Was he right to go? Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has stood down from his job after a review found the Church of England covered up years of child abuse.
X
Next
Archbishop resigns over abuse scandal
Was he right to go? Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has stood down from his job after a review found the Church of England covered up years of child abuse.
X
PreviousNext
Justin WelbyThe Archbishop of Canterbury from 2013 to 2024. has resignedGave up a job or position by telling your employer that you are leaving. . He has been the Archbishop of CanterburyAlthough the head of the Church of England is the Queen, the Archbishop is the most senior bishop and symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican communion. since 2013. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the leader of a group of churches called the AnglicanAdherents of the Church of England (or one of its spin-off churches around the world). Communion.
Welby stepped down because a review found that the Church of England had covered up years of child abuse.
John Smyth, a Christian with close links to the Church of England, was found in 2017 to have abused boys for many years. He was also a friend of Justin Welby.
Welby said that he was told in 2013 that the police were handling the abuse claims. He said that up until then, he had no idea of the abuse.
Welby was an unusual archbishop. He started out his working life in the oil trade. When he first tried to become a priest, he was turned down.
Some say it is unfair to blame the cover-up on Welby. The review found he would reasonably have believed the police were dealing with the case in 2013. They also worry that now he has stepped down, there will be more fighting in the Church between people who want to stick to old traditions, and those who want the Church to be more liberalLiberalism is a school of political thought that stresses individual liberty. Liberals believe that society should not try to impose values or behaviours on individuals but should be tolerant of different lifestyles. A leading exponent of liberal thought was the 19th-century English philosopher John Stuart Mill, the author of the classic work On Liberty..
But others say that as one of the top leaders of the Church, it is only right that Welby should go. They said he needed to set an example, and show that he takes the suffering of Smyth's victims seriously.
Was he right to go?
Yes! Welby had to go to bring back trust in the Church. He could not continue to lead. The victims and ordinary vicars needed to see justice taking place.
No! The real failure here is with the police, not Justin Welby. The Church does not need the chaos of finding a new leader at this difficult time.
X
Previous
Keywords
Justin Welby - The Archbishop of Canterbury from 2013 to 2024.
Resigned - Gave up a job or position by telling your employer that you are leaving.
Archbishop of Canterbury - Although the head of the Church of England is the Queen, the Archbishop is the most senior bishop and symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican communion.
Anglican - Adherents of the Church of England (or one of its spin-off churches around the world).
Liberal - Liberalism is a school of political thought that stresses individual liberty. Liberals believe that society should not try to impose values or behaviours on individuals but should be tolerant of different lifestyles. A leading exponent of liberal thought was the 19th-century English philosopher John Stuart Mill, the author of the classic work On Liberty.
Archbishop resigns over abuse scandal
Regrets: “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 twelve years I have struggled to introduce improvements,” said the Archbishop yesterday. Glossary
Justin Welby - The Archbishop of Canterbury from 2013 to 2024.
Resigned - Gave up a job or position by telling your employer that you are leaving.
Archbishop of Canterbury - Although the head of the Church of England is the Queen, the Archbishop is the most senior bishop and symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican communion.
Anglican - Adherents of the Church of England (or one of its spin-off churches around the world).
Liberal - Liberalism is a school of political thought that stresses individual liberty. Liberals believe that society should not try to impose values or behaviours on individuals but should be tolerant of different lifestyles. A leading exponent of liberal thought was the 19th-century English philosopher John Stuart Mill, the author of the classic work On Liberty.