The comments on Ruth Gledhill's article "Bishop says redundancy is good for the soul" are nearly all along the lines of "If the Bishop thinks redundancy is a good thing, why doesn't he have to experience it himself?".

I don't know whether the Bishop has been misreported, but if he hasn't, this looks like another "old male Church leader living rent- and council tax-free with job for life shows how out of touch he is" story. Is that good for the Church's image?

"Sometimes, people seem to be relieved to get off the treadmill and to be given an opportunity to reconsider what they really want out of life"
- Bishop Richard Chartres - R.G. Times on-line -

What an unforunate statement for the Bishop of London to make - in the contaxt of a burgeoning recession, affecting many people in the City of London, who may or may not be Church members.

Whatever the good bishop may think about the failings of the financial sector, the people he is talking about are largely family bread-winners -like himself - intent on earning their daily bread and contributing to the fabric of the society which supports the Church.

Most City workers do not have the luxury of a conveniently located city pad, close to their place of work, and have to spend quite a bit of time travelling to and from the office on bus or underground, wondering whether they will have a job to go to in the near future. The same cannot be said for a Bishop in the Church of England, who has security of tenure till he (or she) is pensioned off at the age of seventy.

Statements like this, delivered from the bishop's sedia (or a seat in General Synod) do the Church of England no favours - neither do they help very much in the current employment situation.

"Sometimes, people seem to be relieved to get off the treadmill and to be given an opportunity to reconsider what they really want out of life"
- Bishop Richard Chartres - R.G. Times on-line -

Yes, dear bishop, especially when a person has a family to feed, clothe and provide shelter. Maybe he'd like to give his job and salary to one of the un-employed.

Where in the world do they find these people (bishops)? There seems to be a foot in mouth disease going round.

Dear Bishop Chartres
please do take the time to read http://pluralistspeaks.blogspot.com/2009/02/message-for-unemployed.html

Pluralist: brilliant My Lord of London piece on your blog.

Thanks very much. He did make it easy, but I wanted to put in other issues like why lay readers and other local ministers aren't paid for their labour.

I was recently replaced by a consultant in my job at a central London Church of England. There was no consultation period and I was told it was nothing to do with my performance. I am now redundant and my faith is shattered.

Is is right for the Church of England to make someone redundant in a time of serious recession? Where is the pastoral care?

G