Archbishop of Canterbury forced out after church’s “conspiracy of silence” about John Smyth
After days of concerted pressure including a petition by General Synod members signed by 10,000 people, the longest Archiepiscopate, since Michael Ramsey held the office in the 1960s and 1970s, came to an end.
“Having sought the gracious permission of His Majesty, The King, I have decided to resign as Archbishop of Canterbury,” he announced. He said that when he was informed of Smyth’s abuse in 2013 and was told that police had been notified, “I believed wrongly that an appropriate resolution would follow.”
He added: “It is very clear that I must take personal and institutional responsibility for the long and retraumatising period between 2013 and 2024.”
The resignation is not immediate, with the Archbishop insisting that he had a duty to “honour my Constitutional and church responsibilities.
“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.”
In his resignation statement he expressed frustration with the slow rate of change in the C of E led by him: “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 12 years I have struggled to introduce improvements. It is for others to judge what has been done.”
He pledged to see through his commitments to meet victims and announced that he was setting aside all his responsibilities for safeguarding until a risk assessment was in place.
He had a message for his wife Caroline and children, asking for prayers for them: “They have been my most important support throughout my ministry, and I am eternally grateful for their sacrifice.”
He added: “I believe that stepping aside is in the best interests of the Church of England, which I dearly love and which I have been honoured to serve. I pray that this decision points us back towards the love that Jesus Christ has for every one of us.
“For above all else, my deepest commitment is to the person of Jesus Christ, my saviour and my God; the bearer of the sins and burdens of the world, and the hope of every person.”
Other senior bishops took up the theme of safeguarding responsibility but also paid tribute to the Archbishop.
Stephen Cottrell, Archbishop of York said, “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. In this regard, much progress has already been made over the last 10 years. Indeed, it has been Archbishop Justin himself who has championed those developments and reforms.”
He said that in coming days there would be opportunity to reflect on the positive aspects of his ministry.
The Bishop of London, said that Justin Welby’s decision provided “urgent impetus” to change “the face of safeguarding”.
She added that the Archbishop’s roles at the funeral of the Queen and the Coronation “have been central to the spiritual life of the nation”.
She paid tribute to him for his instrumental part in the passing of legislation to make women bishops a reality.
Pressure had been building for days for the Archbishop’s resignation especially after General Synod clergy Robert Thompson and Ian Paul launched an email petition. The Bishop of Newcastle, Helen Ann Hartley, was the only bishop to openly call for the Archbishop to resign. But a number of survivors including former Vicar Mark Stibbe, who were victims of John Smyth had issued passionate calls for him to go.