Archbishop of Canterbury resigns over child abuse scandal

Photo: Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, who has held the post since 2013, has resigned, the BBC reports.

The resignation of the spiritual leader of the Church of England took place against the backdrop of the publication of a report on the case related to lawyer John Smythe, who ran church camps in Britain where, as it turned out, he had been corrupting and raped children.

An independent investigation team found that the lawyer had physically and sexually abused boys and young men in various Anglican parishes in the 1970s and 80s.

Smythe was never brought to justice – he died in 2018 in South Africa, where he had moved after law enforcement agencies became interested in him. More than a hundred people may have suffered from Smythe's actions. The London newspaper The Times called him “the most prolific sex abuser” in the history of the church.

John Smythe

The report also found that church officials knew about Smythe's crimes but covered them up by failing to act. In particular, Justin Welby was criticised for failing to do so after taking up his post as Archbishop of Canterbury and helping bring Smythe to justice by going to the police.

Following the publication, Welby faced calls to resign. The archbishop initially refused to step down, arguing that he was unaware of Smythe's actions until 2013.

In a new statement, Welby said he did not intervene because he believed that law enforcement would investigate.

“When I became aware of what was happening in 2013, I was told that the police were already aware of the matter. I mistakenly believed that the matter would be resolved without my involvement,” he explained.