The bishop at the centre of controversial bullying accusations has said her diocese of Aberdeen and Orkney is “not well”, and likened the current mediation process to chemotherapy being used to treat cancer.
The Right Reverend Anne Dyer addressed issues in her region of the Scottish Episcopal Church during her Bishop’s Charge at last month’s diocesan synod.
Last September, a report commissioned by the College of Bishops described “systemic dysfunction” in the diocese, and said Mrs Dyer’s tenure had led people to feel “diminished and discouraged”.
It ultimately recommended that Mrs Dyer “step back permanently” from her role.
However, she has also claimed to be the victim of bullying herself since she became Scotland’s first female bishop in 2018, and revealed last year that she had reported alleged “hate crimes” to the police.
A three-person steering group, chaired by David Strang, a former chief constable of Dumfries and Galloway and Lothian police, was established to lead a mediation process with the aim of resolving the quagmire of disputes.
Diocese problems ‘publicly known’
In her charge, she wrote: “It is very clear that our diocese is not well – this is publicly known, sad to say.
“And when something is not functioning or relating well, then time and energy can be expended on the wrong things. Now is the time to commit ourselves to getting well.”
She continued by likening the church to a body that is seriously ill, saying a person in those circumstances has to accept the diagnosis and the treatment.
She wrote: “If you have experienced chemotherapy then you might know about this.”
Mrs Dyer added: “The mediation process being offered to our diocese is our treatment.
“If we want healthy relationships, not just to the benefit of some but all, then it is this mediation process that can help take us there. It is a forward-looking process concerned with health.”
Christopher Cromar, the diocese’s musical director who was the subject of allegations by the bishop, told The Times: “I agree with her assessment that the diocese is not well, but three investigations have pointed to the source of the sickness.
“Dyer’s removal is the only route to healing here, as [former moderator of the Church of Scotland Iain] Torrance’s report stated.”
The Scottish Episcopal Church declined to comment.