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# Bishop of Lichfield: Afghan democracy is built while British freedoms are eroded
- URL: https://lichfieldlive.co.uk/bishop-of-lichfield-criticises-erosion-of-british-freedoms/
- Published: 2009-11-08T17:37:05.000Z
- Updated: 2009-11-09T10:13:41.000Z
- Author: Lichfield Live
- Tags: #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2026-07-22 21:52, News

![The Rt Revd Jonathan Gledhill](https://storage.ghost.io/c/e3/90/e390c3da-0866-4d2a-8ffe-ca4999d7ce1c/content/images/lichfieldlive-co-uk/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/jonathangledhill.jpg "jonathangledhill")

The Rt Revd Jonathan Gledhill

The Bishop of Lichfield has criticised the decision to send British troops to build a democracy in Afghanistan while corruption and and violence are “not entirely absent” at home.

The Rt Revd Jonathan Gledhill made his controversial comments during a Remembrance Sunday sermon. 

He told a congregation in Stoke Minster:

> “We are throwing our soldiers at a nation where the structures are endemically corrupt. We are trying to train up police in a society which is divided and where terrorism reigns. That is a difficult task for our troops and we salute them.  
>  
> “But the point which we can consider is this: isn’t it true that in our own society we are chipping away at the values which make our freedoms possible? You can’t make a democracy in Afghanistan without shared public values and citizens who are not corrupt and violent. But in our own country corruption and violence are not entirely absent.  
>  
> “The bankers who have gambled away our futures mostly still fail to see that there has been wrongdoing and still argue that they should be given bonuses when most of us know they should be given penalties. Some of our MPs have filed false expense claims, though very few in Staffordshire, thank goodness.”

He also blamed “ignorance not malice” for decisions, such as the judgement of the European Court of Human Rights which this week ruled that the public display of crucifixes in Italian schools discriminated against non Christians, and added:

> “Europe would not be Europe without its Christian history and foundations. The cross or the crucifix reminds us of the greatest act of sacrificial love in the history of the world. It can’t be done away with as if it were a private symbol.”