Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby will complete his official duties by the Feast of the Epiphany – Jan. 6, 2025 – according to a Nov. 20 statement from Lambeth Palace.
Welby “intends very little public-facing activity between now and Epiphany but plans to honor a small number of remaining commitments,” the statement said.
At Epiphany, the archbishop of Canterbury’s official functions will be delegated to Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell.
Welby had announced on Nov. 12 that he would be resigning after the publication of a report that concluded he took insufficient action in the case of one of the Church of England’s worst serial child abusers. British lawyer John Smyth committed “physical, sexual, psychological and spiritual attacks” on young victims he met in the late 1970s and early ‘80s at youth camps tied to the Church of England, and later in Zimbabwe and South Africa.
The archbishop acknowledged that the investigative report “has exposed the long-maintained conspiracy of silence about the heinous abuses of John Smyth.”
Welby, 68, was scheduled to retire in January 2026, upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 70.
The date on which he formally ceases to hold office will be set in agreement with the United Kingdom’s Privy Council, the Lambeth statement said. Welby’s eventual successor will be named by King Charles III with advice of England’s prime minster, who also receives input from a 16-member Crown Appointments Commission.
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