wfn.org | Retiring Carey an 'inestimable gift' to Anglicans around the world

[ENS@ecunet.org]

2002-010

Retiring Carey an 'inestimable gift' to Anglicans around the world

by Jan Nunley
jnunley@episcopalchurch.org

     (ENS) In the first week after George Carey's announcement that he will 
retire as Archbishop of Canterbury in the fall of 2002, praise for his 11-year 
term alternated with speculation about his successor.

     Presiding Bishop Frank T. Griswold of the Episcopal Church said that Carey's 
"passion for the gospel and dedication to the faithfulness and unity of the 
Church, together with his insistence that the suffering of the proper sphere of 
our common engagement," made him "an inestimable gift to the Anglican Communion 
and beyond." 

     The Anglican Primate of All Ireland, the Most Rev. Robin Eames, said that 
the strength of Carey's leadership was much in evidence when he presiding at 
meetings of the Anglican Communion primates. "The bonds of affection were 
strengthened as [Carey] showed firmness in his desire for unity in this growing 
and widely diverse communion of churches."

     Archbishop Rowan Williams of Wales, said to be one of the leading candidates 
to succeed Carey, commented that "apart from the highly significant work he has 
done for the Church of England, he has contributed more than most will realize to 
churches in the developing countries by his practical support and brave advocacy, 
especially for Christians in minority situations." 

     Another leading contender, Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali of Rochester, praised 
Carey's skill in bringing together different religions. "In his worldwide role, 
his appreciation of the importance of Islam must be, in the light of recent 
events, seen as prophetic," said the Pakistan-born Nazir-Ali. "The establishment 
of dialogue with different traditions in Islam is nothing short of pioneering."

     Bishop Christopher Herbert of St Alban's said Carey had displayed "steadfast 
and unflinching courage" in his leadership. "It is inevitable that there is much 
speculation about Dr Carey's successor. It is absolutely vital that prayer, 
quietness and waiting upon God characterize the process that the whole Church is 
now undertaking," added Herbert, who has also been mentioned as a possible 
successor to Carey.

Ecumenical, interfaith progress

     Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, Archbishop of Westminster and leader of 
Roman Catholics in England and Wales, praised Carey, saying that he and the 
archbishop "are good friends and I have appreciated very much our collaboration 
in ecumenical endeavor. Dr. Carey has had to live through some difficult times as 
Archbishop of Canterbury. As leader of the Anglican Communion he emerged as 
someone of immense integrity, zeal and courage.

     "I am sure there will be very many, like myself, who will express their 
appreciation of his considerable achievements in a most demanding role and who 
will miss him when he steps down as archbishop," he stated.

     The secretary of Britain's Methodist Conference, the Rev. Nigel Collinson, 
said that he was grateful for the lead that Carey had given "in his commitment to 
the unity of the church." He suggested that the person appointed as Carey's 
successor would "profoundly affect the relationship between our two churches."

     Britain's Chief Rabbi, Professor Jonathan Sacks, described Carey as a 
"humane, warm and caring face" of Christianity who was a "blessed presence in 
British life." He described Carey as "a man who has kept his integrity and 
spirituality intact during difficult times and has thus been a compelling example 
of what it is to be religious in a secular age." 

Mixed reviews outside the church

     Prime Minister Tony Blair's official spokesman said that Blair "has great 
admiration and respect for the work that [Carey] has done over the last decade in 
guiding the Church through a period of change. He has worked tirelessly at home 
and abroad in his role as head of the Anglican Communion." 

     Conservative MP Ann Widdecombe, who left the Church of England over the 
ordination of women and became a Roman Catholic, told BBC News: "I think he has 
had a very mixed tenure but I think it would be ungracious at the point at which 
he is retiring not to acknowledge that at least the church has been held together 
through what has been a monumentally difficult time." 

     The British media were less positive about Carey's record. "While supporters 
point to his formidable record of internal reform," said The Independent, 
"critics say he has never provided the inspirational leadership needed during a 
period that has seen baptized Anglicans become a minority in England for the 
first time since the Reformation." Both the conservative Sunday Telegraph and 
left-wing Guardian were similarly dismissive. 

     But the London Times was more charitable. "The strategy adopted by the 
archbishop has been largely vindicated by events. His own instincts on women 
priests--a firm but moderate preference for reform--met the approval of most 
Anglicans. His personal style helped to smooth the transition," the Times 
editorialized. "Dr. Carey might thus be regarded as more of a 'fixer' than a 
'philosopher' but the Church of England in the 1990s desperately needed some 
careful fixing and had perhaps endured too much philosophy."

How the choice is made

     The next archbishop of Canterbury will be chosen by the 13 voting members of 
the Crown Appointments Commission (CAC) and the prime minister.

     The CAC meets in secret and produces two names, which it sends to the prime 
minister. He may select one of the names or ask for others. Once the prime 
minister has chosen, he asks the nominee if he is willing to accept the post. If 
he accepts, the prime minister submits the name to Queen Elizabeth II. 

     On the prime minister's advice, the queen nominates the new archbishop. She 
instructs the College of Canons of Canterbury Cathedral to hold an election, but 
they are required by law to elect her nominee.

     The CAC consists of:

     *  a lay communicant of the Church of England appointed as chairperson by 
Prime Minister Tony Blair

     *  a bishop elected by the House of Bishops to take Carey's place

     *  the archbishop of York, or, if he wishes to be considered for the post, a 
second bishop elected by the bishops

     *  four members of the Canterbury diocesan vacancy-in-see committee 

     *  six permanent CAC members (three clergy and three lay) elected by the 
General Synod

     *  the Rev. Hugh Broad, vicar of St. George's, Gloucester, and St 
Margaret's, Whaddon, and convener of the Affirming Catholicism group

     *  the Ven. Judith Rose, archdeacon of Tonbridge in the Diocese of 
Rochester, the first woman priest to be appointed to a senior post in the Church 
of England

     *  Anthony Thiselton, professor of Christian theology at the University of 
Nottingham, and a canon of Leicester Cathedral

     *  Viscountess Brentford, Third Church Estates Commissioner, and president 
of the Church Mission Society

     *  Ian Garden, Archbishops' Council, a barrister and guardian of the Shrine 
of our Lady of Walsingham

     *  Brian McHenry, Archbishops' Council, and chief legal adviser to the 
Competition Commission.

     Three non-voting members of the CAC will also provide input: the Secretary-
General of the Anglican Communion, John Peterson, and the appointments 
secretaries for the archbishops and the prime minister. 

--The Rev. Jan Nunley is deputy director of Episcopal News Service.