The next Archbishop of Canterbury.

Forward in Faith congratulates the Rt Revd Sarah Mullally, the Bishop of London, on the announcement of her appointment as the next Archbishop of Canterbury. In line with the Church of England’s Five Guiding Principles, we both recognise Bishop Sarah as the true and lawful holder of that office, once it is conferred on her, and also continue to support the mutual flourishing of different Anglican traditions.

The House of Bishops Declaration of 2014, and the Five Guiding Principles contained within it, were written with the possibility of a female Archbishop – of Canterbury or York – in mind, such that no amendment of the Declaration would be required in such a circumstance: provision for an assured sacramental ministry for traditional catholics would continue as before. As a result, and in the period since 2015, the consecration of Society bishops has been undertaken exclusively by other Society bishops, with – on each occasion – one Society bishop acting as the Principal Consecrator and two other Society bishops acting as Co-Consecrators. This will, we trust, continue to be the case.

Forward in Faith restates its commitment to witnessing within the Church of England to all of the Church’s sacraments as a gift from God and as an inheritance held in common with the great churches of the East and of the West. We pray that, as the Church of England prepares to receive a new Archbishop of Canterbury, that unbroken witness and tradition will continue to be upheld, not least as it touches on the sacraments of Holy Matrimony and the Reconciliation of a Penitent (Confession).

As traditional catholics, we feel called by God to witness to the historic Faith in this country’s national church and, while this can bring with it challenges, we pray that, through the intercessions of Our Lady of Walsingham, Christianity may once more be at the centre of our national life. We pray too that Bishop Sarah will be an instrument of God’s grace, in her new office, in recalling our nation to its foundational Christian character, noting with gratitude her significant contribution in resisting the Assisted Dying Bill now under consideration in the House of Lords.