Archbishop of Canterbury’s position is “untenable and he should resign”
Pressure is building on the Archbishop of Canterbury to resign, after the damning Makin report into decades of prolific and horrific abuse by the Christian youth leader and barrister John Smyth, which said Justin Welby failed to act with urgency after hearing of the abuse in 2013. Calls for the archbishop’s resignation are splashed on most front pages this morning: Telegraph, The Times, Guardian, Independent. The Bishop of Newcastle, Helen-Ann Hartley, issued a blistering verdict on Justin Welby in an interview with the BBC, saying: “I think sadly his position is untenable, so I think he should resign.” She told the BBC: “I think that it’s very hard for the church as the national, the established church, to continue to have a moral voice in any way, shape or form in our nation when we cannot get our own house in order with regard to something as critically important, something that would be asked of any institution, let alone the church, which is meant to have the gospel of Jesus Christ looking out for the most vulnerable in our midst. We are in danger of losing complete credibility on that front.” Three prominent clergy members of the CofE’s general synod, Robert Thompson, Marcus Walker and Ian Paul, have started an online petition which has gathered 4,000 signatures, calling for Justin Welby to resign. The Rev Dr Ian Paul, a member of the Archbishops Council, told Newsnight that the church had lost confidence in Justin Welby.
MPs say Welby must go
Newsnight’s political editor, Nick Watt, said Labour MPs were saying in private that Justin Welby must go and that “this should be his last Christmas as Archbishop of Canterbury”. The Second Church Estates Commissioner, Labour MP Marsha de Cordova intervened, saying the John Smyth abuse scandal was “a stark reminder that the church has much more work to do” to ensure it provides safe, open and transparent spaces for everyone in society.
Camps to find CofE evangelical leaders destroyed lives
The Makin report said the archbishop had failed to follow through with curiosity and urgency, abuse he was told about in 2013. John Smyth had groomed boys and young men at Iwerne evangelical Christian summer camps from the 1970s, which Justin Welby had attended first as a student and then a young leader, twice sharing the same dorm as Smyth. The camps were designed to identify and nurture young men to be evangelical leaders in the Church of England. The report outlines how Smyth took the boys back to his garden shed where they were beaten with canes until they bled. He was persuaded to leave the country for Zimbabwe in the 1980s, where he continued to abuse boys. Justin Welby has insisted he knew nothing of the abuse until 2013 and has apologised for his failure to act, telliing Channel 4 that he had considered resigning but, after consulting colleagues, had decided to stay in his role.
The RMC understands that discussions have been going on “under the radar” within the CofE over the past 24 hours. ITN reports that Justin Welby’s diary has been cleared for today. Justin Welby must retire by the time he reaches the age of 70 in January 2026.
Assisted Dying bill finally published
The Assisted Dying Bill, to be voted upon by MPs on 29 November, has finally been published setting out protection for the vulnerable and safeguards against coercion. Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, who is tabling the bill, said it has gone through a thorough and robust consultation, involving medical and legal experts, the palliative care and hospice sectors, and disability rights activists and faith leaders. Among the limitations, patients must be over 18, have the mental capacity to make a choice about the end of their life, and must be terminally ill, expected to die within six months. The decision needs declarations from witnesses and two doctors and then approval from a High Court judge. Medicine must be self-administered. Critics have said there is not enough time to scrutinise the bill as the debate and vote is only three weeks away. The two cabinet ministers who would have to enact the law, the health secretary Wes Streeting, and justice secretary Shabana Mahmood, are opposed to the law change.
School chaplain takes ministry ban to the Royal Courts of Justice
A Judicial Review is scheduled to start today in the case of the Rev Bernard Randall, a Church of England school chaplain, who is taking legal action after he was banned from the ministry. Mr Randall was suspended and eventually made redundant by Trent College, Derbyshire, after he made comments on gender identity in a sermon. He has been cleared by organisations such as Prevent, the LADO (Local Authority Designated Officer), the TRA (Teaching Regulation Agency) and the DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service), but the Bishop of Derby, Libby Lane, said he was a safeguarding risk, which means he is banned from the ministry. He wants the bishop’s decision to be investigated, but the Archbishop of Canterbury disagrees and now this is being challenged at the Royal Courts of Justice. His case has been taken up by Christian Concern
Strict traditional Islamic customs introduced in Libya
Libya’s Interior Minister has announced plans to enforce traditional Islamic social customs such as wearing a mandatory hijab from the age of nine, restricting Western clothing and banning mixed gender gatherings. Imad al-Tarabulsi said he is working on plans to introduce a “morality police” and a women’s police unit, aimed at countering behaviours he believes undermine Libya’s traditional identity. He outlined a series of measures set to launch next month, including bans on “inappropriate” hairstyles for young men, social media monitoring and requiring women to be accompanied by a male guardian for certain trips.He said: “Anyone who wants to live freely should go and live in Europe”. Amnesty International has issued a statement condemning the proposals, warning that they “represent a dangerous escalation” that could deepen repression in Libya.
Belgian police foil copycat attack on Jewish community
Police in Belgium say six suspects were planning a copycat “Jew hunt” in Antwerp after last week’s attacks on Israeli football fans in Amsterdam, reports The Times. Paul van Tigchelt, the Belgian justice minister, held consultations with the city’s large Jewish community on Sunday and assured people that the Belgian security services were taking the threat seriously. Israel’s National Security Council has warned its citizens to avoid cultural and sporting events in Britain, the Netherlands, France, Belgium and other countries. The six arrests were made near the Belgian port city’s Jewish quarter as “various groups, sometimes young people” converged on the district and were asked to leave.
AI tourist trail created at the Vatican
The Vatican has launched new Artificial Intelligence-enabled visitor services for St Peter’s Basilica, allowing virtual access to its Renaissance architectural treasures and enhanced tours for visitors. The new AI experiences were unveiled in time for the Catholic Church’s Holy Year or Jubilee celebrations in 2025. Working with tech giant Microsoft, a new interactive website was launched, a digital replica of the Basilica and two AI-enabled exhibitions. “St. Peter’s is like a starry sky on a summer night: you remain enchanted by its splendour,” said St Peter’s archpriest Cardinal Mauro Gambetti. A 3D model of St. Peter’s was built scanning the buildings using drones, cameras and lasers. AI algorithms pieced together, elaborated and completed the data. Drones flew at night for 4 weeks, taking over 400,000 photographs and collecting the equivalent of a 6 km-high column of DVDs in data. Data from the digital twin will also be instrumental in preservation and restoration work. “We are taking St. Peter’s not just to the world but to a new generation of people, in a language that is more accessible for the times we live in,” said Microsoft President Brad Smith.
Magical Christmas at Liverpool Cathedral shared with millions on stamps
The Dean of Liverpool Cathedral, Sue Jones, said she feels “honoured” that the building was chosen as this year’s first-class Royal Mail Christmas stamp. It is one of five cathedrals to be featured, including Westminster, Angor, Edinburgh and Armagh in this year’s special edition Christmas stamp collection She told the BBC there is a “real buzz” around the place as the cathedral – the largest in the Britain – comes to the end of its centenary year. She added: “I think what the stamp does, with the ice skaters out the front of the Cathedral, actually gives something of a magical Christmas time with children, and to come in and then see the cribs, and to experience the lighting of the tree, makes you think more about something beyond ourselves.” The illustration, created by British artist Judy Joel, will be displayed as an enlargement in the cathedral over the festive season. The festive period is a busy time of year with the return of the cathedral’s annual lightshow, and Sunday carol services attracting up to 900 people at a time.
