THE 133rd Bishop of London, the Rt Revd Sarah Mullally, bade an emotional farewell to her diocese at the weekend. The sung eucharist in St Paul’s Cathedral was an intimate occasion, given several personal touches.
Bishop Mullally, the Archbishop of Canterbury-elect, was installed in St Paul’s in May 2018 (News, 17 May 2018). Reflecting on her episcopate, she said in her sermon on Saturday afternoon: “In my eight years among you, I have prayed with you, laughed with you, wept for you in your times of struggle, and sought to support your unique ministries. And, where I have seen you do this for one another — especially reaching out across your different traditions — I have rejoiced.”
She thanked her diocese for having “shaped me into the priest and the person I am today. If it were not for you and all that you have taught me, I would not be going to Canterbury.”
But it was also a time for humility. “We have, in the past eight years, grown together in wisdom. It has not always been easy. I have not always got everything right. You have challenged me, and I think and act differently now because of some of those challenges.”
Bishop Mullaly said that she was “grateful that you have taught me that our strength lies in our diversity, in our willingness to see Christ uniquely reflected in each person, in having the humility to receive the gift of one another even when we deeply disagree”. This echoed an earlier and eirenic note that, despite tackling “one another’s mistakes or misunderstandings . . . we should not seek to harm or destroy one another in the process. We should not deliberately shame one another.”
The service, with incense and Bob Chilcott’s A Little Jazz Mass, included a new anthem by Sarah MacDonald. The music set Bishop Mullally’s own words, from her announcement speech last October in Canterbury Cathedral (News, 3 October 2025): “I trust not in myself alone, but in God who guides us all. May we be bold in hope, generous in spirit, and steadfast in love, as we serve Christ and one another.” The composer is President of the Royal College of Organists and Director of Music at Selwyn College, Cambridge.
Several Victorian hymns or hymn translations — including “Christ is made the sure Foundation”, “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty”, “Alleluya, sing to Jesus”, and “Thy hand, O God, has guided” — gave the large congregation an opportunity to express their own gratitude and joy. Representatives from different parts of the diocese, both clerical and lay, led the prayers of intercession. Thanks were offered “for the faithful ministry of Bishop Sarah”, together with prayer for “grace, patience, and renewed strength as she prepares to become the Archbishop of Canterbury”.
After the blessing, the choir sang Judith Bingham’s setting of verses from Psalm 133 — an anthem commissioned for the 2018 installation service — as Bishop Mullally went in procession with the area bishops and cathedral clergy to the high altar. She surrendered the diocesan crosier, and her mitre and chasuble were removed by her colleagues. Taking up her personal crosier, she then proceeded the full length of the cathedral to the font for further prayer and the dismissal.
It is more than 80 years since London sent a bishop to the see of Canterbury: that was Geoffrey Fisher, in 1945. He served in London for six years, and was Archbishop for 16 years.
Bishop Mullally will return to St Paul’s for the confirmation, on 28 January, of her election. Then she will make the short journey to what will soon be her old home as Her Grace, the 106th and first female Archbishop of Canterbury.
