Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Anglican Church in North America Statement on Welby's Appointment


By The Most Reverend Robert W. Duncan
November 9, 2012

On behalf of the College of Bishops, clergy and laity of the Anglican Church in North America, I greet Bishop Justin Welby and wish him God's blessings and every success as he prepares to step into his new ministry as Archbishop of Canterbury.

I assure him of our regular prayers as he assumes his new responsibilities in a time of significant challenge, tension and opportunity within our Anglican Communion. Bishop Welby's resume reveals a man who is devoted to God's Word and responsive to the Holy Spirit.

The Bishop's heart for the poor, particularly as priest and bishop in England's post-industrial North, is a heart with which we can readily identify.

His experience and skill with mediation and conflict resolution should serve him well in his new office. As Archbishop of the Anglican Church in North America, I look forward to getting to know Bishop Welby and to working with him.

It has been very helpful to have the doors of Lambeth Palace open to us under his two immediate predecessors, and I trust that Bishop Welby and I will develop a good and open relationship as I commit to work with him and others for the good, and the good order, of all who call themselves Anglican.

With my colleagues of the GAFCON Primates Council and with all who are part of the movement which is the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans, I share the conviction that submission to "the apostles' teaching and fellowship, the breaking of bread and to the prayers" is the surest course through the days ahead.

May the Lord grant us all His grace and wisdom as we move forward in this new season together. 



The Most Reverend Robert W. Duncan is Archbishop and Primate of The Anglican Church in North America.

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