A petition in support of the Rev Dr Bernard Randall has received over 6,000 signatures.
Rev Randall was dismissed by Trent College - a Church of England-affiliated independent school in Nottingham - in 2020 after he preached a sermon to students in which he said they did not have to agree with LGBT ideology.
He was referred to the government’s terrorism prevention scheme Prevent, as well as the local authority designated officer on safeguarding (LADO), the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) and the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). All of these statutory bodies decided there was no need to take any action.
Dr Randall has effectively been barred from preaching in the Church of England ever since, despite the sermon he preached reflecting the official position of the Church of England.
Dr Randall has previously said of his case: “I have been punished not for wrongdoing, but for believing.
“The Church’s safeguarding process has become a tool of coercion, not care. I am speaking out now because I know I am not alone, and because no one should suffer in silence for staying true to their faith.”
The churchman has also spoken of how the six-year ordeal has affected his personal life, admitting that at one point he even considered self-immolating on the floor of the General Synod in protest at his treatment.
The petition, on CitizenGo, calls upon the Church of England to apologise to Rev Randall and restore him to ministry.
The petition states, “The Church’s treatment of Bernard raises questions over whether any minister who holds to Biblical views about marriage and sexuality has a future in the denomination. If he can be treated like this, so can anyone.”
It adds, “Every day that he is prevented from pursuing his vocation adds to the damage the Church of England is causing.”
