ENGLAND, UK – The Church of England has appointed Dame Sarah Mullally as Archbishop of Canterbury designate, making her the first woman to be chosen for the role in nearly 500 years of history.
The 63-year-old former NHS chief nurse, who became the first female Bishop of London in 2018, will succeed Justin Welby, who resigned last year following a damning safeguarding scandal. His departure left the Church’s highest office vacant for almost a year.
Speaking at Canterbury Cathedral on Friday after her appointment was confirmed, Dame Sarah said she accepted the role with “a sense of peace and trust in God,” adding that in a divided world, “Anglicanism offers something quieter but stronger.”
She used her first public remarks to condemn Thursday’s deadly attack on a Manchester synagogue, declaring: “We as a Church have a responsibility to stand with the Jewish community against antisemitism in all its forms. Hatred and racism of any kind cannot be allowed to tear us apart.”
Breaking barriers in the Church
Dame Sarah’s rise marks a watershed moment for the Church of England, which first ordained women priests in 1994 and consecrated its first female bishops only a decade ago.
Her appointment is subject to a formal confirmation in January, followed by an enthronement service after homage to King Charles III.
The King, who is formally head of the Church, congratulated her on a role “of such importance in the UK and across the global Anglican Communion,” Buckingham Palace said.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer also welcomed her appointment, calling it “a key role in our national life.”
Not everyone has celebrated the decision. The Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans, which represents conservative voices in the Communion, said most Anglicans worldwide “still believe that the Bible requires a male-only episcopacy.”
A career of service
Before entering ministry, Dame Sarah had a distinguished 35-year career in healthcare, becoming the youngest-ever Chief Nursing Officer for England in 1999.
She was ordained in 2006 and quickly rose through the ranks of the Church, serving as Bishop of Crediton before moving to London.
As Bishop of London, she drew on her NHS leadership experience to modernise church structures, while also becoming a leading voice in debates on assisted dying, safeguarding, and same-sex blessings.
In 2023, she described the decision to allow priests to bless same-sex couples as “a moment of hope for the Church.”
Her most pressing task as Archbishop will be to restore confidence in the Church’s safeguarding structures after years of criticism, alongside reversing a long-term decline in church attendance.
Former Archbishop Rowan Williams described the challenge ahead as immense: “The expectation of having an opinion on everything is quite heavy,” he said, adding that the job often requires keeping “a newspaper in one hand and a Bible in the other.”
Dame Sarah, married with two children, insists her two careers are part of the same calling: “I prefer to think that I have always had one vocation: to follow Jesus Christ, to know him and to make him known — whether as a nurse, a priest, or a bishop.”
