On March 25, 2026, Archbishop Sarah Mullally will be installed as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury, becoming the first woman to hold the position. The ceremony will feature a historic change: for the first time since 1945, the oath of office will be sworn on a modern Bible, The Saint John's Bible Heritage Edition, rather than the ancient Augustine Gospels.
The decision to use The Saint John's Bible carries deep symbolic weight. The Augustine Gospels, a 6th-century manuscript, had been used for nearly 60 years but are too fragile to transport from Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. In contrast, The Saint John's Bible is a contemporary illuminated manuscript, created by Donald Jackson, former senior scribe to Queen Elizabeth II. It is the first hand-scribed, illuminated Bible commissioned by a Benedictine monastery since the invention of the printing press over 500 years ago.
During the installation, the Bible will be opened to the beginning of Luke 1 and placed on the Nave altar, where Archbishop Sarah will lay her hand on it while taking her oath. Canterbury Cathedral received a Heritage Edition of The Saint John's Bible, one of only 299 in existence, as a gift from Elaine and Bruce Culver, and it was blessed and dedicated on November 11, 2023. The Cathedral also added a special bookmark created by Dr. Alyson Osterloh, a retired physician and member of the Holy Stitchers, using textiles from the Cathedral Sewing Room.
An Apostles Edition of The Saint John's Bible, limited to 12 copies, was gifted to Lambeth Palace on November 8, 2023, and is now housed in the Lambeth Palace Library for public viewing. The original manuscript of The Saint John's Bible resides at the Hill Museum & Manuscript Library at Saint John's University. The Heritage and Apostles Editions are fine art reproductions that faithfully capture the original, taking roughly eight years to produce.
The choice of a modern Bible for the installation of the first female archbishop underscores the Church of England's embrace of both tradition and progress. The Saint John's Bible blends ancient artistry with contemporary themes, reflecting a 21st-century approach to scripture. The service will be livestreamed on March 25, 2026, at 10:30 am ET, allowing a global audience to witness this historic event. For more information about The Saint John's Bible, visit https://saintjohnsbible.org.
