First woman Dame Sarah Mullally installed as Bishop of London at St Paul's Cathedral

Fiona Simpson12 May 2018

Dame Sarah Mullally has been installed as the 133rd Bishop of London at St Paul's Cathedral - becoming one of the most senior figures in the Church of England and the first woman to hold the post.

The former nurse was invested on International Nurses Day - Florence Nightingale's birthday - echoing the new bishop's former career as a nurse.

Bishop Mullally performed the tradition of knocking three times on the Cathedral's Great West door with her pastoral staff, a spokesman for the Diocese of London said.

In her sermon, she preached on the theme of "being subversive for Christ" - noting that 150 years ago this week, suffragettes placed a bomb underneath the same seat upon which she had been enthroned as Bishop of London.

Sarah Mullally has been installed as the new Bishop of London
PA

She also spoke of the challenges facing London, particularly escalating knife crime, and referenced historical sexual abuse within the Church.

Bishop Mullally called for a culture that "challenges deference and the abuse of power" and for victims of abuse to be listened to.

Dame Sarah Mullally arrives at St Paul's Cathedral
PA

She added: "We need to speak up for the whole of London, to work to challenge the violence and the crime that have led mothers to clean their own children's blood from our pavements.

"Could there be a starker image or a more urgent wake-up call for all who love this city, who believe it can have an even better future?"

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