Sarah Mullally confirmed as archbishop of Canterbury, first woman to lead the Church of England

LONDON (AP) — Sarah Mullally walked into St. Paul’s Cathedral on Wednesday morning as the bishop of London. When she walked out in the afternoon as bells rang out, she was the spiritual leader of millions of Anglicans around the world.

Mullally, 63, became the archbishop of Canterbury, making her the first woman to lead the Church of England. The worldwide Anglican Communion, which includes the Episcopal Church in the U.S., has no formal head, but the archbishop traditionally has been seen as its spiritual leader.

As the choir sang an anthem by Edward Elgar, the cancer nurse turned cleric officially took up the responsibilities of her new job as bewigged judges presided over a legal ceremony confirming her appointment, which was announced almost four months ago.

As the lengthy process came to a close and her election was confirmed, Mullally stood and faced the congregation to loud applause.

“We welcome you,” the bishops surrounding her shouted in unison.

The so-called Confirmation of Election service marks a major milestone for the Church of England, which ordained its first female priests in 1994 and its first female bishop in 2015. The church traces its roots to the 16th century when the English church broke away from the Roman Catholic Church during the reign of King Henry VIII.

George Gross, an expert on theology and the monarchy at King’s College London, highlighted the church’s continuing divergence from the Catholic Church, which forbids women from being ordained as priests, much less as serving as the religion’s global spiritual leader.

“It is a big contrast,” Gross said. “And in terms of the position of women in society, this is a big statement.”

But Mullally’s appointment may deepen rifts within the Anglican Communion, whose 100 million members in 165 countries are deeply divided over issues such as the role of women and the treatment of LGBTQ people.

She will also have to confront concerns that the Church of England hasn’t done enough to stamp out the sexual abuse scandals that have dogged it for more than a decade.

Gafcon, a global organization of conservative Anglicans, says Mullally’s appointment is divisive because a majority of the Anglican Communion still believes only men should be bishops.

Rwandan Archbishop Laurent Mbanda, chairman of the Gafcon council of senior bishops, known as primates, also criticized Mullally’s support for the blessing of same-sex marriages.

“Since the newly appointed archbishop of Canterbury has failed to guard the faith and is complicit in introducing practices and beliefs that violate both the ‘plain and canonical sense’ of Scripture and `the Church’s historic and consensual’ interpretation of it, she cannot provide leadership to the Anglican Communion,” Mbanda said in October.

As part of the ceremony, a cleric announced that no one had raised legitimate opposition to Mullally’s confirmation. A heckler began shouting and was escorted from the cathedral.

The bishops declared that no objection had been made in a timely way and Mullally took her oath of allegiance to the British crown and the church.

Mullally replaces former Archbishop Justin Welby, who announced his resignation in November 2024, after he was criticized for failing to tell police about allegations of physical and sexual abuse by a volunteer at a church-affiliated summer camp.

She was nominated by a 17-member commission composed of clerics and lay people and her appointment was confirmed by King Charles III, who is the supreme governor of the church.

But there is still one more step in the long process of appointing the new archbishop.

On March 25 at Canterbury Cathedral, Mullally will be formally installed as bishop of the diocese of Canterbury in a ceremony marking the beginning of her new role. After that, her public-facing ministry begins.

Associated Press writer Brian Melley contributed.

The Confirmation of Election ceremony legally confirming Dame Sarah Mullally as the new Archbishop of Canterbury, at St Paul's Cathedral, central London, Wednesday Jan. 28, 2026. (Gareth Fuller/Pool via AP)

Sarah Mullally on the steps of St Paul's Cathedral, London, following the Confirmation of Election ceremony confirming her as archbishop of Canterbury, becoming the first woman to lead the Church of England, Wednesday Jan. 28 2026. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)

Sarah Mullally stands on the steps of St Paul's Cathedral, London, following the Confirmation of Election ceremony confirming her as archbishop of Canterbury, becoming the first woman to lead the Church of England, Wednesday Jan. 28 2026. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)

The Confirmation of Election ceremony legally confirming Dame Sarah Mullally as the new Archbishop of Canterbury, at St Paul's Cathedral, central London, Wednesday Jan. 28, 2026. (Gareth Fuller/Pool via AP)

The Confirmation of Election ceremony legally confirming Dame Sarah Mullally as the new Archbishop of Canterbury, at St Paul's Cathedral, central London, Wednesday Jan. 28, 2026. (Jeff Moore/Pool via AP)

The Confirmation of Election ceremony legally confirming Dame Sarah Mullally as the new Archbishop of Canterbury, at St Paul's Cathedral, central London, Wednesday Jan. 28, 2026. (Gareth Fuller/Pool via AP)

The Confirmation of Election ceremony legally confirming Dame Sarah Mullally as the new Archbishop of Canterbury, at St Paul's Cathedral, central London, Wednesday Jan. 28, 2026. (Gareth Fuller/Pool via AP)

Dame Sarah Mullally, center right, ahead of her Confirmation of Election ceremony legally confirming her as the new Archbishop of Canterbury, at St Paul's Cathedral, central London, Wednesday Jan. 28, 2026. (Gareth Fuller/Pool via AP)

The Confirmation of Election ceremony legally confirming Dame Sarah Mullally as the new Archbishop of Canterbury, at St Paul's Cathedral, central London, Wednesday Jan. 28, 2026. (Jeff Moore/Pool via AP)

Dame Sarah Mullally ahead of her Confirmation of Election ceremony legally confirming her as the new Archbishop of Canterbury, at St Paul's Cathedral, central London, Wednesday Jan. 28, 2026. (Gareth Fuller/Pool via AP)

HUNTSVILLE, Texas (AP) — A Texas man who once escaped custody and spent three days on the run after being sentenced to death for fatally shooting his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend received a lethal injection Wednesday, becoming the first person executed in the United States this year.

Charles Victor Thompson, 55, was pronounced dead at 6:50 p.m. CST following the injection at the state penitentiary in Huntsville. He was condemned for the April 1998 shooting deaths of his ex-girlfriend, Glenda Dennise Hayslip, 39, and her new boyfriend, Darren Keith Cain, 30, at the woman's suburban Houston apartment.

In his final words, Thompson asked the families of his victims to find it in their hearts to forgive him, adding “that you can begin to heal and move past this.”

“There are no winners in this situation,” he said after a spiritual adviser prayed over him for about 3 minutes and shortly before a lethal dose of pentobarbital was administered. He said his execution “creates more victims and traumatizes more people 28 years later.”

“I’m sorry for what I did. I’m sorry for what happened, and I want to tell all of y’all, I love you and that keep Jesus in your life, keep Jesus first,” he added.

As the injection began taking effect, Thompson gasped loudly, then took about a dozen breaths that evolved into three snores. Then all movement ceased and he was pronounced dead 22 minutes later.

“He’s in hell,” one of the witnesses, Dennis Cain — whose son was killed — said after Thompson was declared dead by a physician.

“This chapter is closed,” Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare, whose office prosecuted the case, said after watching Thompson die. ”It was justice a long time coming."

According to court records, Hayslip and Darren Cain were dating when Thompson came to Hayslip’s apartment and began arguing with Cain around 3 a.m. the night of the killings. Police were called and told Thompson to leave the apartment complex. He returned three hours later and shot both Hayslip and Cain.

Cain died at the scene, and Hayslip died in a hospital a week later.“

About an hour before the scheduled 6 p.m. execution, the U.S. Supreme Court — without explanation — issued a brief order rejecting Thompson’s final appeal. On Monday, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles had denied Thompson’s request to commute his death sentence to a lesser penalty.

Thompson’s attorneys had argued in filings with the Supreme Court that he was not allowed to refute or confront the prosecution’s evidence that concluded Hayslip died from a gunshot wound to the face. Thompson’s attorneys argued that Hayslip actually died from flawed medical care she received after the shooting that resulted in severe brain damage sustained from oxygen deprivation following a failed intubation.

Prosecutors had said a jury had already rejected the claim by Thompson and decided under state law he was responsible for Hayslip’s death because it “would not have occurred but for his conduct.”

Hayslip’s family had filed a lawsuit against one of her doctors, alleging that medical negligence during her treatment left her brain-dead. A jury in 2002 found in favor of the doctor.

Thompson had his original death sentence overturned and a new punishment trial was held in November 2005. A jury again ordered him to die by lethal injection.

Shortly after being resentenced, Thompson escaped from the Harris County Jail in Houston by walking out the front door virtually unchallenged by deputies. He later told The Associated Press that after meeting with his attorney in a small interview cell, he slipped out of his handcuffs and orange jail jumpsuit and left the room, which was unlocked. Thompson waived an ID badge fashioned out of his prison ID card to get past several deputies.

“I got to smell the trees, feel the wind in my hair, grass under my feet, see the stars at night. It took me straight back to childhood being outside on a summer night,” Thompson said of his time on the run, speaking with AP in a 2005 interview. He was arrested in Shreveport, Louisiana, while trying to arrange for wire transfers of money from overseas so he could make it to Canada.

Texas has historically held more executions than any other state though Florida had the most in 2025 with 19. The next execution in the U.S. is scheduled to be the Feb. 10 lethal injection of Ronald Palmer Health, who was convicted of killing a traveling salesman during a 1989 robbery in the Gainesville area of that state.

Lozano reported from Houston. Follow Juan A. Lozano: https://x.com/juanlozano70

This photo provided by Texas Department of Criminal Justice. shows Texas death row inmate Charles Victor Thompson. (Texas Department of Criminal Justice via AP)