"THE Bishop of St Davids, Dr Joanna Penberthy, apologised last week for a tweet that she had posted in March, in which she had urged: “Never, never, never trust a Tory.” This was her contribution to a debate in which some Welsh Tories were believed to be subverting the Welsh Assembly: a serious issue, and one on which a responsible bishop could well have an opinion.
"But the opinion here was hardly a measured contribution, merely a repeat of a well-worn banality. It left Tory-voting Anglicans (a majority among the laity) with the impression that she held them in contempt."
That is the view of the Rev Angela Tilby writing in the
Church Times yesterday. She continues: "The public nature of episcopal office has been understood from antiquity. Bishops are meant to be visible, to be seen and known, to be a focus of unity in the Church, and a point of mediation between Christian communities and civic authority. “He must be well-thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace. . .” (1 Timothy 3.7).
Such comments are in marked contrast to the
glowing tribute archbishop Barry Morgan paid to Joanna Penberthy when he struggled to justify his manoeuvrings to get her elected as the first woman in the Church in Wales. He said:
“What is really important to stress is that Joanna wasn’t elected because she was a woman but because she was deemed to be the best person to be a bishop.
“She has considerable gifts – she is an excellent preacher and communicator, can relate to all sections of the community, is a warm, charismatic, caring priest and someone who is full of joy."
Not so. After her appearance in the TV programme '
The Hour' I wrote: "Joanna Penberthy’s contribution was worse than I feared, aligning the Church with a political movement rather than the Kingdom of God. She was unbalanced, dishonest in her claims and blatantly sexist. I doubt that she brought anyone to Christ."
The TV programme was previewed on
Twitter. The new bishop complained that, as the 129th successor to St David and the first woman to hold the office, it was 'hard':
While "all those men in my diocese who don't think that women can be bishops have treated me with respect, and so they accept my authority, they don't accept that I am able to to celebrate the sacraments so they wouldn't receive communion from me or be ordained by me. It's hard to have a group of people in the diocese who see women as that different."
It has been much harder for the many women and men who have been martyred to the political posturing of the Church in Wales, effectively un-churched by a Governing Body resolution that gave Joanna Penberthy the authority she claims but which is not recognised by the vast majority of Anglicans or Christians in other denominations.
According to commentators on another thread, clergy in the diocese of St Davids have received a letter of apology to be read to congregations without comment. It states that bishop Penberthy is taking time off to 'reflect, recuperate and respond appropriately'.
'Recuperate' implies she is staying put. Buying time, hoping the storm clouds will settle but the damage has already been done.
Bishop Penberthy shows contempt for those who do not agree with her. She is not a source of unity. For the good of the Church she should go and take her party political gospel with her.
Postscript [18.06.2021]
Another apology, no action.
"The Senior Bishop of the Church in Wales has apologised for offence caused by tweets published by the Bishop of St Davids concerning members of the Conservative Party.
In a statement, Bishop Andy John, the Bishop of Bangor, also reassures people of all political persuasion that they welcome in the Church in Wales.
Bishop Andy is the Church’s Senior Bishop following the retirement of the Archbishop of Wales in May."
Postscript [21.06.2021]
"Church in Wales working to 'restore damaged relationships' after bishop's 'never trust a Tory' tweet" -
Christian Today.
As did the former bishop of Monmouth when the going became tough, the bishop of St Davids is reported to be on sick leave, perhaps waiting for the dust to settle. It did not settle in Monmouth where the report on the investigation into the bishop's departure is long overdue. 'We do as we please' could be the motto of the Church in Wales.
