The leader of the World’s Anglican church, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, is under pressure to resign after a report exposed the Church of England’s failure to act on a serial abuse case.
The Church was said to have allegedly covered up abuse by John Smyth, a lawyer who organized evangelical summer camps in the 1970s and 1980s, where he is believed to have abused as many as 130 boys and young men.
Three members of the General Synod, the Church’s national assembly, launched a petition demanding that Welby step down. The petition claims Welby “held a personal and moral responsibility to pursue this further… which he failed to fulfil,” and asserts that his position “is no longer tenable.”
The independent review stated that Welby “could and should” have reported the abuse in 2013 when he learned of it. Smyth, who passed away in 2018 while under investigation, never faced charges for his actions.
Welby expressed regret over the scandal, saying he was “deeply sorry that this abuse happened” but insisted he was unaware of Smyth’s actions before 2013. “If I’d known before 2013 or had grounds for suspicion, that would be a resigning matter,” he told Channel 4 News. Despite considering resignation, he decided against it.
By Monday, the petition had over 1,600 signatures, and several priests voiced their disappointment.
Giles Fraser, vicar of St. Anne’s Church in London, told BBC radio, “I’m afraid he’s lost the confidence of his clergy. He’s lost the confidence of many of his bishops, and his position is completely untenable.”
