Sarah Mullally has officially been confirmed as the Archbishop of Canterbury, three months after her historic appointment as the first woman to hold the position in the nearly 1,400-year history of the Church of England.
The confirmation ceremony took place on Wednesday at St Paul’s Cathedral in London. Speaking at the event, Mullally described the appointment as “an extraordinary and humbling privilege.”
“With God’s help, I will seek to guide Christ’s flock with calmness, consistency and compassion,” she said, emphasising the importance of such leadership in “times of division and uncertainty for our fractured world.”
READ ALSO: Mullaly Named First Female Archbishop of Church Of England
The service was marked by a celebration of global Anglican traditions, reflecting the church’s diverse congregation. Hymns were performed by the St Paul’s Cathedral choir, a Xhosa South African chant was included, and a student delivered a reading in both English and Portuguese, the primary language of the Anglican provinces of Mozambique and Angola, with which the Diocese of London maintains pastoral links.
The Church of England had been without a leader for nearly a year following the resignation of Archbishop Justin Welby, who stepped down after failing to report a prolific child abuser. Mullally was announced as his successor last October.
Before her appointment to the church’s highest office, Mullally had a distinguished career in nursing, working in London hospitals and rising to become England’s chief nursing officer and director of patient experience in the National Health Service.
She now becomes the spiritual leader of 85 million Anglicans worldwide. Her formal installation is scheduled for March.
