Commitment Nine

Faithfulness in Service plays an important role in our national church by identifying the personal behaviour and practices of pastoral ministry that will enable clergy and church workers to serve faithfully those among whom they minister. Adherence to the national code and local variants will help enable our communities to be safer and prevent misconduct being concealed. Although domestic and family violence is only briefly named in Faithfulness in Service, other standards and guidelines are relevant to preventing and responding to it.

By resolution, the General Synod has already noted as specifically relevant the affirmations of Faithfulness in Service that:

• Abuse of power is at the heart of many relationship problems in the Church and the community. In essence, abuse is one person’s misuse of power over another. Sometimes abuse will be a one-off event and at other times it will be a pattern of behaviour. (§6.2)

• It is important for clergy and church workers to be good citizens and obey the laws of the community, except where those laws conflict with Christian convictions. (§6.4)

• You are not to abuse your spouse, children or other members of your family. (§6.6)