Archbishop of Canterbury faces calls to resign over church child abuse failings

The Archbishop of Canterbury, the most senior cleric in the Church of England, is under mounting pressure to resign after a damning report accused him of failing to take sufficient action against a sadistic child abuser.

A review of the church’s handling of “horrific” abuse perpetrated by John Smyth has put Archbishop Justin Welby’s position in doubt after it found that he “held a personal and moral responsibility to pursue this (case) further” once aware of it, while a cover-up had been perpetrated by the church hierarchy who knew “at the highest level, about the abuse.”

Now, three members of the Church of England’s governing body, the General Synod, have started a petition calling for Welby to stand down immediately.

As well as heading the Church of England, the Archbishop of Canterbury acts as the “first among equals” leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion, which includes the Episcopal Church in the United States.

Scrutiny of Welby centers on what he knew of allegations against Smyth, who is now dead. The former British lawyer has been considered the worst abuser to be associated with the Church of England, having carried out “prolific, brutal and horrific” physical, psychological, and sexual attacks on as many 130 boys and young men, according to the Makin Report, released on November 7. The report details abuse spanning from the 1970s up until Smyth’s death in 2018; it frequently involved savage beatings, with even members of his own family among the victims.

The independent review, commissioned by the church, found that while Welby “may not have known of the extreme seriousness of the abuse… it is most probable that he would have had at least a level of knowledge that John Smyth was of some concern.” It added that “it is not possible to establish whether Justin Welby knew of the severity of the abuses in the UK prior to 2013.”

The Bishop of Newcastle, however, told the BBC on Monday that Welby’s position was untenable. Helen-Ann Hartley said it was difficult for the church to continue to “have a moral voice… when we cannot get our own house in order.”

Lambeth Palace, the archbishop’s headquarters, said in a statemen on Monday that Welby “does not intend to resign” and that he has “apologised profoundly both for his own failures and omissions, and for the wickedness, concealment and abuse by the church more widely.”

Failure to act

After Channel 4 News reported on Smyth’s abuse in 2017, the Bishop of Guildford, Andrew Watson, came forward as a victim, saying he had suffered a “violent, excruciating and shocking” beating at the hands of Smyth.

Smyth died in South Africa aged 77 while under investigation by UK police but the church’s review found that there was a “missed opportunity” in 2012 and 2013 by the highest levels of the church to “properly” report him to law enforcement. The failure to do so, it concludes, “may have resulted in an ongoing and avoidable safeguarding threat.”

Smyth, who was accused of carrying out abuse at his home, identified several of his victims through evangelical Christian summer camps he helped run for students from Britain’s elite private colleges in the 1970s and 1980s. Although Smyth sought ordination to the Church of England, he was refused and moved to Zimbabwe in 1984. The report estimates he went on to abuse 85 to 100 male children aged 13 to 17 in Africa.

The case is particularly sensitive for Welby, who was educated at Eton College, the most famous private school in Britain, and who worked at the summer camps where he met Smyth. He later exchanged Christmas cards with Smyth and donated small amounts of money to his “missions” in Zimbabwe, according to the report.

Some church officials were made aware of Smyth’s abuses through a report into his activities as far back as 1982 but Welby, ordained in 1993, has insisted he did not know about any abuse until 2013.

The archbishop accepts that at the point he was informed, he “personally failed” to ensure that Smyth was “energetically investigated” but has insisted he plans to stay in post. He also apologized for not meeting Smyth’s victims sooner.

During his time in office, Welby has demanded accountability from those accused of mishandling abuse, including his predecessor, Lord Carey, and the former Bishop of Lincoln.

A resignation by an Archbishop of Canterbury over child abuse would be without any obvious historical precedent and there is no mechanism with which to remove an archbishop.