One uncomfortable truth about recent episcopal appointments on both side of the pond is that they reveal less about holiness or vision, and more about institutional fear.
After a series of high-profile implosions here in the UK, bishops undone by past relationships, undisclosed histories, or personal failures, Rome and much of the hierarchy appear to be operating in a defensive crouch. Risk is now the enemy. The overriding priority is not renewal, but containment. The question shaping appointments is no longer “Who will convert, teach, and sanctify?” but “Who is least likely to cause trouble?”
In that context, it is not hard to see why certain figures are quietly passed over. Some bishops are regarded, rightly or wrongly, as risky: too independent, too unpredictable, too willing to speak plainly, too likely to allow awkward truths to surface. Others are seen as safe: men with no visible past, no public controversies, no sharp edges, and no habits that might one day require explanation.
Richard Moth fits that latter profile perfectly.
On paper, he is irreproachable. No scandals. No dramatic positions. A career marked by careful advancement, institutional loyalty, and an evident instinct for survival within complex ecclesial systems. One gets the sense of a man who has lived every stage of his ministry acutely aware that his present would one day become his past, and might be audited accordingly. That kind of caution is often rewarded in bureaucracies, and the modern Church is no exception.
But safety should not be confused with suitability.
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