Updated October 4, 2025 at 12:09 AM ChST
LONDON — Sarah Mullally has been named as the new Archbishop of Canterbury. She's the first woman ever chosen to lead the world's 85 million Anglicans. Her appointment was announced Friday by the Church of England and the U.K. government. She was elected by the College of Canons of Canterbury Cathedral, and approved by King Charles III.
Mullally, 63, is a former nurse and until today, was the Bishop of London. She's the fourth woman to be ordained as a bishop in the Church's history. She also sits in the House of Lords, the upper house of the United Kingdom's parliament. In 1999, she became the youngest person to be appointed as chief nursing officer for England.
In her 2018 opening sermon as Bishop of London, Mullally told the congregation that 105 years ago, suffragettes tried to detonate a bomb under the seat on which she been enthroned moments earlier.
"Let me reassure you I do not come carrying bombs — or perhaps not literal ones anyway!"
"But I am aware that as the first woman Bishop of London I am necessarily subversive — and it's a necessity I intend to embrace," she said at the time.
In a statement, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the U.S. Sean Rowe congratulated Mullally and welcomed the news of her appointment. "Bishop Sarah is known in the Church of England as a wise and steady leader, a faithful advocate for the leadership of women in the church, and a bishop who will be committed to safeguarding vulnerable people and victims of abuse," Rowe said.
Mullally replaces the former archbishop, Justin Welby, who announced his resignation in November. The Anglican Communion faces divisions over the treatment of women and LGBTQ people, and Mullally will have to confront concerns that church leaders haven't done enough to stamp out the sexual abuse scandals that have dogged the church for more than a decade.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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