A letter from Tasmania’s Anglican Bishop, Richard Condie

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

As many of you will know, over the past couple of decades we have been dealing with the sins of historic child sexual abuse that were committed in the Diocese of Tasmania. Sadly many young people became victims of abuse and have suffered terrible personal consequences. We have been determined to provide restorative justice, recognition and support for survivors through the National Redress Scheme and through civil financial settlements.

To date we have made payments to survivors amounting to $20 million. Some of these funds were allocated through the sale of underutilised property in the Diocese that included 50 churches and other properties. Other funds were identified through capital that was supporting some of our ministries, and through a levy on property investments held by parishes.

Recently, the Trustees and Diocesan Council received an update on our potential liability for outstanding claims. Due to the greater proportion of civil settlements, the potential for more survivors than we initially anticipated, and higher average settlement amounts and costs, our potential liability for claims has risen sharply. The current estimate of our outstanding liability could be very high, and the Trustees have adopted a figure of $60 million over the next 15 years to ensure we are able to meet our obligations. We have already identified the funding for $14 million and now need to identify the funding for a further $46 million.

This is an extraordinary amount of money for a small diocese like ours and will cause many of us to feel anxious and afraid. However, we believe that providing redress is our responsibility and the right thing to do. The sins committed by the perpetrators were evil and have had lasting and irreparable effects on survivors. As Jesus bore the cost for sins he did not commit, we willingly bear the responsibility and therefore the cost of the sins of our forebears.

We also believe that God is our provider and that we can trust him to provide the funds to meet our needs. We have formed a team of people to look at how we do this. None of thesolutions before us are desirable or easy. We will not be able to meet this responsibility without bearing an impact on our parish operations, especially where they are reliant on investment income. We will likely need to access our income-generating assets, many of which support our ministry day to day. This will be a season of pruning, but remember that pruning, while painful, leads to greater growth. We are not making any immediate decisions or changes, but I wanted to let you know where this is heading, so you can be prepared.

We could see this as a financial challenge, but I think it is better to view it as a discipleship challenge. We will need to move from reliance on the legacy capital of past generations to spiritual generosity in the present to support our ministries and to see the gospel of Jesus proclaimed across our state.

We are soon to adopt an updated Vision and Strategic plan with a number of priorities identified for the next 5 years. I am excited about our plans for ministry in parishes, in leadership development, with youth and young adults, and extending our reach into the community all undergirded by a deeper commitment to prayer. God has been faithful to us in the past and is calling us to follow him confidently into the future as we continue to be a Church for Tasmania, making disciples of Jesus.

I would like to invite you to pray: To pray especially for the survivors of abuse that through our redress response they will experience restorative justice, recognition and support. To pray for the team that is charged with identifying the funds to meet our obligations. To pray to the God of all provision to supply all our needs. To pray that the church will grow, and more disciples will be made, and that we would be faithful to the Lord who calls us onwards.

With warm wishes in Christ,

The Rt Revd Dr Richard Condie
Bishop of Tasmania