The former Archbishop of Canterbury, who quit over how he handled allegations about the serial abuser John Smyth, has told the BBC he forgives him.
In an interview with Laura Kuenssberg, Justin Welby acknowledged that whether or not he forgave Smyth was “to a large extent irrelevant”.
He said the matter of forgiveness should be spoken about once survivors were “sufficiently loved by the Church” and “enabled, liberated to rebuild their lives”.
Smyth targeted around 100 boys and young men in the UK and Africa over many years.
