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| - The leader of the worldwide Anglican communion on Thursday called on followers to acknowledge all aspects of the Church of England's past, both good and bad, as his new number two was sworn in. Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby said followers had to confront the church's troubling historical "baggage" as they looked to make a better future. The Church of England's highest-ranking cleric was speaking in a virtual ceremony to mark the formal election of Stephen Cottrell as the 98th Archbishop of York. The Church of England, established in 1534 after king Henry VIII's split from Roman Catholicism, last month apologised for its links to slavery, calling it a "source of shame". The apology came against a backdrop of anti-racism protests in Britain and across the world, sparked by the death during a US police arrest of an unarmed black man, George Floyd. Welby said the Church's past included both "saints and slave traders". "Living as Christians requires us to live not only in fellowship with Christians around the world but also with the Church throughout time," he said. "With the Church of England, we know that some of those bring baggage. We find saints and slave traders, the proud and prelatical, with the humble servant of the people. "They are part of us, of our inheritance, to be reformed, to be repented of, to be imitated." Churches across Britain have been shut since late March because of the coronavirus outbreak, forcing services to be held online. Restrictions are gradually being eased, but remain in place for large church services. Cottrell takes over from John Sentamu, who fled Idi Amin's Uganda and became one of Britain's leading voices against racial injustice, inner-city crime and deprivation. He was previously Bishop of Chelmsford in southeast England. phz/ar/spm
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