Michael Challen

Michael Boyd Challen (born 27 May 1932) is a retired Australian Anglican bishop, active in the second half of the 20th century.[1]

Challen was born in 1932 and attended Mentone Primary School and Mordialloc-Chelsea High. He graduated from the University of Melbourne in 1955; and entered Ridley College, Melbourne to train for the priesthood. He was ordained deacon in 1957 and priest in 1958. After a curacy in Essendon he was Director of the Melbourne Diocesan Centre from 1963 to 1969. Moving to Perth he became a missionary in the outback and in 1976 became Archdeacon of the country regions of Western Australia. The following year he became Assistant Bishop of Perth, serving until 1991.[2] He was then Executive Director of the Brotherhood of St Laurence until 1999.

In retirement, Challen was criticized by a 2012 inquiry into the institutional sexual abuse of boys in the care of Anglican residential homes for his role in allowing an offender to resign rather than reporting the matter to police.[3] Challen's failure to act at this time was later cited as a critical factor in enabling the offender to go on to a long period of sexual offending as a junior cricket coach.[4]

References
  1. Crockford's Clerical Directory 1980-82 p 636 London: Oxford University Press, 1983 ISBN 0-19-200010-1
  2. "OFFERINGS". The Canberra Times. Vol. 65, no. 20, 388. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 6 February 1991. p. 24. Retrieved 13 April 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. "'Sex games' kept quiet to 'protect victim', bishop claims". WAToday. Perth, Australia. 25 May 2012. Retrieved 19 June 2022.
  4. "WACA employed paedophile junior coaching co-ordinator Roy Wenlock for 29 years". ABCNews. Perth, Australia. 19 June 2022. Retrieved 19 June 2022.


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