Leader of Church of England  to resign in wake of scandal coverup

The Archbishop of Canterbury, who is the head of the Church of England, is resigning because the coverup of an abuse scandal.

“The Makin Review has exposed the long-maintained conspiracy of silence about the heinous abuses of John Smyth,” Justin Welby posted on the church’s website. “When I was informed in 2013 and told that police had been notified, I believed wrongly that an appropriate resolution would follow.Bottom of Form It is very clear that I must take personal and institutional responsibility for the long and retraumatizing period between 2013 and 2024.”

Welby, a liberal theologian at odds with conservative clergy within the church, went on to say that he hoped “this decision makes clear how seriously the Church of England understands the need for change and our profound commitment to creating a safer church. 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.”

Welby believes his resignation “is in the best interests of the Church of England” and prayed that “this decision points us back toward the love that Jesus Christ has for every one of us.”

Earlier this month, an independent investigation released a report, known as the Makin Report, which found that John Smyth likely abused more than 100 boys and young adult men while they attended Christian camps from the late 1970s into the early 1980s. Smyth died in 2018 while living in Zimbabwe, with British authorities reportedly being in the process of having him extradited to the United Kingdom to face charges.

“Despite considerable efforts by individuals to bring to the attention of relevant authorities the scope and horror of Smyth’s conduct, including by victims and by some clergy, the steps taken by the Church of England and other organizations and individuals were ineffective and neither fully exposed nor prevented further abuse by him,” the report said.

An online petition was started last week calling for Welby to step down, with it garnering more than 13,000 signatories by the time Welby agreed to resign.

–Alan Goforth | Metro Voice