Justin Welby has resigned as Archbishop of Canterbury after 11-and-a-half years as leader of the Church of England. It comes after the publication of an independent review into the Church’s handling of allegations of physical and sexual abuse committed by John Smyth at Christian camps in the 1970s and 80s. Welby became Archbishop in 2013, having only served as a bishop for two years. He also became the first Archbishop of Canterbury for 70 years to preside over the funeral and coronation of a monarch. Report by Jonesia. Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/itn and follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/itn
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00:00After 11 and a half years leading the Church of England,
00:04Justin Welby has resigned as Archbishop of Canterbury.
00:07It comes after the publication of an independent review into the Church's handling of allegations
00:13of physical and sexual abuse committed by John Smythe at Christian camps in the 1970s and 80s.
00:21The Macon report concluded Welby had not done enough to formally alert authorities about the
00:27abuse committed by Smythe after being made aware of the allegations in 2013,
00:32the year Welby was installed as Archbishop.
00:35His was a rapid rise to the top of the Anglican Church.
00:39He had only served as Bishop for two years, having been appointed Bishop of Durham in 2011.
00:44He became a Christian whilst a student at Trinity College Cambridge in the 1970s.
00:50However, he went on to spend 11 years working in the oil industry
00:54before training for the priesthood and being ordained in 1992.
00:59He became the first Archbishop of Canterbury for 70 years
01:02to preside over the funeral and coronation of a monarch,
01:06following the death of Queen Elizabeth II and the accession of King Charles III.
01:18He was knighted by the King in the 2024 New Year Honours for his services at the coronation.
01:24It's quite the day.
01:28Very overwhelmed by it really and thinking of all the people I worked with
01:34who did the hard work and I just wandered around looking colourful.
01:40Welby also officiated at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle in 2018,
01:45and has christened Prince William and Princess Catherine's three children,
01:49George, Charlotte and Louis.
01:52As Archbishop of Canterbury, Welby was also the head of the Global Anglican Communion,
01:57a body of some 85 million worshippers and one which was a challenge to keep together.
02:03In 2023, the Church of England voted to approve blessings for same-sex couples.
02:09This is a moment of joy and celebration.
02:13We have actually made decisions and they are decisions which change
02:19our approach to LGBTQI plus people.
02:25However, Welby was criticised by churches in Africa, America and Asia
02:30of going too far in these reforms and by others of not going far enough.
02:35The Archbishop of Canterbury sits in the House of Lords as one of the Lords Spiritual,
02:40and Welby has been outspoken on a number of political and social issues.
02:45The Rwanda Asylum Plan.
02:47Subcontracting out our responsibilities, even to a country that seeks to do well like Rwanda,
02:56is the opposite of the nature of God.
03:00Brexit.
03:01They have to be certain that it can be managed in a way that the most vulnerable do not suffer.
03:09And most recently, assisted dying.
03:11No amount of safeguards can perfect the human heart.
03:16No amount of regulation can make a relative kinder or a doctor infallible.
03:22There is an irony that a man known for being so open about his family and personal life
03:27has come to resign because of his silence.
03:30Justin Welby says he hopes his decision to resign
03:33makes clear how seriously the Church of England understands the need for change
03:38and its commitment to creating a safer Church.
03:41However, both the Church and whoever Welby's successor may be
03:45know that one resignation at the top does not solve the issue of safeguarding.