Church ‘should pay parishes before slavery reparations’

THE Church of England should fund rural parishes and “sort its own house out” before paying slavery reparations, clergy have told the Archbishop of Canterbury.

This week, the Most Rev Justin Welby said a £100million fund would “address past wrongs of slavery”.

He noted that the fund came as fears grow over “stretched” parish finances, but said that “it is now time to take action to address our shameful past”.

The Church Commissioners, who handle more than £10billion of the Church’s assets, announced the pledge after the publication of a report last year which found that much of its wealth originates from the slave trade.

But the Rev Marcus Walker, chairman of the Save the Parish group, has said clergy and laypeople fear that not enough money is sent to the Church’s “front line”. In a letter to the Archbishop seen by The Daily Telegraph, the rector at Great St Bartholomew’s, London, said: “The Church has shown that it has money when it wants, for matters that it cares about. Before the Church can find £100million for this new project, it needs to show that it can sort its own house out and fund its front line.”

Survivors of Church-related abuse have also raised concerns over the release of the funds while they are yet to receive the redress they were promised.

Graham, a survivor of abuse by John Smyth – the disgraced QC and evangelist accused of sadomasochistic assaults and beating boys at a Christian holiday camp in the 1970s – described the release of funds as “a kick in the teeth for victims of Church-related abuse, still slaves to their trauma and PTSD”.

While giving evidence to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse in March 2018, the Archbishop suggested that the redress scheme for victims of Church-related abuse would amount to about £200million, but full payments have been delayed until 2025.

Sophie Whiting, a survivor of Church-related abuse who is struggling financially because of the delays, said of the new fund: “I never want to be pitting one victim against another. If the Church was truly serious about making reparations, they would pay the money.”

A spokesman for the Church Commissioners for England said: “We recognise this investment comes at a time when there are significant financial challenges for many people and churches, and when the Church has commitments to address other wrongs from our past. We will continue to support these groups and remain committed to existing funding obligations.”