wfn.org | ACNS - Archbishop of Montreal elected new Primate of Canada

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>]

ACNS 3836     |     CANADA     |     1 JUNE 2004

Archbishop of Montreal elected new Primate of Canada

[ACNS Source: The Anglican Church of Canada] Canadian Anglicans have
elected their 12th Primate. On the fourth ballot, more than 300 members
of General Synod, the church's chief governing and legislative body,
elected the Most Revd Andrew Hutchison, the Archbishop of Montreal.
Archbishop Hutchison, 65, is also Metropolitan of the Ecclesiastical
Province of Canada and Bishop Ordinary of the Canadian Forces.

Members of General Synod took almost six hours and four ballots to reach
their decision and, at one point, asked the Order of Bishops to send
more names from which they could choose. Under church law, the Order of
Bishops nominates candidates to the primacy while the orders of clergy
and the laity elect.

Other candidates for the primacy nominated by bishops last month were
the Rt Revd Ron Ferris, the Bishop of Algoma, and the Rt Revd Caleb
Lawrence, the Bishop of Moosonee. A fourth nominee, the Rt Revd Victoria
Matthews, the Bishop of Edmonton, withdrew shortly after her name was
put forth for health reasons. She is to undergo surgery for breast
cancer this week.

To be elected to the primacy, a candidate must receive a majority of
votes from both the orders of laity and clergy. On the fourth ballot,
Archbishop Hutchison received 68 of 117 clergy votes and 97 of 144 lay
votes. Bishop Ferris received 44 and 41 votes. Bishop Lawrence's name
was removed from the slate after the second ballot.

In response to the request for more names, the bishops nominated the Rt
Revd Ralph Spence, the Bishop of Niagara. He received 25 and 40 votes on
the third ballot, after which his name was removed.

Andrew Hutchison was ordained a priest in 1970 and elected bishop in
1990. In 1999, he was awarded the Jerusalem Prize by the Canadian Jewish
Congress for his support of the non-use of the Good Friday Collect,
which is seen as offensive to the Jewish community because of its
reference to Jews as "lost sheep."

He received his licentiate in theology from Trinity College, University
of Toronto in 1969. He also received honorary doctorates from Montreal
Diocesan College, Trinity College and Bishop's University, Lennoxville,
Que.

He has chaired the national stewardship and financial development
committee, was a member of the National Executive Council of the
Anglican Church of Canada and president of Montreal Diocesan Theological
College. He has served on the Communications and Information Resources
Committee and the Board of Directors of the Anglican Journal.

The Primate is the spiritual and corporate head of the Anglican Church
of Canada, acting as a symbol of unity and pastoral care and the
ambassador to the church overseas. He directs national staff and chairs
meetings of General Synod, the Council of General Synod and the House of
Bishops.

At a news conference shortly after his election, Archbishop Hutchison
said that "one of the great challenges for this church in the next
triennium will be unity. But unity isn't important for its own sake. We
need unity so that we can reclaim our purpose and so that the world may
see and believe."

He said his main priority would be "for our church to redirect its
energy, rediscover our purpose and reclaim our mission. Circumstances
outside the church have forced us in recent years to become
introspective and to focus on who we are as a church and on our church
structure. I want to see us look outward and refocus our attention on
our mission so the world will see the church and say 'see those
Christians, see how they love one another' and want to be part of it.
The church exists for the world, not for the church."

Asked about his views of same-sex blessings, one of the most
controversial topics General Synod members are grappling with during
their nine-day meeting in this Southern Ontario city, Archbishop
Hutchison said that the concept of such blessings were much less of a
problem for him than the idea of same-sex marriages.

Nonetheless, he added, the diocese of Montreal has abided by bishops'
guidelines that do not condone such blessings.

In a "vision of the primacy" prepared by all the candidates, Archbishop
Hutchison described the Primate as "the servant of the whole church ...
both an agent and a symbol of its unity."

Archbishop Hutchison and his wife Lois have a son and a grandson. He
will be formally installed as Primate at a service at Christ's Church
Cathedral in Hamilton on Friday. He succeeds the Most Revd Michael Peers
who served as Primate for 18 years and who retired in February.

___________________________________________________________________
ACNSlist, published by Anglican Communion News Service, London, is
distributed to more than 7,500 journalists and other readers around
the world.

For subscription INFORMATION please go to:
http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acns/acnslist.html