Leaders from a coalition of conservative Anglican churches have convened in Nigeria to select a spiritual leader they say will serve as a global “first among equals,” a move seen as challenging the authority of the archbishop of Canterbury.
The inaugural assembly of what organizers call the Global Anglican Communion opened Tuesday in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, and is scheduled to run through Friday.
The meeting comes just weeks before Bishop of London Sarah Mullally is set to be formally installed as the 106th archbishop of Canterbury and the first woman to hold the position, at Canterbury Cathedral on March 25.
The initiative follows last year’s announcement of Mullally’s appointment. Shortly afterward, the Global Anglican Futures Conference (GAFCON) revealed plans to establish a new Global Anglican Communion, effectively distancing itself from the traditional Anglican Communion structure led by the archbishop of Canterbury and other “Instruments of Communion.”
GAFCON was founded in Jerusalem in 2008 amid disputes within Anglicanism over same-sex marriage and related theological issues. The group was among the earliest critics of Mullally’s appointment, urging her on Oct. 3 to repent for supporting blessings for same-sex couples and declaring its intention to “reorder” the Anglican Communion around what it describes as the authority of Scripture.
Rwandan Archbishop Laurent Mbanda, chairman of the GAFCON Primates Council, previously argued that the Church of England’s leadership decision would deepen divisions within the worldwide Anglican family and rejected Mullally’s spiritual authority.
“For over a century and a half, the Archbishop of Canterbury functioned not only as the Primate of All England but also as a spiritual and moral leader of the Anglican Communion,” Mbanda said. “In more recent times, the See of Canterbury has been described as one of the four ‘instruments of Communion,’ whilst also chairing the other three Instruments, namely the Lambeth Conference, the Primates Meeting and the Anglican Consultative Council.”
“However, due to the failure of successive Archbishops of Canterbury to guard the faith, the office can no longer function as a credible leader of Anglicans, let alone a focus of unity,” he continued.
“As we made clear in our Kigali Commitment of 2023, we can ‘no longer recognize the Archbishop of Canterbury as an Instrument of Communion’ or the ‘first among equals’ of global Primates.”
Mullally’s installation later this month follows her confirmation service last month at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, where the Rev. Paul Williamson was removed after interrupting the ceremony to protest her appointment.
Meanwhile, the Church of England’s General Synod voted last month to abandon proposals for standalone blessing services for same-sex couples after extensive debate within the church.
