Peter Ball (Bishop)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Peter Ball (born February 14, 1932 in Eastbourne , † June 21, 2019 in Taunton ) was a British Anglican theologian and Bishop of Gloucester in the Church of England from 1992 until his resignation in March 1993 . In 2015 he was convicted of multiple sexual abuse.

life and career

Ball was born as the son of Thomas Ball and his wife Kathleen Ball, b. Bradley, born. He attended Lancing College and studied at Queens' College of Cambridge University . In 1956 he was ordained a deacon ; in 1958 he was ordained a priest . He began his priestly career as a vicar ( curate ) in Rottingdean . At Kelham Theological College , he prepared for monastic monastic life. In 1960 he co-founded with his twin brother Michael Ball , who later became Bishop of Truro (1990-1997), in Stratford Park in Telford in the county of Shropshire , the monastic Congregation Community of the Glorious Ascension (CGA). There he was prior until his elevation to the bishopric . During his time as prior he was pastor ( vicar ) of the Church of the Holy Angels at Hoar Cross in Staffordshire for three years .

In 1977 he was ordained a bishop . From 1977 to 1992 he was suffragan Bishop of Lewes in the Church of England. Ball was only the second Anglican bishop since the English Reformation to be ordained a bishop as a member of a religious community in a monk's habit. Ball quickly gained a reputation as an effective and kind churchman. He was popular in the congregations, gave rousing sermons and was an inspiring leader in religious discussions. George Carey , Archbishop of Canterbury , described Ball as a gifted and individual churchman who inspired many people to deepen their faith in Jesus Christ . In 1987 he was appointed by Archbishop Robert Runcie to chair the committee that drafted the New Catechism of the Anglican Church, presented in 1990.

In 1992 Ball became Bishop of Gloucester . At his enthronement in 1991, the British heir to the throne, Prince Charles , was also present. Prince Charles was considered a close confidante of Ball; Ball called him a "loyal friend".

Sexual abuse

In March 1993, Ball resigned as Bishop of Gloucester. Ball admitted to having committed “gross indecency” to a young man who had expressed an interest in joining Ball's religious community. Ball was arrested in December 1992 and taken into custody. After he had made a full confession and accepted an official warning from the police (so-called police caution), he was released from custody. No charges were brought.

Ball then retired to the Manor Lodge estate in the Somerset village of Aller . The property belongs to the Duchy of Cornwall , headed by Prince Charles. Abuse victims criticized Prince Charles for granting asylum to a pedophile bishop. Diana, Princess of Wales , banned Ball from visiting her Highgrove House estate after his resignation in 1993. Eric Waldram Kemp , Bishop of Chichester, wrote in his 2006 memoir Shy But Not Retiring that the allegations against Ball were “the work of troublemakers. "

Ball had received permission from the Church of England to serve as a priest and preach publicly in retirement; however, this permit has not been renewed since 2010. Peter Ball continued to live in a Somerset household with his twin brother.

In May 2012, the Church of England released an investigation report into Ball on allegations of abuse and historical files to the Sussex Police Department . The reports of Ball, which had been kept at Lambeth Palace , concerned cases of abuse in the Diocese of Chichester , some of which had occurred more than 20 years ago.

On November 13, 2012, Ball was arrested by police at his home in Langport, Somerset. He was interrogated by the police, but released the same day for health reasons. He was charged with eight cases of sexual and psychological abuse of children and adolescents in the late 1980s and early 1990s in the Diocese of Chichester. Sussex Police said the allegations involved sexual abuse of a total of eight boys and young men, mostly between the ages of 18-20; However, one boy was only 12 years old at the time of the crime. On November 15, 2012, further cases of abuse became known. These were cases from the late 1970s to the early 1990s during Ball's tenure as Bishop of Lewes in East Sussex . The number of abuse victims grew to 15 young men. In March 2014, the indictment was announced. In September 2015, Ball confessed to the sexual abuse of a total of 18 men between the ages of 17 and 25 in the period from 1977 to 1992 and pleaded guilty as prosecuted. The criminal trial began in London on October 5, 2015. On October 7, 2015, Ball was sentenced by a London criminal court in Old Bailey to 32 months' imprisonment for “misconduct in public office” and 15 months for “sexual assault”. After 1993, the further criminal prosecution was initially discontinued because u. a. a member of the Royal Family, a senior judge, several MPs and cabinet members and various school principals for Ball.

Justin Welby , the Archbishop of Canterbury , announced an independent investigation by the Church of England in October 2015. Paul Butler , Bishop of Durham and Safeguarding in the Church of England, apologized on behalf of the Church of England to Ball's abuse victims and expressed his respect for their courage; Ball's actions filled the Church of England with “deep shame”.

After 16 months in prison, Ball was released on parole in February 2017. He died in June 2019 at the age of 87.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Ellen Barry: Peter Ball, Anglican Bishop Jailed for Sex Abuse, Dies at 87. In: The New York Times . June 27, 2019, accessed June 28, 2019 .
  2. ↑ a b c d e f George Conger: Retired Bishop of Gloucester arrested for child abuse. In: Anglikan Ink. November 13, 2012, archived from the original on January 7, 2014 ; accessed on January 7, 2014 (English).
  3. ^ Debrett's People of Today . London 1992, ISBN 1-870520-09-2 .
  4. ↑ a b c d e f Andrew Brown: Bishop quits after police caution for indecency. In: The Independent . March 9, 1993, accessed June 24, 2019 .
  5. ↑ Who's Who 1992 . A & C Black, London 1991, ISBN 0-7136-3514-2 .
  6. ↑ a b c d Robert Booth: Retired bishop Peter Ball arrested on suspicion of child sex offenses. In: The Guardian . November 13, 2012, accessed June 24, 2019 .
  7. ^ A b Prince Charles and the pedophile Bishop. In: TheColemanexperience.com. May 8, 2013, archived from the original on March 24, 2016 ; accessed on June 24, 2019 .
  8. ^ A b Colin Campbell: Church of England inquiry into Sussex abuse bishop. In: BBC News. May 28, 2012, accessed June 24, 2019 .
  9. ↑ a b c Former bishop and retired priest arrested over abuse claims. In: BBC News. November 13, 2012, accessed June 24, 2019 .
  10. ↑ Arrested clergy released - Sussex Police statement. Sussex Police Department press release, November 13, 2012, accessed January 7, 2014 .
  11. ^ A b c Robert Booth: Police receive further abuse complaints against retired bishop. In: The Guardian . November 15, 2012, accessed June 24, 2019 .
  12. ↑ More abuse claims follow arrest of former Truro Bishop's twin brother. In: This is Cornwall. November 17, 2012, archived from the original on November 21, 2012 ; accessed on January 7, 2014 (English).
  13. ^ Peter Ball (Former Bishop of Gloucester and Lewes) - Charging decision. In: The Blog of the Crown Prosecution Service. March 27, 2014, archived from the original on March 4, 2017 ; accessed on June 24, 2019 .
  14. ↑ Sandra Laville: Former bishop admits sexually abusing young men. In: The Guardian . September 8, 2015, accessed January 29, 2016 .
  15. ↑ a b c d Sandra Laville: Bishop escaped abuse charges after MPs and a royal backed him, court told. In: The Guardian. October 7, 2015, accessed January 29, 2016 .
  16. ^ Frank le Duc: Date set for retired bishop and fellow former Brighton priest to face child sex abuse trial. In: Brighten and Hove News. January 20, 2015, accessed January 29, 2016 .
  17. ↑ a b Sexual abuse: imprisonment for former bishop. In: Berliner Morgenpost . October 8, 2015, accessed January 29, 2016 .
  18. ↑ Caroline Wyatt: Church inquiry into Bishop Peter Ball abuse 'cover up'. (mp4 video, 18.6 MB, 1:43 minutes) In: BBC News. October 7, 2015, accessed June 24, 2019 (English, interview with Paul Butler).
  19. ↑ Sex abuse bishop Peter Ball released from prison. In: BBC News . February 4, 2017, accessed February 21, 2017 . Moira Gibb: An Abuse of Faith: The Independent Peter Ball Review. (pdf, 508 kB) Church of England , June 22, 2017, p. 40 , accessed on November 11, 2017 (English, section 3.12.6).
  20. ↑ Harriet Sherwood: Peter Ball, former bishop jailed for sexual abuse, dead at 87. In: The Guardian. June 23, 2019, accessed June 23, 2019 .
predecessor Office successor
James Morrell Bishop of Lewes
1977–1992 		Ian Cundy
John Yates Bishop of Gloucester
1992–1993 		David Bentley
personal data
SURNAME Ball, Peter
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British theologian; Bishop of Gloucester and convicted sex offender
DATE OF BIRTH February 14, 1932
PLACE OF BIRTH Eastbourne
DATE OF DEATH June 21, 2019
Place of death Taunton