A Former United Methodist to Global Anglicans:  The See of Canterbury is Vacant

The See of Canterbury is Vacant

It has been announced that Sarah Mullally will be the next Archbishop of Canterbury.  She is the currently the bishop of London, but has had only minimal theological education and very little pastoral experience.  She appears to be a very competent administrator, as she served as a senior administrator in the National Health Service in the U.K.

Although the news has announced that Sarah Mullally is the new leader of 100 million global Anglicans, this must be understood as a kind of “public fiction.”   It is true that the liberal, so-called “progressive” voices within the Anglican communion are hailing her appointment as a wonderful step forward in the move to normalize same sex marriage and abortion rights within the communion.  But, the overwhelming majority of global Anglicans will be deeply disappointed in this appointment.

For centuries the Archbishop of Canterbury has served as the Primate of all England, but also the spiritual and moral leader of the entire global Anglican communion.   The Archbishop of Canterbury is regarded as “first among equals” among all the global Primates.  But, the explosive growth of Anglicanism globally, as well as the Anglican Church of North America (ACNA) here in the USA is orthodox   GAFCON is the global fellowship of Anglicans worldwide.  There mission statement states that they are “a global movement, gathering authentic Anglicans, guarding God’s gospel, growing orthodox leaders, and generating missional resources, for the glory of God!”  They represent about 85 million Anglicans around the world.  Their hope was that the Church of England would choose someone who could unite the Anglican church globally, reaffirm historic faith, and enliven the mission of the church.  Sadly, none of these things are possible with this appointment.

GAFCON has already issued a statement pointing our Sarah Mullally’s failure to maintain her ordination vows.  The chair of the GAFCON Primates Council issued the following statement upon hearing the news of her election:

“….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…. We had hoped that the Church of England would take this into due consideration as it deliberated over the choice of a new Archbishop of Canterbury… sadly, they have not done so….  She has not upheld her consecration vows.  When she was consecrated in 2015, the took at oath to “banish and drive away all strange and erroneous doctrines contrary to God’s Word.”  And yet, far from banishing such doctrine, Bishop Mullally has repeated promoted unbiblical and revisionist teachings regarding marriage and sexual morality.”

As a former United Methodist reading this development in Anglicanism, it sounds so familiar.  We, too, labored long and hard to bring renewal and doctrinal clarity to our beloved denomination.  When the numbers of global delegates to the United Methodist Conferences grew and it became clear that the church was not going to affirm these outlandish revisionist doctrines which re-define marriage and ordination and human identity, etc.. many of the N. American United Methodist bishops choose the path of defiance to the Book of Discipline.  They consistently refused to understand that the unity of the church has always been built on our unity in historic faith, not any kind of bureaucratic or organizational unity.  Bishop Ken Carter was one of the worst offenders in spreading this nonsense throughout our denomination.   Bishop Carter regularly stated that he had taken an oath in his ordination vows to “uphold the unity of the church.”  However, it became clear to many of us that when he referred to “church unity” he thought it referred to the organizational and bureaucratic churchly machinery known denominationally as the United Methodist church.  This is not true.  When Jesus said “I will build my church” He was referring to the people of God, the church of Jesus Christ throughout space and time of which He is the Lord and head.  Our unity is rooted in that sacred unity.  Our unity is in Jesus Christ. Our unity is in the gospel.  Our unity is with the people of God around the world and back through time.  Our unity is based on our keeping faith with the historic apostolic message as found in the inspired Word of God.

So, the fuse may have been lit by Bishop Melvin Talbert who defied the clear teaching of the church and performed the first same sex marriage. But, Bishop Carter poured gasoline on the fire by not understanding the nature of the church’s unity.  He was the President of the Council of Bishops during the crucial years when the church was facing the crisis of dissolution (2018-2020).  Bishop Carter was also one of the moderators on the Commission on a Way Forward which was tasked to recommend the “way forward” for the denomination.  In short, he was the United Methodist version of the archbishop of Canterbury.  Bishop Carter was “first among equals” among the bishops.  He repeatedly said that he was bound to preserve the organizational unity of the church, but failed to remember his own vows to “uphold the teachings of Jesus Christ and the doctrines of the church.”  In fact in one telling moment, Bishop Carter stated that we should “adapt our scriptures from what they originally stated and meant.”  His lack of leadership at that crucial moment in United Methodist history is what led to the tragic breakup of the denomination.  So, now, the Global Methodist Church (along with other faithful Wesleyan denominations) must take the lead in carrying the missional torch of our distinctive message to the wider church and world.

This remembrance of the recent history of the United Methodist Church is a good indicator of what we can expect to see in the next seven years in the Anglican communion.   GAFCON will continue to emerge as the de facto leader of the global Anglican movement.  The Archbishop of Canterbury will wear beautiful robes and stoles, and preside over various ecclesial functions, and will use a lot of fancy religious language to push a few million Anglicans further down the road of heresy.  But there will be 85 million Anglicans who will continue preaching the gospel, planting new churches and believing the Bible.  Based on my experience with the United Methodist Church, here is my advice to global Anglicans all over the world:  regard the see of Canterbury as vacant.

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