Archbishop Of Canterbury Has Resigned: Long Overdue

In a statement, Welby said that it had become clear that he “must take personal and institutional responsibility” for the “long and retraumatising” period after he was informed of allegations in 2013, during which Smyth was not brought to justice and survivors were repeatedly failed by the Church.

THE ARCHBISHOP’S STATEMENT

“The archbishop issued a statement saying; “Having sought the gracious permission of His Majesty The King, I have decided to resign as Archbishop of Canterbury. “The Makin Review has exposed the long-maintained conspiracy of silence about the heinous abuses of John Smyth.

“When I was informed in 2013 and told that police had been notified, I believed wrongly that an appropriate resolution would follow.

“It is my duty to honour my Constitutional and church responsibilities, so exact timings will be decided once a review of necessary obligations has been completed, including those in England and in the Anglican Communion.

“I hope this decision makes clear how seriously the Church of England understands the need for change and our profound commitment to creating a safer church.

“As I step down I do so in sorrow with all victims and survivors of abuse. “The last few days have renewed my long felt and profound sense of shame at the historic safeguarding failures of the Church of England.

“For nearly twelve years I have struggled to introduce improvements. It is for others to judge what has been done. “In the meantime, I will follow through on my commitment to meet victims.

“I will delegate all my other current responsibilities for safeguarding until the necessary risk assessment process is complete. “I ask everyone to keep my wife Caroline and my children in their prayers. They have been my most important support throughout my ministry, and I am eternally grateful for their sacrifice.”

GROWING CALLS FOR HIS RESIGNATION

Earlier, Welby had rejected calls for his resignation, saying that he sought advice and did not intend to resign. But clearly the pressure was on as priests started a petition calling on him to step down over his handling of the abuse scandal, even as others said he should not be made a scapegoat.

Three members of the Church of England’s General Synod started a petition — backed by a number of high-profile priests — calling on Welby to resign after a report lambasted the church for failing to stop John Smyth, a Christian barrister referred to as the “most prolific serial abuser” in its history. It found that he “brutally” beat 130 boys over 40 years.

The petition, had reached over 13,000 signatures at the time of his announcement on Tuesday.

Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell, second only to the archbishop of Canterbury, said Welby’s resignation was “the right and honorable thing to do.”

“As a church, we continue to work towards and must achieve a more victim-centred and trauma-informed approach to safeguarding within the Church of England, and this must address the broader questions of culture and leadership,” he added in a statement.

The Bishop of Newcastle, told the BBC that Welby’s position was untenable. Helen-Ann Hartley said it was difficult for the church to continue to “have a moral voice… when we cannot get our own house in order.” She called on him to resign.

Andrew Watson, the Bishop of Guildford, has said that as a boy he was subjected to a “violent, excruciating and shocking” beating by John Smyth.

When asked if Welby should resign, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the matter was ultimately for the Church to address but he emphasized the “clearly horrific” allegations of abuse, adding that it was evident the victims had been “failed very, very badly.”

The three synod members behind the petition are regular critics of Welby. The Rev. Ian Paul has criticized Welby for backing the blessing of same-sex couples. The Rev Marcus Walker led a campaign criticizing Welby over the support given to parish priests. The Rev Robert Thompson led criticism of the church’s handling of safeguarding.

The Rev. Richard Coles, a radio presenter, said: “Anyone in authority who knew about an abuser and did not act properly so that abuse continued should resign. Then [we need] a reset that begins with making safeguarding in the CofE independent of the CofE.”

The Rev. Giles Fraser, a vicar and columnist, said: “I think it seems increasingly unlikely that the Archbishop of Canterbury can survive in post, given the growing chorus of calls for his resignation from amongst his own clergy.”

John Smyth was accused of carrying out brutal assaults on young men whilst being the head of a Christian charity that ran summer camps for boys.

Welby apologized for failing to ensure that allegations were “energetically investigated” in 2013 but said he had known nothing about Smyth’s abuse prior to this, so did not think it a resigning issue.

But the petition says: “With sadness we do not think there is any alternative to his immediate resignation if the process of change and healing is to start now.”

GLOBAL SOUTH

While GAFCON and GSFA archbishops and bishops have yet to weigh in, there will be some rejoicing at Welby’s departure. GAFCON bishops had already severed links with Welby and the Church of England over Welby’s failure to enact the strictures of Lambeth Resolution 1:10 which forbade homosexuality. The GSFA bishops had repeatedly called on Welby to repent of his pro-homosexual position on same-sex unions being promoted in the Church of England. There is no love lost between Welby and the vast majority of the Global South who have viewed with alarm the growing apostasy of Welby and the Church of England.

The bigger question is who will follow Welby. VOL was told that certain of his duties will be taken over by the Archbishop of York, but it remains to be seen who will now run the church.

Since Welby became archbishop in 2013, a plethora of reports have exposed decades of failures from church leaders — many dating back long before Welby’s tenure — to protect children from pedophile priests.

Over the past few years Welby had drawn criticism on several issues including reparations, immigration, and his support for the blessing of same-sex unions.

END

ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY HAS RESIGNED: LONG OVERDUE

COMMENTARY

By David W. Virtue, DD
www.virtueonline.org
November 12, 2024

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby who has faced increasing criticism for his tenure as the Anglican Communion’s lackluster leader, has resigned following criticism of his failure to prevent child abuse.

Welby announced that he would stand down following a damning report which found he had not passed on information to the police about John Smyth, a Queen’s Council (QC) solicitor and evangelical Christian — the Church of England’s most prolific serial child abuser.

The review, commissioned by the Church of England’s national safeguarding team and written by Keith Makin, the former director of social services, found that Smyth’s “abhorrent abuse” could have been exposed four years earlier if the archbishop had contacted the authorities, The Telegraph reported.