Clergy abuse survivors have reacted furiously to the Archbishop of Canterbury’s suggestion that the Duke of York was “seeking redress” after resolving a sexual assault case.
Andrew Graystone, who advocates on behalf of the survivors, said: their own debts “.
He said the Church of England had not listened to the victims and had not dealt effectively with the aggressors. “If Welby wants to discuss issues of justice, mercy, and reconciliation, and if he wants to give the nation leadership in these matters, he must first put his own church in order.
“Welby says we should let Prince Andrew go a little loose because he’s ‘looking to fix’ what he could have done. Where are the signs that [the C of E] Are you trying to fix those that you have seriously abused? “
Matthew Ineson, a survivor of clergy abuse, said Welby’s comments came from “the head of an institution that has routinely concealed and colluded with abuses.” He added: “Welby himself usually does not take ‘further action’ against bishops who ignore revelations of rape and abuse and therefore allow the abuse to continue.”
In an interview with ITV on Tuesday, Welby asked people to “take a step back” and said the queen’s second son was looking to make amends, adding: “I think that’s very good.”
He added: “Forgiveness really matters. I think we have become a very, very relentless society. There is a difference between consequences and forgiveness. I think for all of us, one of the ways to celebrate when we come together is learning to be a more open and forgiving society “.
Sign up for First Edition, our free daily newsletter, every weekday morning at 7:00 BST
Lambeth Palace later clarified that Welby did not specifically refer to Prince Andrew when he spoke of forgiveness. A Welby statement issued after the interview aired said the issues of forgiveness and reconciliation were complex and “difficult to address in a brief media interview.”
In 2020, independent research on child sexual abuse concluded that the CoE had protected its own reputation above its “explicit moral purpose”. An investigation into how the church handled sexual abuse revelations found that allegations against priests were ignored, downplayed, or rejected by church leaders.
Welby has repeatedly apologized to survivors for abuse by the clergy.