Dame Sarah Mullally made her first public address as the Archbishop of Canterbury designate, stating, “If you want to go fast, go alone – if you want to go far, go together.” Her appointment marks the first time a woman has been chosen as the spiritual leader of both the Church of England and the worldwide Anglican Communion. However, this choice has the potential to deepen existing divisions within the Anglican community.
The Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans (Gafcon), a conservative network across Africa and Asia, expressed sorrow over the announcement. In contrast, the Church of Southern Africa hailed the decision as historic and welcomed it. The Church of England, often referred to as “The Mother Church,” has gained a reputation for liberalism compared to Anglican churches in Africa, where two-thirds of Anglicans are estimated to reside.
Key contentious issues within the Anglican Communion include the ordination of women bishops, which occurred in 2014, and the acceptance of same-sex relationships, accepted in 2023. Many conservative Anglicans maintain that bishops should be exclusively male, a view supported by Gafcon’s leadership, which contends that a male-only episcopacy is a biblical requirement. They also raised concerns about Mullally’s support for blessings of same-sex couples, claiming this promotes unbiblical teachings on marriage.
Gafcon was established in 2008 to address theological disagreements within the Communion, particularly regarding same-sex unions. While they assert they are not breaking away from the Anglican Communion, they do not see recognition by the Archbishop of Canterbury as essential to Anglican identity. Tensions with the previous Archbishop, Justin Welby, increased in 2023, further heightening fears of a potential schism.
Reactions to Mullally’s appointment vary widely. Thabo Makgoba, the Archbishop of Cape Town, described it as a thrilling development, while Emily Onyango, the first female bishop in the Anglican Church of Kenya, viewed it as a new dawn. Yet she criticized Gafcon’s perspective as patriarchal and called for the new archbishop to focus on peace and reconciliation.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c179yvn08njo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss