The lots of conversion
When Archbishop Justin Welby, the
105th Archbishop of Canterbury resigned his archbishopric with an announcement
late last year, I confided in my best friend about how I might not be ready for
a female to succeed him, but I had a premonition that the direction of travel
was towards something unprecedented.
The selection, election, and
appointment of the Archbishop of Canterbury as the spiritual head of the
Anglican Communion closely resembles the story in Acts of the Apostles, where
the disciples cast lots for Apostle Matthias,
about whom we hear little after that event. In contrast, Saul of Tarsus’s
conversion on the road to Damascus, from Pharisee to Apostle Paul, who
authored about half of the New Testament, is a remarkable transformation.
The politics of enthronement
This nomination is both an
administrative process conducted by the Crown
Nominations Commission and a political one, where the Prime Minister, who
could easily be non-Christian, presents the nominated candidate to the monarch,
the titular head of the Church of England, for approval.
The enthronement of the Archbishop of
Canterbury follows a legal Confirmation of Election, after which the individual
legally becomes the Archbishop, followed by the Installation service at
Canterbury Cathedral, signalling the start of their tenure.
Yesterday, the Bishop of London, The Right Reverend and
Right Honourable Dame Sarah Mullally DBE, was appointed as the archbishop
designate, to be installed as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury in March 2026.
A precedent in perspective
It was not until 1994 that women were
ordained to the priesthood within the Church of England; this progressive move
had already begun in some other Anglican provinces globally.
The first female bishops in the Church
of England were elected in 2014, and by early 2026, we will have the first
female Lord Archbishop of Canterbury, Primate of All England and Metropolitan.
[Wikipedia:
List of female Anglican bishops]
I do not consider myself particularly
conservative within the Anglican Communion. I am encouraged by the progress in
ordaining women, improvements in safeguarding, and the church’s embrace of a
broader understanding of spirituality across different sexual orientations, including
even blessing same-sex relationships where churches are receptive.
Faith, however, is a journey with no
final destination; only a continuous pursuit to understand more of God’s love
and mercy, and how His Spirit leads and inspires the church to become more
Christ-like.
The frayed bonds of unity
From a human perspective, I am
uncertain whether, amidst ongoing disagreements about women’s ordination, even
within my own diocese portends toward uniting the Anglican Communion.
Typically, two sets of ordinations
occur: one for those who accept women bishops, and then a visiting bishop,
representing those who do not, comes to ordain those of that persuasion. The
debate over same-sex relationships keeps the church divided doctrinally and
morally, yet this exists in a fragile détente.
Personally, I remain unsure whether
the church has gained enough stature to fully weather these changes. It’s only
been eleven years since the first female bishop was appointed. But this makes
one reflect on the well-known African proverb: “If you want to go fast, go
alone; if you want to go far, go together.”
The journey of persuasion
The church has come quite far, whether
it is now the time to go fast, leaves me in a quandary of my Anglican faith,
something that might have to grow on me, because the hierarchy in this
selection seems way ahead of my current conviction.
While I have fleeting thoughts about
exploring Catholicism, I have yet to find a way or a path to reach the gates of
the Vatican and kiss the fisherman’s ring of the Bishop of Rome.
Nevertheless, there is work to be done;
much like with other Church of England initiatives, to pause on some of these
advances and draw into full fellowship those left unpersuaded of these fast
forms of modernisation and progressiveness that we might all travel far together
for the amazing aims of the gospel.
Ultimately, we pray that the ministry
of the new Archbishop of Canterbury be blessed with purpose, insight, and unity
within the church. An essential truth about our humanity is that we all
struggle and seek to be persuaded beyond our narrow perspectives.
The sketch from Yes, Prime Minister,
offers an intriguing perspective on the Church of England.
References
Wikipedia: Archbishop of Canterbury
Wikipedia: Ordination of women in the Anglican Communion
The Church of England: Appointing a new Archbishop of Canterbury
The Church of England: Members of the Canterbury Crown Nominations Commission
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