(Christianconcern) The Church of England (CofE) re-opened an investigation into one of its former clergy for calling a transgender priest ‘a bloke’ in a YouTube vlog.
Rev. Brett Murphy, 38, was on the receiving end of a coordinated campaign resulting in a record four Clergy Disciplinary Measures (CDM) being brought against him. On his YouTube channel, Rev. Murphy discusses weekly news from a Christian Orthodox Anglican perspective.
A CDM is a formal procedure for handling allegations of serious misconduct by clergy within the CofE. If a CDM is upheld by the presiding Bishop, it is kept on a clergy’s ‘blue file’ and can lead to rebukes, dismissal and prevent further employment within the CofE.
While leading St. David’s Church in Coalville, Leicestershire, Rev. Murphy had four CDMs upheld by the diocesan registrar for:
- Misgendering the CofE’s first transgender Archdeacon, Rev. Rachel Mann.
- Social media posts criticizing prayers put forward for the King’s coronation by the same Archdeacon that aligned with witchcraft and described Jesus as ‘our sister’. The complaint was anonymous.
- Expressing concern over the teaching of marriage and human sexuality in UK schools in a sermon.
- Not visiting a member of the public in hospital who no longer attended his church. Rev. Murphy was not notified the man was in hospital or even sick.
With support from the Christian Legal Centre, each CDM brought against him was dismissed by the Bishop of Loughborough, the Rt Revd Saju Muthalaly. However, the CDM was re-opened against Rev. Murphy on the grounds of the first point above: that he described the CofE’s first transgender archdeacon, Rachel Mann, as a ‘bloke’.
In July 2023, Rev. Murphy left.. to continue reading click here.
This article was written and published at Christian Concern
