Archbishop urges Britain not to be obsessed with money
THE ARCHBISHOP of York has warned Britain not to become “obsessed with money” in the wake of the Brexit referendum, General Election and Grenfell Tower tragedy.
Dr John Sentamu spoke out in his opening address to the General Synod about the state of society in such uncertain times, and the need for a new approach to the issue of “social insurance”.
“As we now seek to reassess our relationships, in our local communities, in Europe, and internationally, our goal must always be the common good of all,” he said. “The financial collapse in 2008 taught us that we had become obsessed with money. People were borrowing money they didn’t have, to buy things they didn’t need, to achieve a happiness that wouldn’t last.
“We must learn from our present political and economic challenges to think less about the price of things and more about the value of things.
“There will be many lessons to learn from the fire in Grenfell Tower – but we are already aware that false economies can lead to human tragedy.
“The promotion of wellbeing must surely be about developing systems and policies which provide for people according to their need, in order to release their talents in turn for the common profit of us all: building their skills and confidence, paying them a Living Wage in order to enable them to live a full life, and to understand and exercise their responsibility towards themselves and others.”
Meanwhile, the Church of England has been urged to make an official stand against the “spiritual abuse” of conversion therapy for gay Christians.
The church’s General Synod will today debate banning practices which claim to be able to ‘cure’ homosexuality.