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On Tuesday, the Church of England apologized for past involvement in slavery by affiliated financial institutions.
Archbishop Justin Welby of Canterbury, spiritual leader of the Church of England, said: “I am deeply sorry. “The time has come to take action against this shameful past.”
The report released Tuesday follows revelations in June 2022 that church committee donations had historical links to the transatlantic slave trade.
The Church of England Commission was established in 1948. Part of it was a donation from a fund intended to help the poorest clergy, dating back to Queen Anne in 1704.
The report reveals that the fund had invested a “substantial amount” in the South Sea Company, which traded African slaves. I was.
“The Church Committee deeply apologizes for its predecessor’s involvement in the transatlantic slave trade,” the organization said in a statement.
The organization has pledged £100m (€113.1m) over the next nine years to a ‘better and fairer future for all’.
This money goes specifically to “communities affected by slavery.” A portion of the funds will be used to further investigate the relationship between the church and slavery.
Bishop David Walker of Manchester, vice-president of the church committee, said the organization now wants to create “a lasting positive legacy that will serve communities affected by slavery”.
The Church Commission manages a £10.1bn (€11.4bn) investment fund to support the work of churches and clergy.
“Hundreds of years from now, nothing we do will restore the lives of slaves,” the commissioner wrote in the report’s foreword.
“But we can and will recognize the horror and shame of the Church’s role in the slave trade. Through our response, we will seek to begin to address the injustices committed.”
The Church of England has previously apologized for its past links to slavery as Britain faces its colonial legacy.
In 2020, the church called it “disgraceful” that some members “positively profited” from slavery.
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