ENGLAND
Christian Today
March 15, 2018
By Harry Farley
Rowan Williams’ former spin doctor today admitted the Church of England’s policy was to ‘stonewall’ abuse victims.
A former official for Lord Williams in his time as archbishop of Canterbury said Lambeth Palace’s approach was ‘to do and say nothing’ in the face of allegations of child sexual abuse in 2010.
George Pitcher, William’s former public affairs secretary, insisted the Church should not see him as ‘the bad boy of its communications’ after he was criticised during hearings into whether the CofE, colluded in, covered up or facilitated abuse.
The inquiry into child sex abuse heard the extent to which Pitcher and other Lambeth Palace officials were desperate to shield Lord Williams from the abuse allegations.
In an internal email from Pitcher to other senior officials he said the ‘real danger here is that these stories are used to suggest the CofE is as bad as Rome, both in abuse and cover-up’.
He went on to suggest the then bishop of Chichester, John Hind, ‘may have to be thrown to the press as a sacrifice’ as allegations of child abuse in east Sussex emerged.
‘The aim must be to distance the current ABC [archbishop of Canterbury] from it as much as poss [sic]. All actions must serve that purpose in my view.’
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