The Chapter of Canterbury Cathedral - made up of 35
members including the Dean and canons representing clergy and laity in
the diocese of Canterbury - officially elected Bishop Justin Welby as
the 105th Archbishop of Canterbury yesterday, British daily The Telegraph reports.
According to the newspaper, all members of the
Chapter signed a formal notice to the Queen confirming the Bishop of
Durham as the new Archbishop.
Before the notice was signed, they celebrated the
new archbishop’s election in a half-hour ceremony that is more than a
millennium old.
The Telegraph writes that Bishop Welby’s nomination was announced in notices carrying the seal of the Cathedral, printed using a 19th century press. These were then attached to the church doors and one was left on the Archbishop’s currently empty throne.
The Dean of Canterbury Cathedral Reverend Dr
Robert Willis said Bishop Welby was seen as an evangelical and a
moderniser but was deeply attached to the Benedictine tradition.
“At the same time
he is someone who has led a different life, had a different career and
therefore an ease of language in helping people to understand what he is
saying…The greatest challenge is to listen and careful of response and
clear of response while there is such a maelstrom which expects a snap
answer,” he said.
Whilst Bishop Welby has been praised for his gift
for speaking simply and clearly in a society dominated by “sound-bites”,
- as Dr. Willis called them - The Telegraph points out that
Welby’s predecessor, Dr. Rowan Williams, recently admitted he had not
always “cracked” the art of communication.
Bishop Welby is to take over officially as
Archbishop of Canterbury at a separate ceremony in London next month and
will be enthroned in Canterbury in March, The Telegraph informs.