Justin Welby

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Justin Welby (1956–) is the Archbishop of Canterbury, and therefore senior bishop of the Church of England and head of the Anglican Communion. This is a relatively clean job by his standards as he worked for 11 years for the Oil Industry before he felt a call to become a priest. It's arguable whether his neighbours improved after that; he was ordained through Holy Trinity Brompton, the church that came up with the Alpha Course. He announced his resignation on November 12, 2024 after a report into the abuses of boys and young men by the Evangelical Christian John Smyth criticized him.

History

He was born in 1956 and went to Eton College, and Cambridge University to study history and law. After graduating he joined the Oil Industry, excavating Africa and the North Sea, and spending five of those years as first a derivatives trader then Treasurer for Enterprise Oil. He resigned from this post in 1989 to be ordained.

He was first rejected for ordination and told he had no future within the Church of England. He studied Theology at Durham University to become a priest.

He considered his application for Archbishop of Canterbury to be a joke and was ordered to apply after being a bishop for only seven months.

Positions

Homophobia and condoning the abuse of boys

Justin Welby opposes gay marriage and has voted and spoken against it in the House of Lords. He fully understands and accepts that the homophobia displayed in his actions is seen as "akin to racism" and also in his words "the vast majority of people under 35 not only think that what we’re saying is incomprehensible but also think that we’re plain wrong and wicked and equate it to racism and other forms of gross injustice." In an effort to shore up the opposition to gay marriage, he told people not to be afraid of "incoherence and inconsistency". But despite doing whatever he could to continue legal discrimination he has told Evangelical Christians to repent over their attitude to homosexuality.

His reasoning for opposing gay marriage appear to come close to being kettle logic. His justifications have included:

• We should stick to traditional marriage and not redefine marriage and not challenge the authority of scripture.
• Allowing gay couples to marry would weaken the fabric of society.
• African homophobes will kill Christians in Africa if the Church of England marries gay people. He claims to have been at a grave with 369 bodies due to this - and claims causation.

In the case the abusive Evangelical Christian John Smyth, who beat at least 130 boys and young men in his charge in England and Africa, Welby knew about Smyth's abhorrent behavior from at least 2013, but did nothing, and barely anything substantial after the allegations became public in 2017. A report released on November 7, 2024 found senior figures in the Church, including Welby, had not investigated Smyth or had covered up the abuse. Welby has denied knowing anything definitive years earlier about Smyth's actions; the two men were associates from the late 1970s onwards. He announced his resignation on November 12, 2024.

Payday Loans

Shortly after he became Archbishop, Justin Welby decided to try to find a moral cause for the Church of England to tackle. So he chose the payday loan company Wonga.com, and claimed that the Church would put them out of business. It didn't take long for investigative journalists to discover that the Church of England had invested in Wonga.com. And rather than continue with its attempt to challenge the payday loan company, the Church kept its stake so that it didn't have to sell at a loss. Almost a year later the CofE Ethical Investment Advisory Panel decided that investing in payday loans was fine.

The Church of England finally got rid of its stake in Wonga.com 50 weeks after Welby started the battle with them.

Poverty

Justin Welby believes poverty is a bad thing. He considers that the Food Banks currently needed are "a very sad fact that they’re there, but also it’s a great opportunity for the Church to demonstrate the love of Christ". He blames austerity for their being needed. He also believes that "As a civilised society, we have a duty to support those among us who are vulnerable and in need. ... It is essential that we have a welfare system that responds to need and recognises the rising costs of food, fuel and housing."