A New Chapter: First Female Archbishop of Canterbury Sworn In Using Modern Bible

In a historic moment that bridges ancient tradition with contemporary significance, the Most Rev. Dame Sarah Mullally installed Wednesday as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury—the first woman to hold the office—she took her oath using a modern Bible, breaking a nearly 60-year tradition. For decades, Archbishops have been sworn in using the 6th-century Augustine Gospels, a cherished relic believed to have belonged to St. Augustine, the first Archbishop of Canterbury. However, those fragile texts, housed at Corpus Christi College in Cambridge, have become too delicate to transport. To honor both the gravity of the occasion and the historic nature of installing the first female archbishop, Canterbury Cathedral has instead chosen The Saint John’s Bible Heritage Edition—a stunning, hand-illustrated manuscript described as a Bible “for the 21st century.” Created by Donald Jackson, former senior scribe to the late Queen Elizabeth II, it stands as the first hand-scribed, illuminated manuscript commissioned by a Benedictine monastery since the invention of the printing press over 500 years ago.

During the installation service, the Bible will be opened to the beginning of Luke’s Gospel on the Nave altar as Archbishop Mullally places her hand upon it to take her oath. The Heritage Edition is one of only 299 facsimiles in existence, blessed and dedicated at Canterbury Cathedral in 2023, and features a special bookmark crafted from textiles discovered in the cathedral’s sewing room. A more rare Apostles Edition was gifted to Lambeth Palace that same year and is available for public viewing at the Lambeth Palace Library. The choice of this modern illuminated manuscript—blending ancient craftsmanship with contemporary themes—symbolizes a Church navigating between its deep historical roots and a future marked by historic firsts. As Mullally steps into her role as the spiritual leader of the Church of England and the worldwide Anglican Communion, the Bible beneath her hand speaks not only to the weight of tradition but to the unfolding of a new chapter, both for the office she assumes and for the sacred text that continues to guide it.