Barry Duke, the Angry Atheist

Pointing and laughing at religious lunacy for more than half-a-century

Groping allegations against the Bishop of Liverpool leads to his early retirement

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THE Right Reverend Dr John Perumbalath, above, was accused by two women — one a bishop — of sexual misconduct, and has stepped down.

The move comes just days after Channel 4 News reported that allegations, which he has vehemently denied, had been made against him.

One woman accused Perumbalath of kissing her without consent and groping her, and a female bishop accused him of sexual harassment. Both incidents allegedly took place in Essex in 2023.

In his letter, the bishop said:

Since those allegations were made I have consistently maintained that I have not done anything wrong and continue to do so. Since the claims were made in 2023 they have been investigated and considered by experts from the National Safeguarding Team and had found them unsubstantiated.

He added:

The first allegation was also investigated by the police resulting in no further action.

He added his decision was “not a resignation occasioned by fault or by any admission of liability”.

This is not a resignation occasioned by fault or by any admission of liability. Rather it has become clear that stepping back from my ministry and waiting for the completion of further reviews would mean a long period of uncertainty for the diocese and all those who serve it. I have taken this decision for my own well-being, my family and the best interests of the diocese. The exact date when my role will formally end is not yet determined. There are protocols to observe that I will now be attending to.

Following the allegations, six senior clergy said the former Bishop’s position was “untenable” and called for him to step down from his role. They said:

Having listened to clergy, congregations and staff at the diocesan offices and the cathedral, it is with deep regret that the senior leadership of the diocese of Liverpool feel that the position of the Rt Revd Dr John Perumbalath is currently untenable. We believe that the allegations made by the female bishop need to be fully and properly investigated. We also believe that while these proper investigations are conducted the bishop of Liverpool will need to step aside from all ministry in the diocese of Liverpool.

Right Reverend Dr John Perumbalath’s resignation will now put pressure on the Archbishop of York who is reported to have been aware of the allegations when the Rt Rev Dr Perumbalath was enthroned in April 2023.

‘Thoughts and prayers’

Image via YouTube

In a statement, the Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell, above, said:

I acknowledge the decision made by the Rt Revd Dr John Perumbalath to resign from active ministry in the Church of England. I respect his decision and thank him for his ministry. My thoughts and prayers continue to be with all those who have been affected by this situation.

He added:

I am committed to ensuring stability during this time of transition and will be putting the necessary arrangements in place to provide episcopal oversight for the Diocese. An acting Bishop for the Diocese of Liverpool will be announced in the coming days.

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9 responses to “Groping allegations against the Bishop of Liverpool leads to his early retirement”

  1. malcolmjdodd Avatar
    malcolmjdodd

    Every CofE cleric should resign for abusing children from birth.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    1. Broga Avatar
      Broga

      Perhaps every C.of E cleric, at the start of their training should be required to swear on the bible that they will never sexually abuse children. They should also be told that during their career every time they sexually abuse a child they will be required to repeat the oath. That should make them think.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  2. Matilda Avatar
    Matilda

    This is so personal to me, I’m venting here, as I’ve no one else to talk this over with. Two close relatives are vicars, both so talented with top degrees, yet they chose to become priests and both are headed for promotion through the ranks of the CofE. How can they stay within this corrupt organisation? I haven’t mentioned the recent abuse scandals in regular texts with vicar one. I will go to stay with her soon and plan to bring it up. Vicar two is more distant, but I know when she was a curate, her vicar got de-frocked, she was one of the women he was sexually inappropriate with. But she went ahead with ordination. These lovely women, whose integrity I can’t doubt, are both single, both would like to have found a soulmate, but haven’t, so the CofE is a ‘home’, a refuge for them I feel. They say clearly how much they love their jobs, the friendships of the clergy community that each is a part of. And where would they go to? They both have very pleasant vicarage homes, both love people and try to ‘make a difference’ to the needy, the homeless etc in their cities….and of course, they made vows to remain faithful to the good ole CofE and to bishops at ordination and believe they remain priests for life. (One is 35yo and the other mid-40s.)

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    1. malcolmjdodd Avatar
      malcolmjdodd

      Oh Matilda, what a tangled web in which they are trapped, every year that passes and every promotion will involve more silken threads from their amoral employer; are they still believers, this is the critical question, if the answer is no, then their integrity has gone and they have no choice.

      I wish you all good fortune in your relationshsip with them.

      Like

      Reply
  3. Broga Avatar
    Broga

    Matilda,

    The problem, it seems to me, is that a moderately intelligent person, with a little thought and reading could not believe what they say they believe. Do some Christians still believe that God created Adam and Eve? That belief was once widespread.

    On the other hand there are many caring and kind christians. But are they caring and kind to gain admission to heaven and from fear of hell? And many clergy sexually abuse children. Where does an omniscient God come into that?

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    1. Avatar
      Anonymous

      I agree that one would think that anyone with ‘moderate intelligence’ would question the veracity of the x-tian faith. But at the ordination service for one of the CofE priests I know, I met ten – I counted – colleagues who had Oxbridge degrees, some more than one. Some had PhDs and were giving up the chance to have high-flying careers in business, industry, the Civil Service etc etc and passionate about going into the priesthood. One was chief nursing officer for a large hospital trust. Another was a Bach scholar who had lectured on J S Bach in the USA. My husband used to say ‘Intelligence is directional,’ which seems to fit these priests completely. I guess that could be true of many human beings!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
      1. Matilda Avatar
        Matilda

        Oops, should have posted the response as Matilda, not anonymous.

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply
  4. Broga Avatar
    Broga

    I don’t understand how the pleasure or satisfaction can arise from forcibly kissing a woman against what she wants. Or groping an unwilling woman. It’s a puzzle to me. Are they mentally ill?

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  5. Avatar
    Anonymous

    Re: why someone kisses a woman against what she wants, there is a high profile case in Spain about the president of the Spanish Football Association (Hermoso) kissing a female footballer, which she didn’t want. It’s not a good thing, but it happens all over the place. I don’t condone it, and it has consequences for him. As it should. But it doesn’t stop people playing football. Not all footballers do it. And maybe there is a code of conduct that says “don’t do this” but it was ignored. That’s not the fault of the code of conduct but of the individual. Neither does it prove that the writer of the code of conduct doesn’t exist, or doesn’t care if the code is broken.

    People doing things they shouldn’t happens all over the world, not just in football, not just in the church.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

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