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Dame Sarah Mullally has been appointed as the new Archbishop of Canterbury designate - making history as the first woman to be picked for this significant position.

A former NHS chief nurse, the 63-year-old became a priest in 2006 and was named as the first female Bishop of London in 2018 - occupying the third highest position of religious leadership in the Church of England.

This signifies the initial occasion in almost five centuries of history that the Church has nominated a female to lead it.

Historic Selection

The Anglican Church has been lacking an individual in the senior role for approximately twelve months after Justin Welby stepped down over a protection controversy.

He stepped down following a damning report into a prolific child abuser associated with the religious institution. The investigation found that he "could and should" have reported the misconduct by John Smyth of boys and young men to police in 2013.

Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell took on most of Mr Welby's responsibilities in an interim move, and was among those casting ballots of the committee tasked with choosing his successor.

Political Procedure

Following established custom, the procedure of choosing a spiritual leader involves a name being presented to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and then forwarded to the monarch.

Sir Keir has welcomed Dame Sarah's appointment, stating: "The Archbishop of Canterbury will serve an important function in our country's affairs. I wish her every success and look forward to collaborating."

While, technically, the monarch is head of the Anglican Church, the individual holding the position of Archbishop of Canterbury is the highest-ranking cleric and is the religious guide of the religious institution and the global Anglican community.

Royal and Global Reaction

The monarch has praised the new Archbishop on her appointment, "a position of great significance in the UK and across the global Anglican Communion", Buckingham Palace stated.

The Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans, which advocates for traditional positions, has criticised the selection, saying that although some will welcome it, "most members of the global church still believes that the scriptures requires a all-male bishopric."

Transition Period

She does not legally take on her new role until a formal approval process in January, and an installation ceremony comes later, after they have paid homage to the monarch.

In a statement on the announcement day after her new role was confirmed, she said: "I recognize this is a significant undertaking but I approach it with a sense of peace and trust in God to support me as He always has."

Addressing media at the historic church, she noted that "in an age that seeks absolute answers and tribalism, Anglicanism provides a more subtle approach but more resilient."

Responding to Attack

Talking about the "terrible attack" of Thursday's attack on a Jewish house of worship in Manchester, she said "we are witnessing hatred that rises up through fractures across our society."

She added: "We then as a Church have a duty to be a group who stand with the Jewish community against antisemitism in all its forms. Hatred and racism of any kind cannot be permitted to divide our society."

Background and Career

Married with two children, she devoted more than three decades in the National Health Service, achieving the position of the most junior person to serve as chief nurse for England in 1999.

While serving voluntarily in the Church at the period, it was just a short time after that she chose to enter a priest and was promptly assigned helping implement changes in the way the institution addressed abuse.

In 2012 she became canon treasurer at Salisbury Cathedral before assuming the role of diocesan leader in the diocese of Exeter in 2015.

As Bishop of London she was seen as someone who used her experience as an NHS administrator to help update the diocese.

Personal Philosophy

"People frequently inquire what it has been like to have had different professional paths, first in the health service and currently in the religious institution.

"I prefer to think that I have consistently maintained one vocation: to pursue Christian faith, to know him and to share his message, always seeking to live with compassion in the assistance to people, whether as a nurse, a priest, or a bishop."

Upcoming Responsibilities

Possibly the most urgent thing in her in-tray is still to chart a better path towards addressing misconduct and approaching with greater empathy those affected by it.

There has also been a decline in church attendance, though London has to a degree resisted this pattern.

One of the areas she has been particularly vocal on is assisted dying - she is a strong critic, as was her predecessor.

When legislation was passed in the Commons, she described it as "unworkable and unsafe and poses a risk to the most vulnerable people in our society."

Modern Positions

One of her roles as Bishop of London was to lead a body trying to guide the religious institution's determination on whether to bless same-sex marriages.

She described the decision to finally allow clergy to bless same-sex couples in last year as "a moment of hope for the Church."

A former Archbishop, described her new role as requiring a "awareness of current affairs and a Bible in the other."

The former spiritual leader told journalists "the expectation of having an opinion on everything is significantly demanding."