Archbishop of Canterbury ‘whitewashed’ serious and ‘egregious’ safeguarding failure that led to blacklisting of chaplain Rev. Dr Bernard Randall.
This article first appeared in Christian Concern (13 August 2024). With thanks.
An expert legal advisor for the Church of England on clergy discipline cases, Gregory Jones KC, has concluded that the Derby diocese ‘safeguarding team’ had provided no evidence to justify Rev. Dr Bernard Randall being marked as a safeguarding risk to children for his Christian beliefs on human sexuality and blacklisted from ministry. In fact, the Bishop of Derby was told that the safeguarding process in the diocese which led to Dr Randall’s blacklisting as a risk to children, and her part in it, was ‘highly unsatisfactory’ and ‘flawed’ and should be reviewed.
Dr Randall challenged the way he had been treated and appealed to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby. The Archbishop said there was no disciplinary case for the Bishop of Derby to answer over the process which led to the blacklisting and repeatedly tried to block a serious complaint of misconduct being investigated over the Bishop of Derby. However, the same legal officer told the Archbishop of Canterbury twice that he was ‘plainly wrong’, had ‘misdirected himself’ and had ‘misunderstood the scope of his powers.
Supported by the Christian Legal Centre, Rev. Dr Bernard Randall launched the complaint under the Clergy Discipline Measure 2003 against the Bishop of Derby, Rt. Rev Libby Lane, after the safeguarding team under her watch concluded, without evidence and without following official guidance, that he was a safeguarding risk to children for preaching a sermon upholding the doctrine of marriage and encouraging tolerance of people you disagree with.
It has now been nearly 5 years since Dr Randall was sacked for the sermon he gave and he has been unable to minister in a church in England since. And the advice that the process was deeply flawed was given to the Diocese of Derby and the Archbishop of Canterbury six months ago. But nothing has been done. Dr Randall has been vindicated by Prevent (the government’s anti-extremism taskforce that he had been referred to), the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO), the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) and the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). Only the Church of England is refusing to withdraw the accusation that he is a safeguarding risk.
Give thanks that information about the abusive process by the Diocese of Derby is being brought into the light. Pray that the Diocese of Derby would cease its campaign of harassment against Dr Randall and allow him to minister again. Pray that Dr Randall would find joy in the Lord and remember that ‘Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake.’ (Matthew 5:10a ESV)
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CHRISTIAN COMMENT (VIA EDITOR)
The Spectator magazine recently reported that the C of E is considering making an apology for Christianity. Link here: https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/is-the-c-of-e-about-to-say-sorry-for-christianity/ Note, this is not the noble ‘ministry of apologetics’! Rather, this is to ‘apologize’ for taking the Christian faith to Africa and so displacing African folk religions. Such a move if adopted would be plain heresy. When will the Anglican ‘flock’ leave this arguably false religion?
It seems that the C of E may have reached its Rishi Sunak-Nigel Farrage moment, when many faithful adherents come finally to recognize that the C of E is no longer functionally Christian, at least in its higher echelons. This, in much the same way that many Tories concluded in 2024 that the ‘Tory’ Party was no longer actually Conservative in belief.
The Randall>Lane>Welby nexus is merely a further confirmation that the C of E hierarchy is ever more worldly. Since the Pope has effectively said that all religions are equal, we should not be surprised that Catholicism’s ‘prodigal son’, Anglicanism, should be making similar noises as it seeks to out-woke the woke!
Acts 20:28-31 shows this is nothing new:
“Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears”.
HONOUR WHERE DUE. JUDGMENT WHERE DUE.
Whilst we honour faithful C of E members and clergy, we do wonder how much longer this absurdly “broad church” can hold together. Does Jesus even want it to hold together? What does Jesus say to those who set themselves up as ‘clergy’? “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness” (James 3: 1).
Teachers are important (Acts 2:42; Rom. 12:7; 1 Cor. 12:28; Eph. 4:11), but note carefully, with greater responsibility comes greater expectations by God (Luke 12:48; Heb. 13:17) and teachers will be judged with greater strictness (lit., “greater judgment”), since they are accountable for more. The faithful and wise manager is the person who faithfully and fairly cares for those for whom he is responsible, giving them their portion at the proper time. When the Master returns, the faithful manager will be rewarded – a metaphor of the rewards that will be given to faithful believers at the return of Christ.
The faithful manager is contrasted with the unfaithful servant who beats the household servants and gets drunk. To the surprise of the unfaithful servant, however, the Master will return at an hour he does not know (Luke 12:46), resulting in swift and harsh judgment: he will cut him in pieces (cf. Jer. 34:18) and put him with the unfaithful—a metaphorical reference to the punishment that awaits the unbeliever at the return of Christ. The latter description (cf. Luke 13:27–28 and esp. the parallel in Matt. 24:51) indicates eternal judgment and separation from God (cf. Luke 8:13). Much will be required. People who have been entrusted by God with many abilities and responsibilities will be held to a higher standard on the last day (cf. notes on Matt. 25:29; Mark 4:24, 25).
REBELS
Jesus was clear that much of ‘the church’ will be in outright rebellion against the Spirit at the time He returns. My book “Rebel Church” explores this sad and sobering theme. Available free here as a downloadable PDF: http://www.christian-publications-int.com/default-61.html?ID=121 . There are two Bible portions that should make us all quake:
Matthew 5: 1-13
Matthew 7: 23
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