Archbishop of Canterbury addresses royal rift over Harry and Meghan
‘It has to be at the right time,’ says Rev Justin Welby
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Your support makes all the difference.The Archbishop of Canterbury has commented on Harry and Meghan’s status within the royal family following the couple’s explosive Netflix documentary.
Last week, the final three episodes of the series dropped on the streaming platform, charting the couple’s decision to step down from their roles in the royal family and move to California.
Among the claims levelled against the royal family in the documentary, Harry and Meghan detailed everything from tense meetings with other senior members of the family and living in “small” palace grounds to Meghan’s legal case against Associated Newspapers and their ongoing battles with the tabloid media.
In one episode, Harry details his account of an urgent meeting between senior members of the royal family at the Sandringham Estate in 2020. In the talk between the family members, a decision was made about the involvement of Harry and Meghan in royal life and their duties going forward.
During an interview, Harry claims: “It was terrifying to have my brother scream and shout at me.”
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He adds that his father, King Charles, allegedly said things that “simply weren’t true”, and that his grandmother, the late Queen Elizabeth II, “quietly sat there” to “take it all in”.
The royal family have not commented on the claims made in the documentary.
However, the Archbishop of Canterbury, who officiated at the couple’s wedding in 2018, was asked if he could see a way in which the Sussexes could reconcile with the Royal Family.
“I can’t really comment on it because I married them and there’s sort of pastoral confidentiality,” he responded on BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme.
“There’s always a way forward, but it has to be at the right time,” he said.
“And, as a Christian, I live in the belief that forgiveness comes from God through Jesus Christ and that God, particularly at this time of the year, God breaks into the world to open the way to forgiveness through the Christ channel.
“But the way we welcome that opportunity is different for everyone. And there has to be a right time.”
A fresh row has errupted over comments made by Jeremy Clarkson in The Sun.
In an op-ed published on Friday (16 December), Clarkson wrote that he loathes the Duchess of Sussex “on a cellular level” and wants people to “throw lumps of excrement” at her.
“Everyone who’s my age thinks the same way,” Clarkson added.
Several prominent figures – from comedians Kathy Burke and John Bishop to Countdown star Carol Vorderman – have criticised Clarkson’s comments. His own daughter, Emily Clarkson, has also condemned his remarks.