The Bishop of Newcastle has called for Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby’s resignation, declaring his position “untenable” following a damning report on the Church of England’s handling of prolific child abuser John Smyth QC.
“Can we really trust the Church of England to keep us safe? And I think the answer at the moment is ‘no,'” Bishop Helen-Ann Hartley told the BBC Monday, becoming the most senior church figure to demand Welby’s departure. While acknowledging his resignation wouldn’t “solve the safeguarding problem,” she said it would “be a very clear indication that a line has been drawn.”
The Makin review revealed Welby “could and should” have reported Smyth to authorities in 2013, potentially preventing years of continued abuse before the perpetrator’s death in 2018. Smyth, believed to be the Church’s most prolific serial abuser, victimized up to 130 boys and young men across three countries over five decades, targeting victims through Christian summer camps.
Welby acknowledged last week that he had “personally failed” to “energetically investigate” but decided to remain in his role despite considering resignation. “I had no idea or suspicion of this abuse before 2013,” he said, though the report indicated “enough was known to have raised concerns” when he was informed.
Three General Synod members accused the archbishop of “allowing abuse to continue” during the five-year period between 2013 and Smyth’s death, launching a petition for Welby’s resignation that has garnered over 7,000 signatures. Anglican priest Giles Fraser told BBC Radio 4 that Welby had “lost the confidence of his clergy.”
The report detailed Smyth’s extensive abuse pattern, including 26 to 30 victims in the UK during the 1970s and 1980s before he relocated to Africa, where he abused 85 to 100 more children aged 13 to 17. Church leaders received a report about the abuse in 1982 but didn’t alert police, instead encouraging Smyth to leave the country.
“The idea that people continued to be abused after the Church knew what was happening is disgraceful,” said Fraser, himself a survivor of childhood abuse. Smyth died at 75 while under investigation by Hampshire Police, which opened its case after a 2017 Channel 4 documentary exposed the allegations.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer declined to comment on whether Welby should resign, saying, “That’s a matter really for the Church rather than for me.”
bbc.com
