The proposals were contained in a new report which also claimed travellers had been shown “extreme levels of hostility” in society – and the Church was partly to blame.
It concluded: “Churches too have been part of this institutional racism in their failure to welcome gipsies and travellers into the full life of their communities.
“There is much anecdotal evidence of people being refused baptism, weddings and funerals and such things as churches cutting off the outside tap for the graveyard [to stop travellers accessing water].”
The report has been created by Church of England minority concerns advisor Dr Elizabeth Henry and backed by the Bishop of Chelmsford. It will be presented to the Church’s governing body later this month.
General Synod February 2018
If its recommendations are accepted by General Synod, Church institutions and individual congregations will be urged to invite housing associations to use their land for traveller accommodation.
Dr Elizabeth’s document also said that every CofE diocese ought to appoint a chaplain dedicated to the traveller community.
There has been a wave of trespassing accusations made against travellers in the UK during recent years.
Two years ago, Premier reported how travellers entered the grounds of a church in south…
… Read More
—
Click Read More to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – Premier Christianity News.