The Anglican Church will never be able to get its house in order because Government has singled it out for attack, a life-long Anglican has charged.

And if any progress is going to be made to resolve the present impasse now that Bishop the Rt. Rev. William Down is returning to England, Government must stop intruding in church affairs.

But Immigration Minister the Hon. John Irving Pearman said such claims are unfounded.

He said that if the proposed Bishop were a non-Bermudian and there were Bermudian applicants for the job the matter would be reviewed as in any other case.

The allegations were made by an Anglican church member who has been in the church for more than 40 years. He spoke to The Royal Gazette on condition that his name not be used.

He said: "It's impossible to discuss this matter without becoming involved in politics.

"I am representative of many people who feel that the Department of Immigration has singled out our church for attack. We are being unfairly treated in relation to other churches.'' The man claimed that Government's immigration policy was not even-handed and churches like the AME, Church of God, and the Seventh Day Adventists were treated differently than Anglicans when it came to hiring ministers.

"There is not a qualified Bermudian ready to replace Bishop Down,'' the man added. "We all deeply wish there were lots of qualified Bermudians but the names that the department insists are qualified are people who are totally unacceptable.'' However, Mr. Pearman said he knew of at least three Bermudian Anglican clergymen who are looking for work.

"They have made application on every occasion that the Anglican church has advertised posts as the (Immigration Department) requires and I make no apologies for that.

"I can assure you that all other churches have to satisfy us that no Bermudian is available and seeking a post.

"There are Bermudians in the Anglican church available and seeking higher posts so there may be more tension there and more attention paid to them than other churches. But it's my job to try to protect the interests of Bermudians.'' Mr. Pearman said the allegation that his Ministry treated other churches differently was "unfounded and did not justify a response because it was not true''.

Meanwhile, the man said neither Rev. Stuart Lambert or Rev. William Hayward, who are both Bermudians and looking for jobs within the Anglican church, are acceptable.

Rev. Lambert is the nephew of Canon Arnold Hollis a contender for the Bishop's post.

The man alleged that Rev. Lambert was a priest at the Southampton church and nearly drove the members crazy. He then left Bermuda on sabbatical and headed to Chichester on the south coast of England.

Since his return he has not found a job. When contacted Rev. Lambert declined to comment.

"Nobody wants Rev. Lambert. Rev. Hayward does not have a wife and there is no way that a bachelor can be acceptable as a priest.

"More than half the congregation are women and there are all sorts of women's committees and a bachelor priest cannot be expected to have any part of that.

"On paper they have their certificates; they are `qualified'. But what do you mean by qualified? You need someone with years of experience.'' Another man who is a member of the Cathedral congregation and did not wish to be identified, said Bishop Down's resignation was unexpected since his work permit had been renewed to the year 2000.

"We are all still in a state of shock now that he has decided to return to England with his family but we can understand why they are leaving.

"The Bishop has an aged father who is in a home now and two children in university who need direction.'' The church member explained that if Bishop Down had stayed to the year 2000 there would be confidence that Archdeacon Ewan Ratteray could take over and the church would be in good hands.

As it now stands, however, Archdeacon Ratteray only has a year under his belt in that senior position.

He said the new Bishop -- or prince of the church -- would not just be the Bishop of Bermuda. Instead he would be a Bishop for the entire Anglican communion with broad powers.

And this is why the issue of qualifications for the proposed Bishop is so essential.

Each of the contenders -- Canon Hollis, Canon James Francis and Archdeacon Ratteray -- have their own following and their own baggage.

Archdeacon Ratteray is considered too inflexible while Canon Hollis has a reputation for stirring up controversy.

"Whoever emerges as the winner in the end,'' the church member said, "he should be someone who is going to focus on the youth and rebuilding the churches aging membership.

"He should not bother about hot items like women priests or homosexuality. He needs to get in there and get among the young people. This may involve changing the order of service or the music.

"If you look at other churches like the Seventh Day Adventists or the Jehovah Witnesses they are bright with young people. That's what we need to do in the Anglican church. We are not doing that now.''