Accountability and power

[Paidiske]

Hmm, OK.

The challenge to me is:

1) Having a clear structure and escalation path for when a minister does wrong.
2) Having checks within that structure to protect against false accusations, while also ensuring that actual victims remain protected.
3) Harmonizing this with Matthew 18:15-20 and having a way to explain this that makes sense.
4) Making this known to everyone in the church.

I thought I may have had a suggestion earlier, but given what you've told me, I don't. I have seen good ministers falsely accused via abuses of a reporting system, and I've read about unconscionable clergy who would abuse every protection in place against false accusation. I hope this does help you a little bit with threading that needle.

There are pathways for complaint to be raised. I can think of five, off the top of my head.

- Someone can come to me. This has positives and negatives (as I alluded to in my first post).
- Complaint can be made to the parish council, which can then discuss and take action. While the parish council doesn't manage me, as such, it can discuss matters of policy and process for the parish, and it can collectively voice any issues in the parish.
- Complaint can be made to my bishop.
- Complaint can be made to the external professional standards body contracted by my diocese. (This would be for particular issues to do with breach of professional standards, not things like "I don't agree with her preaching").
- Complaint can be made to civil authorities such as police, where that is appropriate.

I think the problem with this picture is that if you're someone who doesn't know "the system" well, knowing where to take a complaint, and how it might be handled, is not obvious.

 

[Sketcher]

There are pathways for complaint to be raised. I can think of five, off the top of my head.

- Someone can come to me. This has positives and negatives (as I alluded to in my first post).
- Complaint can be made to the parish council, which can then discuss and take action. While the parish council doesn't manage me, as such, it can discuss matters of policy and process for the parish, and it can collectively voice any issues in the parish.
- Complaint can be made to my bishop.
- Complaint can be made to the external professional standards body contracted by my diocese. (This would be for particular issues to do with breach of professional standards, not things like "I don't agree with her preaching").
- Complaint can be made to civil authorities such as police, where that is appropriate.

I think the problem with this picture is that if you're someone who doesn't know "the system" well, knowing where to take a complaint, and how it might be handled, is not obvious.

Maybe a flow chart can be made, and then made into a nice-looking poster that is hung up at the church?