Archbishop of Canterbury’s tenure ends after resignation over abuse scandal
Justin Welby announced his resignation in November amid an abuse cover-up scandal
Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby’s tenure officially ended on Monday, two months after he resigned following an inquiry that found he failed to tell police about serial abuse by a volunteer at Christian summer camps as soon as he became aware of it.
Welby, the head of Church of England and spiritual leader of the global Anglican Communion, laid down his bishop’s crozier – a ceremonial long staff – in a symbolic act that marks the end of his ministry.
Most of his official functions will be delegated to the Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, as the church embarks on the lengthy process of selecting a new leader.
Welby had announced in November that he would resign after an independent investigation into the late John Smyth, a prominent lawyer who the inquiry said sexually, psychologically and physically abused about 30 boys and young men in the United Kingdom and 85 in Africa from the 1970s until his death in 2018.
The 251-page report of the Makin Review concluded that Welby failed to report Smyth to authorities when he was informed of the abuse in August 2013, soon after he became Archbishop of Canterbury. Had he done so, Smyth could have been stopped sooner.
Welby’s initial refusal to step aside kindled anger about a lack of accountability at the highest reaches of the church.
