Eyes of the world on Canterbury as new Archbishop Justin Welby enthroned
Video: Kent witnesses a
big day in history
The Most Revd Justin Welby has been officially installed as the
105th Archbishop of Canterbury.
The congregation at the cathedral gathered for one of the
most important events in the Church of England calendar.
Bells rang out at 2pm - an hour ahead
of the start of the service, with VIPs arriving from 2.30pm at
the West Door.
Prince Charles and the Duchess of
Cornwall arrived 10 minutes before the start of proceedings.
The service included the Archbishop's
sermon, and a presentation of gifts.
Former prime minister Tony Blair and
leader of the opposition Ed Miliband are among the 2,000 guests
this afternoon.
The Archbishop during the
enthronement
The Archbishop of
Canterbury arrives at the start of the service
The order of service
The world's media start
to pitch up ahead of the enthronement
Protesters outside the
cathedral earlier today
Sara from Canterbury joined others at the Cathedral with her two
daughters Lucy and Daisy.
She said: “We took the day off school and work just to wander
down and see if we could catch a glimpse of him and Prince Charles
and maybe even the Prime Minister.
“It's important to come down and see it particularly as we live
in Canterbury and have this beautiful cathedral on our
doorstep.”
Kevin Garrett, Vicar of St Martin’s Church in Dover, had been
invited for the enthronement.
He said: "I was here for the previous one and I think it’s
a great occasion.”
“I’m very optimistic about this Archbishop, I think he’s got a
lot to offer. I like his pedigree.
"I hope he’ll be able to revive the church with vision and
challenges we can all rise to.”
Jacqui Bush from Canterbury said she was there to support the
Cathedral and hoped to catch a glimpse of the new Archbishop.
She said: “I’m hoping that he’ll modernise everything and will
be a bit more lenient.”
Meanwhile, more than a hundred protesters gathered outside
the cathedral to campaign against government cuts.
The service was captured by 19 TV cameras inside and
outside the Cathedral.
It has meant Queningate car park having to be shut since
Saturday to play host to a number of broadcast vans.
Cathedral spokesman Lisa Emanuel said: “In the 10 years since
the last enthronement, most electronic equipment has become much
smaller; but curiously the control vans used by the BBC for its
broadcasts have become larger, and now cannot drive into the
Precincts; so they will be based in the Queningate car park, with
cables snaking through the Precincts into the Cathedral.”
The ceremony had two parts, centering around special seats known
as thrones.
First, the Archbishop was installed on the Diocesan throne
recognising him as Bishop of the See of Canterbury - the oldest
diocese in the English church.
Then took a seat on the chair of St Augustine to take the title
as "Primate of All England" - the most senior bishop in the
country.
This second seat also represents the Archbishop's inauguration
as leader of the Anglican church across the world.
The choir sang a new anthem by Michael Berkeley CBE, which has
been written especially for the service and sets words from the
Rule of St Benedict.
Mrs Emanuel said before the ceremony: “Everybody at the
Cathedral is incredibly excited about the service. We have been
preparing for this day for months.
“The Cathedral has been dusted from top to bottom, which is not
easy when the ceiling is 82ft above ground, and preparations are
being put in place to make sure that every candle and flower is
where it should be.
“The organ has been tuned and the choristers are practising to
make sure that they are, as always, note perfect.”
"Everybody at the Cathedral is incredibly excited about the service. We have been preparing for this day for months" – Cathedral spokesman Lisa Emanuel
Other guests at the
service included leading politicians, bishops and archbishops from
the world-wide Anglican Communion.
Ballots have also been held so members of the regular
congregation, volunteers, and staff have a chance to attend the big
day.
City council spokesman Rob Davies said before the service: “The
council is working closely with the Cathedral, emergency services
and the City Centre Partnership to ensure the day is a success.
“Inevitably, a major event like this will bring some disruption
to the city, and the aim is to keep this to a minimum so that life
for residents, businesses and visitors can continue as normally as
possible.
“There are unlikely to be many opportunities to spot guests as
they arrive, so the advice is for people not to gather in the hope
of seeing some famous faces.”
20/03/13
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