The Rt Revd and Rt Hon Dame Sarah Mullally, Bishop of London, appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
The Rt Revd and Rt Hon Dame Sarah Mullally, Bishop of London, appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
She was installed as Bishop of London in 2018 - the first woman to be appointed to the office, as well as Dean of the Chapels Royal, and her appointment as the new Archbishop of Canterbury is another historic occasion.
Bishop Sarah said:
“As I respond to the call of Christ to this new ministry, I do so in the same spirit of service to God and to others that has motivated me since I first came to faith as a teenager.
“At every stage of that journey, through my nursing career and Christian ministry, I have learned to listen deeply – to people and to God’s gentle prompting – to seek to bring people together to find hope and healing.
“I want, very simply, to encourage the Church to continue to grow in confidence in the Gospel, to speak of the love that we find in Jesus Christ and for it to shape our actions.
“And I look forward to sharing this journey of faith with the millions of people serving God and their communities in parishes all over the country and across the global Anglican Communion. “I know this is a huge responsibility but I approach it with a sense of peace and trust in God to carry me as He always has.”
Speaking to visitors to St Paul's as the news was announced, our Dean, The Very Revd Andrew Tremlett said:
"This is wonderful news not only for the Church of England, but also for the global Anglican Communion, some 100 million Christians across all continents, who trace their roots to Augustine’s mission to England, becoming the first Archbishop of Canterbury in 597. Bishop Sarah will become the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury.
"Here at St Paul’s where Bishop Sarah has her episcopal stall – her ‘cathedra’ – we are immensely proud to receive this news, as she will be such a gift to the wider nation. And in the year that girls took their place fully in the Choir of St Paul’s, there is a wonderful symmetry in the appointment of our first female Archbishop of Canterbury."
Bishop Sarah will be installed in a service at Canterbury Cathedral in March 2026. In January 2026, there will be a Confirmation of Election here at St Paul's, at which Bishop Sarah will legally become the Archbishop of Canterbury.
