ‘ It is time those things stopped; and if they do not stop I only hone the police will carry out the law and stop them for us.”