Archbishop of Canterbury Welby Resigns Amid Abuse Scandal
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, announced his resignation on Tuesday, following a damning report exposing a decades-long cover-up of abuse within the Church of England. The report implicated senior church leaders, including Welby, in failing to address abuse perpetrated by British lawyer John Smyth, who led Christian summer camps in the 1970s and 1980s.
The independent review, released last week, revealed that over 100 boys and young men suffered physical, sexual, and psychological abuse at Smyth’s hands. Despite repeated attempts by individuals to report these acts, the Church’s response was deemed grossly inadequate. Smyth, who died in South Africa in 2018 without facing trial, continued his abuse unchecked for years, a failing the report attributed to a lack of intervention by church authorities.
“The last few days have renewed my long felt and profound sense of shame at the historic safeguarding failures of the Church of England,” Welby stated in his resignation announcement. He admitted he first became aware of the abuse allegations in 2013, the same year he was appointed Archbishop, but conceded that his response fell short. “For nearly 12 years, I have struggled to introduce improvements. It is for others to judge what has been done,” he said.
Welby’s resignation has intensified calls for accountability within the Anglican Church. Survivors and critics alike have questioned the Church’s commitment to safeguarding, including Andrew Morse, one of Smyth’s victims, who urged Welby to resign. “Had he acted decisively in 2013, further abuse could have been prevented,” Morse said.
Bishop Helen-Ann Hartley of Newcastle also voiced concern, stating, “I think, rightly, people are asking the question: ‘Can we really trust the Church of England to keep us safe?’ And I think the answer at the moment is ‘no.’”
The scandal casts a shadow over Welby’s legacy, which included officiating notable events such as the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle and delivering the sermon at Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral. In his final remarks, Welby expressed deep remorse: “I am so sorry that in places where these young men, and boys, should have felt safe and where they should have experienced God’s love for them, they were subjected to physical, sexual, psychological, and spiritual abuse.”
His departure underscores the Church’s ongoing struggle to confront abuse scandals and rebuild trust with its congregants. Newborn Baby Abandoned in Minna, Niger State
