Who is Guli Francis-Dehqani? The Bishop of Chelmsford who could replace Justin Welby as Archbishop of Canterbury

The Church of England could be on the brink of making history - and the Bishop of Chelmsford could be a key reason behind that. The Christian institution is searching for a new Archbishop of Canterbury after Justin Welby's resignation this week.

It follows increasing criticism after a damning report into prolific child abuser John Smyth was published. Smyth is believed to be the most prolific serial abuser to be connected with the Church of England.

The appointment of a new Archbishop of Canterbury is a bizarre process in which no-one applies. The appointment will be made by King Charles III on the recommendation of the Crown Nominations Commission (CNC).

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It could be several months before Justin Welby is officially replaced, but a number of media outlets report the Bishop of Chelmsford, Guli Francis-Dehqani, as being a firm contender. The Daily Mail says the 57-year-old is "among the front runners".

Born in Iran, Guli was the first minority-ethnic woman to become a Bishop in the UK. Her dad was the Anglican Bishop of Iran and and her mother was injured in an assassination attempt on him in the 1970s. In 1980 her brother was murdered in Tehran.

Speaking on Desert Island Discs in January 2024, Bishop Guli said: "It was a real culture shock [coming to the UK]. I spoke English but it was rusty and I wasn't that comfortable using it. I suddenly had opportunities that I never had before and I was really keen to grab those.

"I got involved in music, sport and drama as I was much more interested in those things than the academic stuff. It became the springboard for which the rest of my life developed in this country."

Her dad's visit to the UK allowed Guli the opportunity to visit and she later studied music at Nottingham University before returning to her faith in her late 20s. In 2017 she took up the role of Bishop of Loughborough and in 2020 she was announced as taking over the role in Chelmsford.

Chelmsford is the second largest diocese in the Church of England in terms of population and serves the communities of Essex and East London. Bishop Guli was appointed in January 2021 and has served as a member of the Lords Spiritual in the House of Lords since November 2021.

History would be made if Bishop Guli was to be appointed as the Archbishop of Canterbury as she would be the first woman to hold the position. But she's no stranger to being a pioneer for change as her 2017 appointment made her the first female Bishop from an ethnic minority background in the UK.

She told the BBC: "It came from left-field. In a very strange way it made sense. I had this feeling that it was clearly not about what I had done in terms of experience in the Church.

"It was about my life experiences and what that might have to contribute now within the context of the Church of England. I feel I represent something way beyond myself. It's symbolic of pulling something from the boundaries to the middle."

She added: "For the Church of England we have lots to learn from persecuted, smaller Christian communities. I hope that partly through my story I am able to weave those stories together."

Bishop Guli had a key role in the King's Coronation where she gave Holy Communion to the King and Queen. She has previously been outspoken in support of refugees.

In an article for The Telegraph she wrote: "Christians are called to follow the example of Jesus who throughout the Bible focuses his love and care on the most vulnerable and marginalised people in society."

She added: "As a Christian leader I make no apology for our involvement in supporting people who are often deeply vulnerable and traumatised."

Addressing the future of the Church in the UK, she told Premier Christian Radio: "As the Church of England, we are quite anxious and fearful about our survival and our influence. It concerns me sometimes that we’re mirroring the anxiety and fear that is all around us in society.

"I long for the Church to be a place where we can model a different way of being that demonstrates that we trust God for the future, and that the future isn’t ours to control. The future is in God’s hands and, every day, we all have to surrender the things that we’re worried about and can’t control back into God’s hands. We do that as individual Christians, and I hope we will learn to do it more and more as a Church as well."