The increasingly woke Church of England has drawn international backlash over an “ugly” graffiti art installation at Canterbury Cathedral, one of the oldest Christian structures in England.
Days after announcing that Right Rev Dame Sarah Mullally would become the next Archbishop of Canterbury and the first female to hold the most senior position in the global Anglican Communion, the Church of England has sparked another controversy by covering the walls of medieval Canterbury Cathedral with graffiti-style “art”.
According to the Times of London, the “Hear Us” art installation is comprised of removable sticker graphics featuring questions for God, such as “Are you there?”, “God, what happens when we die?” and “Why did you create hate when love is by far more powerful?”
The Cathedral said of the exhibit: “This project focuses on partnering with marginalised communities—such as Punjabi, black and brown diaspora, neurodivergent, and LGBTQIA+ groups—to collaboratively create handwritten literature responding to the question, ‘What would you ask God?’”
The project, the brainchild of “vegan/queer” poet Alex Vellis — who uses “they/them” pronouns — and curator Jacquiline Creswell, drew global condemnation for denigrating the Anglican Cathedral.
Canterbury Cathedral’s “Hear Us” art installation will run from October 17th until January 18th, 2026. Credit: Canterbury Cathedral.
U.S. Vice President JD Vance remarked on the art project: “It is weird to me that these people don’t see the irony of honoring ‘marginalized communities’ by making a beautiful historical building really ugly.”
U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) added: “It’s tragic how great Nations are fallen. Consumed by self-destructive pathologies embraced by their ‘elites.’ God help England.”
The Cathedral acknowledged that the exhibit drew backlash from its own parishioners, with one describing it as “sacrilegious” and another quipping that it made the historical building “look like an underground car park in Peckham”.
Founded in 597 AD as a Catholic Cathedral by St. Augustine, who was dispatched by Pope Gregory the Great to convert the Anglo-Saxons, the Cathedral has served as the mother church of the Anglican Communion following the English Reformation. It has also played a significant role in secular history, notably as a prominent fixture in great works of literature, including by Geofry Chaucer and T.S. Elliot.
Designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988, the Cathedral first rose to international prominence following the martyrdom of Archbishop Thomas Becket in 1170, when he was killed by knights of King Henry II inside the Cathedral. In July, a special Catholic Mass saw large crowds attend the Cathedral to mark the Feast of the Translation of the Relics of Saint Thomas Becket, the first time a papal nuncio celebrated Mass at the site since the Reformation.
The Dean of Canterbury, the Very Rev David Monteith, acknowledged the controversy surrounding the project, saying that it was “undoubtedly jarring and will be unacceptable for some” but said that it represented “sincere questions of faith and meaning”.
“There is a rawness which is magnified by the graffiti style which is disruptive,” he said, adding: “This exhibition intentionally builds bridges between cultures, styles and genres and in particular allows us to receive the gifts of younger people who have much to say and from whom we need to hear much.”
“People will love or hate our ‘Hear Us’ installation, no question… But rather than react just on the basis of a few online comments, I would encourage people to come and experience the artworks for themselves and to make up their own minds,” Monteith concluded.
Canterbury Cathedral’s “Hear Us” art installation will run from October 17th until January 18th, 2026. Credit: Canterbury Cathedral.
The installation will be formally opened to the public on October 17th. It will run until January 18th, meaning that it will not still be up when Mullally is officially enthroned as the first female Archbishop of Canterbury.
Under Mullally’s predecessor, Justin Welby, who resigned amid allegations of a pedophilia cover-up, the Church of England faced frequent critiques for embracing leftist woke ideology. Indeed, Welby frequently waded into the realm of politics, expressing left-wing views on topics such as illegal immigration, climate change, and gender ideology.
This leftist stance is likely to continue under Mullally, who has reportedly “supported pro-LGBT initiatives within the Communion”, including backing the blessing of gay marriages in the church, and has openly advocated against deporting migrants from Britain.
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