News
Archbishop Justin Welby, leader of the Church of England. – Photo courtesy UWI
THE Archbishop of Canterbury will receive an honorary degree from UWI during a special visit to Jamaica on July 20.
In a news release on July 17, UWI said the Most Rev Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, is set to receive an honorary doctor of laws (LLD) degree during a special convocation ceremony that will coincide with his visit from July 18-21 to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the establishment of the Diocese of Jamaica and the Cayman Islands.
The ceremony will be held at the E Nigel Harris Council Room at the university in Kingston.
The release said UWI is honouring Welby for his contribution to reparations and reparative justice.
“Welby, the symbol and unifying head of the Anglican Community located across 165 nations worldwide, has played a key role in leading the Church of England and the Anglican Communion in engaging in discourse and affirmative action that seeks to address slavery’s evils and the need for promoting healing, empowerment, and reconciliation.”
Welby was ordained in 1992. His first 15 years were spent serving in the Coventry diocese, often in areas with significant deprivation. In 2002, he was ordained a canon of Coventry Cathedral, which led to his work in international reconciliation. During this time, he worked extensively in Africa and the Middle East.
He has publicly addressed the transatlantic slave trade, saying the underlying mindsets and attitudes that led to transatlantic chattel slavery still exist today. These mindsets include the belief that it is acceptable to commodify, exploit, and harm people in order for a few to benefit.
Welby has said, “These attitudes continue to negatively impact the lives of millions of people of African descent as well as people from other communities and ethnicities around the world.”
Commenting on the conferral, Welby said, “It is such a privilege to receive this honour at UWI during my visit to Jamaica. As a university with social justice as part of its core mission, UWI is at the forefront of the global reparatory justice movement – and I am humbled to be awarded this honorary doctorate. As a church we stand on the shoulders of giants in this field, and much of the credit must go to the researchers, academics and the independent Oversight Group, who have helped to inform our approach and guide us to this point in time. Transatlantic chattel slavery was and has always been blasphemy, and I pray that we will continue our work to create a fairer future in the spirit of deep repentance for this egregious wrong. I thank Prof Sir Hilary Beckles, along with the faculty and staff at UWI for hosting us, and look forward to learning more about the invaluable work they are doing in this field.”
UWItv will broadcast the proceedings live via its website www.uwitv.global, Facebook page www.facebook.com/UWItv and cable TV Channels on Flow.
