The spiritual leader of the Anglicans, Justin Welby, announced his resignation on Tuesday, November 12, after the publication of a damning report on the treatment by the Church of England of physical and sexual assaults committed against more than a hundred children and young men.
“I hope this decision clearly shows how much the Church of England understands the need for change, and our deep commitment to creating a safer Church.”wrote Justin Welby in a press release. These attacks were committed by a lawyer as part of his activities with the Church of England between the 1970s and the mid-2010s.
“It is very clear that I must take personal and institutional responsibility for the long, traumatic period that passed between 2013 and 2024”declared Justin Welby, who had apologized on Thursday. “These last few days have reignited the deep sense of shame I have long felt about the historic failings of the Church of England in safeguarding”he continued. “For almost twelve years, I struggled to make improvements. It is up to others to judge what has been done. »
Several Anglican religious leaders have been calling on the Archbishop of Canterbury to resign for several days. This 68-year-old man with a face well known to the British for having officiated at several major royal events in recent years – notably at the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II or the coronation of King Charles III – immediately apologized.
In the morning, Justin Welby spoke indirectly with the king, supreme governor of the Church of England, who accepted his resignation. “As I step aside, I do so with deep sadness for all victims and survivors of assault”declared the man of the Church, married and father of a family, judging that standing aside was “in the best interests of the Church of England”.
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“Serial attacker”
If the top of the Church was officially informed of these facts in 2013, religious leaders had been aware of them since the beginning of the 1980s but kept them quiet as part of a “cover-up campaign”concluded an investigation commissioned by the Church, in a report published last Thursday.
John Smyth “is arguably the most prolific serial abuser associated with the Church of England”states this report, which details the physical, sexual and psychological suffering “brutal and horrible” that he inflicted on his victims. For example, he would bring young boys to his home in the south of England where he would beat them with a cane, sometimes until they bled, citing theological justifications.
The report also concludes that the Archbishop of Canterbury “could have and should have” report to the police the violence committed by the lawyer from 2013, when he became primate of the Church of England. John Smyth died in 2018 in South Africa, at the age of 75, without having been tried. The affair only finally came to light after the broadcast of a documentary by Channel 4 in 2017.
Mr. Welby assured after the publication of the report that he had not “no idea or suspicion” before 2013, but which he admitted to having “personally failed to ensure” that after this date “This horrific tragedy is being vigorously investigated”.
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More broadly, this affair once again undermines the Anglican religious institution, already accused four years ago in a previous report of having allowed a « culture » allowing perpetrators of sexual violence against minors to ” hide “ and escape justice. According to this report, part of a wider investigation into various institutions in the country, 390 people linked to the Church of England were convicted of sexual offenses committed between the 1940s and 2018.
