Archbishop renews commitment to £100m slavery fund

The Archbishop of Canterbury has renewed her commitment to a controversial £100m fund over the Church of England's role in the transatlantic slave trade, reports BBC News. Dame Sarah Mullally was speaking on a visit to Cape Coast Castle in Ghana where enslaved Africans were held before being trafficked to the Americas. She said touring the castle made her reflect on the crimes committed by the institution she leads. ‘We played a part in the transatlantic slave trade. That is clear. Part of the Christian belief in repentance is about action, so we are putting in place action to support those communities that feel the legacy of the slave trade,’ she added. The archbishop said she was 'deeply moved' by what she saw on her visit to Ghana This is Dame Sarah's first pastoral visit to Africa since being installed as head of the Church of England at a ceremony in Canterbury Cathedral in March. Reparative justice has been one of the themes running through the Ghana leg of this trip. At Cape Coast Castle, which came under British control in the 1660s, Dame Sarah was shown dungeons where slaves were held, and the so-called ‘door of no return’ through which they were forced on to ships. Above the dungeons sits a chapel, which she said was a ‘stark illustration of the way the church was involved in the slave trade’. The Church of England has previously apologised for its associations with the slave trade.

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