The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, the 68-year-old primate of the Church of England, has resigned after allegations that he failed to stop the systematic sexual and psychological abuse of minors in the past, attributed to a powerful lawyer, John Smyth, who died in 2018.
As reported by the Guardian, a recent independent report has revealed the activity conducted by the serial molester closely linked to the Anglican church: 130 boys were targeted during Christian youth camps between the late 1970s and early 1980s in the United Kingdom and later in Zimbabwe and South Africa , where the lawyer had moved.
In particular, a cover-up by religious leaders emerged and Welby himself was accused, having been aware of the abuses since 2013.
Following the revelations, members of the Church of England's governing body, the General Synod, launched a petition, signed by over 1,500 people, calling on the Archbishop to step down, "given his role in allowing the abuse to continue."
“When I was made aware of the case in 2013 and told that the police had been notified, I mistakenly believed that an appropriate resolution would follow,” Welby explained in announcing his resignation, as reported in British tabloids.
“It is very clear,” he added, “that I must take personal and institutional responsibility for the long and traumatic period between 2013 and 2024. The last few days have renewed my deep and heartfelt sense of shame at the historic failings of the Church of England in safeguarding.”
(Online Union)