Secretary General of the Anglican Communion

Secretary General of the Anglican Communion
Title	Secretary General of the Anglican Communion
Formation	1964

Contents

Secretary General of the Anglican Communion is the chief executive officer and principal representative of the Anglican Communion, charged with coordinating the Communion's instruments and member churches across provinces such as the Church of England, Episcopal Church (United States), Anglican Church of Canada, Anglican Church of Australia, and Church of Nigeria. The office interfaces with ecumenical partners including the Roman Catholic Church, World Council of Churches, Orthodox Church, Lutheran World Federation, and international bodies like the United Nations and European Union. The Secretary General leads the Anglican Consultative Council, supports the Primates' Meeting, and maintains relations with provinces such as Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia, Church of Uganda, Church of South India, Anglican Church of Southern Africa, and Church of Pakistan.

Role and Responsibilities

The Secretary General oversees implementation of decisions from the Lambeth Conference, Anglican Consultative Council, and Primates' Meeting while liaising with primates, bishops, and synods of provinces including Church of Ireland, Scottish Episcopal Church, Province of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan, Anglican Church of Kenya, and Church of the Province of Central Africa. Responsibilities include administering the Anglican Communion Office, coordinating mission initiatives with agencies such as United Society Partners in the Gospel, Anglican Aid, Anglican Board of Mission, and engaging with theological colleges like Trinity College, Bristol, Westcott House, Cambridge, Ridley Hall, Cambridge, and St John's College, Nottingham. The Secretary General represents the Communion in dialogues with bodies such as the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, World Methodist Council, Conference of European Churches, and governmental actors in capitals like Canberra, Lagos, London, Ottawa, and Wellington.

The post developed from informal coordination among metropolitan bishops, missionary societies, and diocesan networks in the 19th and 20th centuries involving actors such as the Church Missionary Society, Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, Anglican Communion News Service, and figures including William Temple, Michael Ramsey, Nathaniel Newnham Davis, and institutions like Lambeth Palace and St Paul's Cathedral. Formalization occurred in response to expansion across provinces such as South America, West Africa, South Asia, and Melanesia, and through mechanisms established at gatherings including the 1888 Lambeth Conference, 1930 Lambeth Conference, 1958 Lambeth Conference, and the founding of the Anglican Consultative Council in 1971. The office's remit evolved alongside global events such as decolonization affecting British Empire, ecumenical developments at Second Vatican Council, and social movements in cities like Johannesburg, Nairobi, Lagos, and Accra.

Appointment of the Secretary General has typically been made by the Anglican Consultative Council in consultation with primates and the Lambeth Conference, drawing candidates from provinces including the Church of England, Episcopal Church (United States), Church of Ireland, Anglican Church of Canada, and Church of Uganda. Tenure terms, renewal conditions, and retirement arrangements reference canonical frameworks from provincial synods such as the General Synod of the Church of England, General Convention (Episcopal Church), General Synod of the Anglican Church of Australia, and constitutions of provinces like the Church of South India. Secretaries General have balanced pastoral authority and administrative accountability with scrutiny from bodies including the Anglican Consultative Council, Primates' Meeting, and provincial governing structures such as diocesan synods in Canterbury, York, Durban, and Pretoria.

The Secretary General leads the Anglican Communion Office based in locations tied to historic centres like London and works through regional staff in hubs such as Nairobi, Lagos, Sydney, Wellington, and Toronto. The Secretariat supports thematic networks on issues involving human rights, development and climate change often partnering with agencies including Christian Aid, Tearfund, Anglican Alliance, and ecumenical partners such as the World Council of Churches and Caritas Internationalis. Administrative functions include communications via the Anglican Communion News Service, archival stewardship with institutions like the Lambeth Palace Library, legal advice drawing on canon law from provinces such as Episcopal Church (United States), and convening conferences, workshops, and consultations in venues such as Lambeth Palace, Westminster Abbey, St Andrew's Cathedral, Sydney, and All Saints' Cathedral, Nairobi.

The office has faced criticism over perceived centralization versus provincial autonomy from actors in Lagos, Canterbury, Nairobi, New York, and Ottawa, particularly during disputes over human sexuality, ordination, and ecclesial discipline involving provinces such as Episcopal Church (United States), Anglican Church of Canada, Church of England, and Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion). Critics have pointed to tensions between the Secretary General, primates' decisions at the Primates' Meeting, and resolutions from the Lambeth Conference and Anglican Consultative Council, invoking public debate in media outlets and statements from leaders in Anglican Communion Covenant processes, synods in Durban, Lambeth, Accra, and advocacy groups including GAFCON, Forward in Faith, and Inclusive Church.