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The 63-year-old former NHS chief nurse has been named as the incoming spiritual leader of the Church of England - creating a milestone as the initial female to be selected for this significant position.

A former NHS chief nurse, the sixty-three-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 clergy in the Anglican Church.

This represents the first time in almost five centuries of history that the Anglican Communion has nominated a woman to lead it.

Historic Selection

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

He departed following a critical investigation into a prolific child abuser linked to the Church. The report found that he "could and should" have notified authorities about the misconduct by John Smyth of male youths to police in 2013.

The Archbishop of York assumed most of Mr Welby's duties in an interim move, and was one of the voting members of the committee tasked with choosing his replacement.

Official Procedure

In line with tradition, the process of selecting a new archbishop involves a candidate being given to the Prime Minister and then passed to the sovereign.

Sir Keir has welcomed the selection of Dame Sarah, stating: "This position will serve an important function in our national life. I wish her every success and anticipate collaborating."

While, technically, the monarch is head of the Anglican Church, the individual occupying the position of Archbishop of Canterbury is the highest-ranking cleric and is the spiritual leader of the Church and the global Anglican community.

Monarchical and Global Response

King Charles III has congratulated the new Archbishop on her new role, "which is of such importance in the United Kingdom and across the global Anglican Communion", the royal household stated.

The international conservative Anglican group, which represents conservative views, has questioned the appointment, stating that although some will welcome it, "the majority of the Anglican Communion still maintains that the scriptures requires a male-only episcopacy."

Transition Period

She does not legally take on her new role until a confirmation of election in the new year, and an installation ceremony comes later, after they have pledged allegiance to the monarch.

In a declaration on the announcement day after her new role was confirmed, she said: "I recognize this is a huge responsibility but I undertake it with a sense of peace and trust in God to carry me as He always has."

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

Addressing Violence

Talking about the "terrible attack" of the previous day's incident on a Jewish house of worship in the northern city, she said "we observe hatred that rises up through divisions across our communities."

She continued: "We then as a Church have a responsibility to be a group who support the Jewish community against antisemitism in all its forms. Prejudice and discrimination of any kind cannot be permitted to divide our society."

Professional History

A mother of two, she devoted more than three decades in the NHS, becoming the most junior person to serve as chief nurse for England in 1999.

While serving voluntarily in the Church at the time, it was just a few years later that she decided to become a clergy member and was promptly assigned helping implement changes in the way the organization addressed abuse.

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

As London's religious leader she was seen as someone who used her experience as an health service manager to help update the church district.

Guiding Principles

"I am often asked what it has been like to have had two careers, first in the health service and now in the Church.

"I like to consider that I have consistently maintained a single calling: to pursue Christian faith, to know him and to make him known, continually striving to live with compassion in the service of others, whether as a nurse, a religious leader, or a bishop."

Future Challenges

Possibly the most urgent thing in her agenda is still to chart a better path towards dealing with abuse and approaching with greater empathy those impacted by such incidents.

There has also been a decline in church attendance, though London has to some extent bucked that trend.

A particular subject she has been most outspoken about is assisted dying - she is a strong critic, as was her preceding Archbishop.

When the law was approved in the Commons, she characterized it as "unworkable and unsafe and poses a risk to the most vulnerable people in our community."

Modern Positions

One of her roles as London's religious leader was to chair a committee trying to guide the religious institution's determination on whether to sanction gay unions.

She characterized the determination to finally allow priests to bless same-sex couples in last year as "a moment of hope for the religious community."

A former Archbishop, described her position as necessitating a "newspaper in one hand and a understanding of scripture."

Dr Williams told journalists "the expectation of having an opinion on everything is quite heavy."