Jersey – Pastoral Letter from Bob Key
This is interesting…
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Having consulted the Vice-Deans and the Lay Chair of our Synod, I am writing in the light of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s announcement that we will move from the jurisdiction and care of the Bishop of Winchester to that of the Bishop of Dover, the Right Reverend Trevor Willmott. The Archbishop’s desire is that the Churches of Jersey and Guernsey should grow and flourish and I am most grateful for his personal interest and intervention.
Of course there is sadness that five hundred years of working with the Diocese of Winchester may be coming to an end, but new relationships within the Anglican Church beckon and we look forward, in faith, to exploring what God, in his grace, has in store for us.
There are a hundred and one practical issues to be discussed and resolved. Bishop Trevor will be meeting the Deans of Jersey and Guernsey on February 12th and 13th to take these forward and, I have called a Greater Synod for next Thursday to talk through these things. Please pray for Bishop Trevor and the Deans and the relationship of trust that they will build together.
The great thing is for our ministry and mission, and our worship and witness to continue untroubled by these changes, indeed enhanced and encouraged by them.
There is a wonderful Old Testament promise in Jeremiah which says:
“I know the plans I have for you says the Lord.
Plans for good and not for evil,
To give you a future and a hope.â€We claim that promise and look forward to God’s future together.
Yours in Christ’s service,
Robert Key
Dean of Jersey
It’s the paragraph beginning “Of course” that is of most interest. So much for Jersey and Guernsey going back to Winchester…
I assume I shouldn’t read too much into his use of the phrase “the Anglican Church” rather than “the Church of England”…?
No, you should read HUGE amounts into that. It’s a subtle threat.
He needs to be very careful about going that route. It might cost him dearly…
“It’s a subtle threat.”
So subtle that even I was able to pick it up. Subtle like a FOX!
Who has the authority (is there any authority) to transfer the Channel Islands from Winchester to Canterbury? Surely this is a matter for the States, not something that can happen at the discretion of the Archbishop?
Correct. At the moment all that has happened is that +Winton’s episcopal authority has been delegated.
Thank goodness for that. The ABC is not (yet) Anglican Pope with plenipotentiary powers over all he surveys.
Love the reference in his statement to HG. NOT.
So, having served her purpose, she is now consigned to the wilderness and all this constitutional rubbish can carry on.
Some church.
The problem is that HG has been let down time and time again, chiefly in that she has not contributed to ANY of the reports about her (Korris, Steel, Gladwin). How can you have a process about safeguarding when the person to be safeguarded is never involved?
Indeed.
I hope you are not blaming her for that. It was a disgrace to publish, or complete, reports without her input. One would also like to hear from the churchwarden, whose views are also omitted.
I don’t think I’ve ever blamed her once. If half the things she claims on her blog happened to her on Jersey are true then the Churchwarden had a lot of explaining to do.
That said, one wonders *why* all three reports haven’t managed to engage with her.
I don’t think they tried very hard.
You may very well be right. Again.