First Female Archbishop of Canterbury to be Sworn in With Modern Bible, The Saint John's Bible Heritage Edition

The installation of Archbishop Sarah Mullally as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury on March 25, 2026, represents a historic moment for the Church of England and the worldwide Anglican Communion, not only as she becomes the first woman to hold the position but also due to a significant change in the ceremonial Bible used for the swearing-in oath. For the first time since 1945, the service will not utilize the 6th-century Augustine Gospels, a fragile relic associated with St. Augustine, the first Archbishop of Canterbury, which resides at Corpus Christi College in Cambridge and is not easily moved. Instead, Canterbury Cathedral has chosen to use its Heritage Edition of The Saint John's Bible to honor this landmark occasion.

Described as a Bible for the 21st century, The Saint John's Bible is notable as the first hand-scribed, illuminated manuscript commissioned by a Benedictine monastery since the invention of the printing press over five hundred years ago. The original manuscript was created under the artistic direction of Donald Jackson, former senior scribe to Her Majesty The Queen Elizabeth II's Crown Office at the House of Lords, and it intentionally blends ancient scribal traditions with modern artistic themes and interpretations. During the installation service, the Bible will be open to the beginning of Luke 1 on the Nave altar, and Archbishop Mullally will lay her hand upon it as she takes her oath of office.

The specific volume to be used is a Heritage Edition, a fine art facsimile of which only 299 exist worldwide. Canterbury Cathedral blessed and dedicated its copy on November 11, 2023, a gift made possible by Elaine and Bruce Culver. The Cathedral further personalized this edition with a special bookmark crafted in March 2024 by Dr. Alyson Osterloh, a retired physician and member of the cathedral's Holy Stitchers group, using textiles found in the Cathedral Sewing Room. In a related development, an even rarer Apostles Edition of The Saint John's Bible, of which only twelve were produced, was gifted to Lambeth Palace on November 8, 2023, and now resides in the Lambeth Palace Library, available for public viewing. The original 1,150-page manuscript resides at the Hill Museum & Manuscript Library on the Saint John's University campus.

The decision to use The Saint John's Bible carries profound symbolic weight. It moves the ceremony away from reliance on an ancient, stationary artifact to the incorporation of a modern work that itself is a conscious revival of medieval manuscript tradition, yet created for and reflective of the contemporary world. This shift underscores the historic nature of installing the first female Archbishop while also signaling a church engaging with its heritage in a living, dynamic way. The service will be accessible to a global audience, as the Church of England plans to livestream it on March 25, 2026. For those interested in learning more about the project, additional information is available at https://saintjohnsbible.org.