More pressing issues for Archbishop to consider

From: Philip Smith, New Walk, Beverley, East Yorkshire.

I DO wish that Archbishop John Sentamu would keep his nose out of political issues such as the Living Wage campaign (Yorkshire Post, July 22).

The Archbishop has no democratic legitimacy whatsoever and has no more right to be heard on this issue than anyone else. He shouldn’t be given a platform simply because he is a leader of an organisation that represents about 10 per cent of the population, if church attendance figures are to be believed. The Government doesn’t interfere with the Church of England and so why should the Archbishop interfere with the Government?

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Surely there are plenty of issues in the Church of England for him to tackle. Here are some examples: why does the Church insist on thinking that because men and women are equal they have to be the same – when of course they never will be, especially in the sight of God? Why have the vast majority of Anglican church buildings in this country become more museum than church? Why are such vast sums spent on church building maintenance when there are so many better causes? Why have so many splinter groups formed from his church, never to return? Why the number of Anglican churchgoers continues to dwindle and why we have a state church at all in a pluralistic society? Why the supreme governor of the Church of England is a woman (the Queen) and yet there are no women bishops? Why are priests paid when Jesus managed very well with a lay ministry? Why, if the Church were run by revelation, the synod voting is often so divisive? Why does the Church continue to hold on to buildings stolen from the Roman Catholic Church during the reformation?

Answering these questions would be a far better use of John Sentamu’s time.