Justin Welby steps down following a scandal involving his handling of abuse allegations. A secretive committee will select a successor from a pool of over 100 bishops.
A former nurse, a refugee and a beekeeper are among the leading contenders to replace the Archbishop of Canterbury as he leaves the role today. A secretive committee, led by a former British spy chief, will begin the process of finding and voting for candidates to become the 106th leader of the Church of England. Justin Welby will formally give up the position on midnight on Monday after being forced to resign over failures in handling a church abuse scandal .
An independent review judged that Welby could have brought John Smyth, a Christian camp leader who abused as many as 130 boys and young men over five decades, to justice in 2013. More than 100 bishops in the Church of England, including 42 senior diocesan bishops, are now in the race to replace Welby as Archbishop of Canterbury. Welby’s heir apparent, the Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell, seemed to rule himself out last year, and has since faced calls to resign over perceived failures in his handling of a separate abuse case. Justin Welby finishes his almost 12 year stint as Archbishop of Canterbury today, triggering the contest to succeed him. The months-long process to find the Anglican Church’s spiritual leader will be overseen by the Crown Nominations Commission (CNC). Lead by Lord Evans of Weardale, the CNC will invite nominations to the role and invite candidates to join the process. The CNC will then meet three times before the autumn to vote in a secret ballot to determine Welby’s successor.
Archbishop Of Canterbury Justin Welby Church Of England Abuse Scandal Succession
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