A member of the Church of England Evangelical Council (CEEC) has raised concerns about the process of appointing the next Archbishop of Canterbury, claiming that there is a lack of transparency and a “confusing” assortment of bodies charged with making the decision.
The former Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, announced he would be stepping down late last year, following a report that was critical of his handling of abuse allegations.
The process for choosing the next Archbishop involves Vacancy in See Committees (ViSCs) from each diocese which elect members of the Crown Nominations Commission (CNC).
The CNC deliberates on any nominated candidates, before interviewing those who make the shortlist.
The final candidate is then proposed to the King, via the Prime Minister, and finally the King officially appoints the new Archbishop of Canterbury – and head of the Anglican Communion.
Rev Dr Andrew Goddard, a member of the CEEC, has taken issue with the first step in this process, the ViSCs. According to Dr Goddard, due process has not been followed by a ViSC formed by the Canterbury diocese for 2022 to 24.
Confusingly, Canterbury formed another ViSC following Welby’s resignation and now the formation of a third ViSC in Canterbury diocese has also been begun.
Dr Goddard states, “There appears to have been, and still remains, some considerable confusion and serious questions which need answering with no less than three different Vacancy in See Committees (ViSC) being in existence in the diocese since the vacancy was announced but with all of them potentially not compliant with the Regulation.”
Goddard said that the ViSCs in Canterbury had many vacancies due to a failure to replace members within official timeframes.
He also claimed that current rules mean that Canterbury ViSCs are forbidden from nominating a male priest to the CNC, as they are currently required to nominate at least one clergywoman and one lay woman.
This, combined with the requirement that half the candidates be lay, guarantees that there will “unprecedentedly, be no male priest from the province involved in selecting the Archbishop”.
Dr Goddard said that the process for choosing the next Archbishop needs “greater transparency and fuller explanations”.