Justin Welby interview: Our colonial church

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has called for a radical shake-up of the way Anglican churches are run in 165 countries, making them less like colonial or missionary churches from the days of the British empire and more like a community of equals. “Structures that look quite colonial have got to be replaced by structures and balances that look fairly Christian,” the Archbishop told Prospect.

He also spoke of his hope that the Church of England’s General Synod—its legislative body—would finally agree to the consecration of women bishops, saying he could easily imagine that his own successor as Archbishop would be a woman.

Speaking to Prospect during a recent visit to South Africa, Welby said Anglicanism must move away from a structure that grew up during colonial times to a more equal relationship of separate churches, reflecting the growing weight and importance of churches in Africa.

“The Anglican Communion [the international community of Anglican churches] evolved historically—some churches through missionary work, and some through missionary work and empire,” said Welby. “The structures have evolved in a way that still looks quite 20th century, or even 19th century, particularly in the development of indigenous churches with their own leadership in the second half of the 20th century. As that has happened, the balance of numbers has changed, so that the biggest church is now in Nigeria, and the Church of England is not one of the biggest by any means. As a result, we begin to get a sense that there is a need for rebalancing.”

With a significant majority of Anglicans now belonging to churches of the “global south,” their predominance needs to be seen, and their voice needs to be heard. Welby argues that the Anglican Church needs to live out this reality.

Does this mean he wants to see the Communion evolve to become more like the Commonwealth, with the Archbishop becoming a figurehead, like the Queen, or only the first among equals? “One of the definitions of an Anglican church is that it is in communion with the see of Canterbury,” said Welby, “and therefore Canterbury is somehow in the middle of how it works.”

Part of the process of being collegial was that such change had to be made through consultation with the other senior Anglicans around the world. “I do see a very, very major shift in the nature of the relationships within the Communion over the next 10 years—a gradual one that has to be arrived at commonly and not by diktat.” In practice, however, some of the smaller churches, especially those suffering from persecution and discrimination, such as the church in Pakistan, still insist they need the shelter and guidance of strong leadership in Canterbury.

He has no doubts about the effectiveness and influence of Anglicanism overseas. In many countries, the churches have substantial influence, running schools and hospitals, clinics and community centres used overwhelmingly by people of other denominations and faiths. “The Church is enormously involved in reconciliation, peacemaking and drawing people together, setting an example of not being dominated by one group or another but of coping with disagreement, even profound disagreement, but yet loving one another—that is something that the world desperately needs.”

He admits that Anglican churches in the developing world are flourishing more vigorously than the Church of England, which he said is now struggling with indifference and the lure of materialism.

How does this call for change sit with Welby’s opposition to disestablishing the Church of England? The issues, he said, are unrelated. “We all work in different ways and have very different relationships with our governments.” Establishment was a matter for parliament. But he would fight to maintain the right of bishops to sit in the Lords, as he does. “The bishops are the people most grounded in their communities and make a very powerful contribution.”

He also believes that the visible role of the Church in Britain’s government is a symbol that “the nature of a human being in society is not merely material or financial but also spiritual.” All faiths and denominations in Britain supported this, he said, including the Muslim community. “On a number of issues recently we have found ourselves talking to each other very deeply, and it’s clear that they want our voice to be heard.”

He voiced hopes that the church would approve the consecration of women bishops. Could there even be a woman Archbishop one day? “Emphatically, yes. But there are two important things. One is, what conclusions do we reach and do they make sense? And secondly, is the way we conduct the debate something that demonstrates the values we have in the Church as Christians?”

He said that if the measure passed, as he hoped it would, “I think we then set ourselves a very high hurdle to get over as a church—which is to set a pattern of living as one church in obedience to Jesus Christ, while differing on some very fundamental points.” This had important implications for other issues within the Church.

Welby pointed out that the church in southern Africa already has women bishops. But his role is not comparable to that of the Pope. Anglicanism is structured differently: it is collective and collegial, while the Roman Catholic Church is centrally governed from the Vatican. He said he could press all he liked for change, “but if the bishops don’t buy into it, it isn’t going to happen.” His aim, therefore, is to travel to all 37 other provinces of the Communion to listen to the experiences and views of senior Anglicans.