A New Chapter Begins for the Anglican Church as Sarah Mullally Steps In
On October 3, 2025, the announcement came that Sarah Mullally would take the helm as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury. After a series of ceremonies spread over twenty-five weeks, including last week’s grand ‘Installation’, she is now ready to embrace her responsibilities.
Joaquin Philpotts, an industrial engineer and lay-minister from Buenos Aires, has witnessed this journey closely. Serving as one of five representatives of the Anglican Communion on the Crown Nomination Commission, he engaged in lengthy deliberations over potential candidates last summer. In January, he participated in the ‘Charge’ at Mullally’s election confirmation, and more recently, he attended her installation at Canterbury Cathedral.
Philpotts’ message to Mullally was straightforward: “As an Instrument of Communion, you are called to minister personally and pastorally to all member churches of the Anglican Communion, especially in collegial partnership with your fellow Primates.” Yet, the unity within the Anglican Communion faces challenges, as leaders from twelve out of forty-two provinces were absent from the ceremony, signaling a rift in the harmony that Mullally’s predecessor had aspired to maintain.
Reflecting on these challenges, Philpotts, representing the Church of South America, whose primate was present in Canterbury, shared his thoughts. “I think we are in a very special moment. We’ve got to keep looking to work together but we cannot walk on opposite sides of the street. We’ve got to face our problems – we have to agree what are problems are and look how to solve them … I am hearing a lot about unity, but we cannot have unity without order,” he expressed.
Philpotts emphasized the doctrinal divide, particularly concerning same-sex blessings, suggesting that consensus cannot be reached if both perspectives claim correctness. He stated, “It is a doctrinal issue, and it is important, and that is why I think we cannot keep walking together forever. We have to solve our differences based on the word of God and we can’t think forever that we both believe in the word of God but we interpret it different. The word of God was inspired by the same Holy Spirit.”
Referencing Matthew 15:12-14, Philpotts warned of a time when actions contrary to divine will would be pruned, underscoring the serious responsibility ahead. Currently, he supports the Nairobi-Cairo Covenant and upcoming proposals under the Anglican Consultative Communion’s review. However, he remains skeptical of Gafcon’s new Global Anglican Communion, viewing it as a potential source of further division.
Philpotts advocates for a Christ-centered focus and acknowledges that structural changes alone cannot resolve the issues facing the Communion. “I think we’ve got to focus on Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit and understand that the Nairobi-Cairo proposals to broaden the leadership is not a solution … it is not only the leadership’s responsibility. Whatever way it broadens, it is not only that, they will have to solve the problems – we all have to solve the problems.”
Despite these complexities, Philpotts remains optimistic, noting the transformative journey of his own Province over the past four decades, marked by cultural integration and spiritual revival. His hope for Archbishop Mullally is clear: “My prayer for her, my personal and special prayer is that she preaches a bold gospel. Bold, not bold preaching, but the preaching of a bold gospel – we have to let the world know about the gospel.”
Susie Leafe is director of Anglican Futures, an organisation that provides pastoral and practical support to orthodox Anglicans.
This article was originally written by www.christiantoday.com
