First female archbishop of Canterbury vows to call out misogyny | Anglicanism
Canterbury’s first female archbishop has marked her confirmation of the post by promising to speak out about misogyny, as questions remain about her record on safeguarding.
Sarah Mullally attended a service at St Paul’s Cathedral, which legally confirmed her as the 106th person to hold the role and the first woman in the role. Some African church leaders expressed concern about the appointment.
In an interview to celebrate her confirmation in the post, former head nurse Mullally said she had learned from experience the importance of calling out misogyny. He said: “It is fair to say that I have experienced misogyny from time to time, both in my secular role and in the church.”
He added that this needs to be discussed so it “needs to be clarified.”
Asked this week about misogyny in the church, she said: “I’m conscious that being in this role, it’s important for me to talk about it, because there are some who don’t have the status or power of this role and are more hesitant to do it.”
Mullally, who was previously bishop of London for eight years, said that “people in the church always understood that it might be difficult for me to be ordained as a woman.”
He added: “What I hope to do is to be able to provide a space where I can offer hospitality to people, listen to their concerns, and find a way that we can at least partner together in some sense in that way.”
Henry Ndukuba, archbishop of the Church of Nigeria, said the church was insensitive to “the faith of the majority of Anglicans who cannot embrace female headship in the diocese.”
Laurent Mbanda, archbishop of the Anglican church of Rwanda, said in a statement that “the majority of the Anglican Communion still believes that the Gospel requires a male-only diocese.”
Mullally has previously been open about his support for the approval of same-sex blessings in the church, but he appeared reticent in his new post to offer his personal view on independent blessing services for same-sex couples; This is also an issue on which the church is divided.
He said: “I think my role now as archbishop of Canterbury is to listen to what the synod has to say on this issue and to continue to maintain the space within the Church of England where there are different views on this issue.”
Mullally also promised that his record on security measures at the church would be open to scrutiny. His predecessor, Justin Welby, was forced to resign over the way he handled a security scandal.
Earlier this month, the church dismissed a complaint against Mullally over allegations that he colluded with an alleged abuser, the bishop of London, by showing her emails about alleged violations of the clergy’s rules. The complainant, who plans to appeal the decision, said he was unfit for office.
House of Survivors, a group that helps victims of church abuse, has called on the London diocese to undertake a listening exercise on safeguarding. In a post on XHe added: “Surprising @bishopSarah walked away leaving so much unaddressed, unresolved.”
Michelle Burns, safeguarding adviser to the former London diocese, accused the London diocese of promoting the reputation of alleged victims. One blog post“Until conservation is structurally independent of corporate self-interest, survivors will continue to bear the cost of corporate convenience,” he wrote.
