By Muvija M
LONDON (Reuters) – Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury and spiritual leader of the global Anglican church, faced mounting calls to resign on Monday over a report that his institution had covered up prolific abuse of boys and young men.
Welby, in the role since 2013, apologised last week after the report described a barrister who ran summer camps for young Christians, John Smyth, as the most prolific serial abuser associated with the Church of England as it is also known.
Smyth, who died in 2018, was held responsible for the violent abuse of at least 115 children and young men in England, Zimbabwe and South Africa, including caning some.
Welby said he had “no idea or suspicion” of the allegations before 2013, but the independent report concluded that it was unlikely he would have had no knowledge of the concerns regarding Smyth in the 1980s.
Helen-Ann Hartley, one of 108 bishops within the Church of England, said Welby’s position was now untenable.
“It’s very hard for the church … to continue to have a moral voice in any way, shape, or form in our nation when we cannot get our own house in order with regard to something that’s critically important,” she said.
WELBY APOLOGISES
A petition calling for Welby to resign – started by three members of the Church’s governing body, the General Synod – has received over 2,900 signatures.
Welby has apologised for “failures and omissions” in not properly investigating the claims, especially after a documentary by Britain’s Channel 4 in 2017 revealed the full extent of the abuse.
“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,” he said in a statement last week.
Welby told Channel 4 on Thursday he had considered resigning, but reiterated that he had not known about the abuse. In his apology he said the review was clear that he had personally failed to ensure proper investigations.
Some 85 million people in more than 165 countries belong to the Anglican community, making it the third largest Christian denomination in the world.
(Reporting by Sachin Ravikumar and Muvija M; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
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