President Museveni welcomes Justin Welby, the 105th archbishop of Canterbury and the most senior bishop in the Church of England at State House in 2020. He was to officiate at the consecration and enthronement of Bishop Samuel Stephen Kazimba Mugalu, the 9th Archbishop of the Church of Uganda. PHOTO/ COURTESY OF MUSEVENI’S X HANDLE
The former Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, was loved and scorned in equal measure. While some admired him for taking a stand on allowing the clergy to bless same-sex relations, some conservative Anglican churches around the world detested him for backing the move, terming it as an unforgivable sin.
Back home, the developments forced the Church of Uganda in 2023 to break away from Canterbury as well as cease recognising the authority of Welby for failing to uphold the biblical teaching on marriage and family.
The Church has always been against same-sex marriages in the country and even strongly praised the passing of the Anti-gay law, which has penalties for people engaged in same-sex activities.
The penalties include an over 10-year jail sentence. The law, however, kicked up a diplomatic storm, straining Uganda’s relations with donors and opened up the country to both scrutiny and condemnation by rights groups across the world.
Although the breakaway from the Church of England implied that the Church of Uganda would stop taking into consideration the decisions made at Canterbury, which is the seat of the Anglican Church worldwide, Church of Uganda might now re-consider its decision following a November 12 public announcement of Welby’s resignation.
Although Welby faults himself for mishandling the scandals surrounding child abuser John Smyth, a misstep that compelled him to resign, the Anglican community in Uganda, on the other hand, is happier that a Church leader who backed same-sex relationships has stepped down Terming him as a man of controversy, the Retired West Ankole Diocesan Bishop Yona Mwesigwa Katoneene told Monitor on Wednesday that Welby’s resignation came at the right time because he was no longer respected in Uganda’s Anglican circles because of his stand on same-sex relationships.
“He was not a homosexual himself but accommodated it, calling it a question of human rights by even presiding over a Synod [composed of Bishops, clergy and lay people] which endorsed it. He was a man of controversy who never took into consideration the authenticity of the scriptures,” Mr Katoneene said.
Like its leaders, a section of Christians who subscribe to the ideologies of the Anglican faith also rejected Welby’s teachings following his approval of blessing same-sex same unions.
“I used to follow his sermons shared on different media platforms but following his stand on these unions, I stopped listening to him,” Mr Ernest Musoke said, adding: “I only listen to leaders who subscribe to my ideologies including those who approve to marriages between a man and woman, not vice-versa.”
The church sex abuse scandal Welby’s failure to address child abuse allegations perpetrated by Smyth was another brewing point of controversy during his years of service from 2013 to 2024. Smyth was a Canadian-born barrister, who doubled as an evangelist and organised Christian camps in African countries like South Africa and Zimbabwe.
Boys and young men who attended the camps accused Smyth of sexually and physically abusing them. With such a scandal hitting the
church, it is said had Welby handled the matter sooner after becoming aware of it in 2013, Smyth would have been earlier apprehended for his reported crimes. Smyth died in 2018.
For failing to address these address child allegations, Archbishop of the Church of Uganda Stephen Samuel Kaziimba yesterday welcomed Welby’s resignation.
“It grieves us deeply that so many people suffered from the continued abuse of John Smyth over many years simply because the church’s leadership covered up the abuse, did not uphold the moral teaching of the Bible and the church, and failed to defend the vulnerable,” Archbishop Kaziimba said.
He added: “Unfortunately, this is the same compromised leadership that has led to the fabric of the Anglican Communion being torn at its deepest level.”
Other notable Anglican religious leaders have backed the Archbishop’s statement, acknowledging that a lot would be left at stake for the Church if Welby did not step down. Reports say Welby had declined to resign but finally made the decision following global mounting
pressure.
Quick facts about Welby
- He is 68 years of age l On March 21, 2013, he was enthroned as the Archbishop of Canterbury
- He has officiated the renowned public functions, including the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom. Welby also officiated over the marriage of Prince Harry, a grand son to Queen Elizabeth II. Harry married Meghan Markle on May 19, 2018, a ceremony that was showcased worldwide.
- On November 12, he announced his resignation as the Archbishop of Canterbury following a report criticising him over mishandling of the case of child abuser John Smyth. The resignation followed pressure directed towards him to step down.
