By the end of Monday, Justin Welby will have symbolically laid down his ceremonial staff and renounced his role as Archbishop of Canterbury.
Having spent little time in public since his resignation, Welby is expected to spend his final day leading the Church of England privately from his London base at Lambeth Palace.
His duties will then primarily pass to the Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, until a permanent successor is named, a process expected to last several months.
It comes as the Church is debating many important changes, including safeguarding, the issue linked to Mr Welby’s resignation and which has led to questions about Mr Cottrell.
On Monday, the feast of the Epiphany in the Christian calendar, Welby will attend two services at Lambeth Palace, a lunchtime Eucharist and a Vespers later in the day.
Although his office has not revealed who will join him at these services, he is expected to lay down his staff at the evening event and then formally end his term as archbishop at midnight.
mr welby resigned over Church’s handling of sadistic abuserJohn Smyth, who according to a recently published report perpetrated brutal sexual, physical and mental abuse against more than 120 children and young people since the late 1970s.
The report said Welby had “private and ethical responsibility” and that he “could and should have done more” in the case.
After initially resisting calls for him to resign, he resigned on November 12, saying he did so “with sadness for all victims and survivors of abuse.”
But in early December, abuse victims reacted with “disgust” to a brief farewell speech Welby made in the House of Lords, in which he made jokes. Welby apologized the next day.
Welby did not deliver a Christmas Day sermon at Canterbury Cathedral or broadcast a New Year’s message, as he would usually do via the BBC.
Lambeth Palace said he would not give any interviews before leaving his post, which he will do on his 69th birthday on Monday. He leaves office exactly one year earlier than expected.
From midnight on Monday, some of his duties in London will be carried out by the Bishop of London, Sarah Mullally, and those of his diocese of Canterbury, by the Bishop of Dover, Rose Hudson-Wilkin.
Most of his responsibilities will be carried out by Cottrell, who has also faced calls to resign over his handling of an abuse case.
Last month, a BBC investigation revealed that in 2010, days after becoming bishop of Chelmsford, Cottrell was told of multiple historical allegations of sexual abuse against a priest in his charge, David Tudor.
They also told him that the Church and the local council had prohibited Tudor from being left alone with the children.
Cottrell said in a statement: “The situation with David Tudor was a horrible situation to live in and manage.”
“I want victims and survivors to know that everything possible was done to understand, assess and manage risk,” he continued.
But under Cottrell, Tudor had his contract renewed twice in the senior role of area dean and in 2015 he was appointed honorary canon of Chelmsford Cathedral.
Tudor was not suspended until 2019, when a new police investigation was launched. Archbishop Cottrell says he acted as soon as he could legally do so.
Although he will take over Mr Welby’s duties, Mr Cottrell will continue to reside at Bishopthorpe Palace in North Yorkshire. He is expected to be the de facto leader of the Church of England until at least the summer.
The 17-member panel that will select the next archbishop of Canterbury has not yet been formalised. For the first time it will include five members of the Anglican Church abroad.
This tumultuous period for Church leadership comes at a time of threats that could fracture the Church both at home and abroad.
Nationally, the issue of blessings for same-sex unions has generated acrimony between different factions within the Church.
Although the option for clergy members to perform such blessings was approved in a vote at their national assembly, many remain vehemently opposed to such a move, believing it goes against the fundamental teachings of the Church.
But, conversely, some have been upset that no steps have been taken towards full marriage equality in the Church of England, giving gay couples the same rights in the Church as heterosexual couples.
Work is currently underway to decide what form a same-sex union blessing in the Church might take, and some progressives are concerned that turmoil at the top of the institution could help derail that.
Similar concerns have been raised about work on racial justice and climate action, work that was being promoted by the Archbishops of Canterbury and York.
