Boris and bishops face bigger credibility crisis

A newspaper photograph shows Boris Johnson holding a Bible to be sworn in at a tribunal to establish if he misled Parliament.

Retirees not reading the accompanying text might imagine our former PM has turned religious or is seeking Church of England ordination!

We will probably never see a “Rev Johnson” open a sermon with the words of Blaise Pascal: “Make religion attractive, make good men wish it were true, and then show that it is. Worthy of reverence because it really understands human nature.

Attractive because it promises true good.”

The case for Easter resurrection truth is amazingly strong when the glow of a positive and kind Church community draws inquirers.

A classic 75-page Easter text, Your Verdict on the Empty Tomb, by Val Grieve (1926-1998), directs readers to the evidence.

However, the scale of the adult abuse scandal cover-up within Anglicanism is utterly staggering and the ill-treatment of ministry trainees is a hidden horror story. Lee Furney helped expose a massive scandal at a Wimbledon Church (see soulinformation.org) involving 27 adult victims, including ministry trainees.

Boris Johnson faces losing his seat in Parliament but Anglican bishops face a bigger public credibility crisis. Our ex-PM has appeared a wily old fox before his parliamentary inquisitors and would surely be far too clever to ever volunteer himself for Anglican ordination!

Why sacrifice time and money on a two-year ordination course if the reward is likely to be ill-treatment?

The Book of Common Prayer’s spiritual message is as strong as ever, but defective Anglican safeguarding has decimated our Church. The Empty Cathedral - not The Empty Tomb has sadly come to define Anglicanism. James Hardy by email