When Sarah Mullally was confirmed as the 106th archbishop of Canterbury, this meant a woman would become spiritual leader of the Church of England and worldwide Anglican communion for the first time in history. For many, it has been a welcome shift that recognises the importance of female leadership at all levels – both ecclesiastical and secular.
But some within the Church took issue with Mullally’s accession. For example, the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans, a network of conservative Anglican churches across Africa and Asia, issued a statement declaring: “The majority of the Anglican Communion still believes that the Bible requires a male-only episcopacy.” Its members have refused to recognise her as their archbishop.
