§ 36. Mr. Harry GreenwayTo ask the right hon. Member for Selby, representing the Church Commissioners, what plans the Church Commissioners 19 have to supplement the pay of bishops and clergy to allow them more time for theological studies; and if he will make a statement. [32602]
§ Mr. Michael Alison (Second Church Estates Commissioner, representing the Church Commissioners)Stipends for bishops and the parochial clergy are based on the concept of adequacy in relation to duty. The extent of theological training before ordination and the time that clergy should spend in theological study afterwards are not matters for which the Church Commissioners are responsible.
§ Mr. GreenwayIs my right hon. Friend aware of the frequency with which some bishops make deplorable political speeches, comments and sermons? Would it not be better if they stuck to theology and religion and forgot about politics? In particular, would not more satisfactory theological training and teaching discourage them from devastating the Lord's Prayer, as some have proposed?
§ Mr. AlisonIt would probably be a retrograde step if we once again sought to interweave theology with politics, as happened at the time of the Reformation, so I take my hon. Friend's advice with a considerable pinch of salt.