The next Archbishop of Canterbury

It used to be the case, and probably still is, that Archbishops of Canterbury (ABC) are appointed alternately from different wings of the church. In recent years, this has meant that representatives of the High Church/liberal wing have alternated with representatives of the Low Church/Evangelical wing. Coggan (Low Church), Runcie (High Church), Carey (Low Church), Williams (High Church), Welby (Low Church). By this logic, the next ABC will be a representative of the High Church/liberal wing of the church.

My prediction is that Rose Hudson-Wilkin (currently bishop of Dover) or Guli Francis-Dehqani (currently bishop of Chelmsford) will be the next ABC.

I should point out, that while I began my Christian life as an Anglican, I have been a member of non-Anglican churches since 1998. I have been an ordained elder/pastor of Baptist churches since 2000.

That does not, however, mean that the fate of the Anglican church is irrelevant to me, or indeed to any other Christian. The Anglican communion worldwide represents 85 million professing Christians worldwide, although this figure may be inflated due to inclusion of 26 million people in England (whereas actual attendance would suggest less than one million). The Church of England (Canterbury and York) represents but 1 of 42 autonomous provinces.

For historical reasons, the head of the Anglican Communion has been the Archbishop of Canterbury. However, given the demographics and spiritual vitality of the churches of the Global South, there is a strong argument for one of the primates of the other provinces being recognised as the head of the Communon.

A recent conference of Anglicans in Rwanda (2023) united the lion's share of worldwide Anglicanism in opposition to prevarication and compromise over issues such as Christian marriage and celibacy.

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