Pope Leo XIV welcomes the new Anglican Archbishop

“The unity which Christians seek is never an end in itself, but is directed towards the proclamation of Christ.” Pope Leo XIV wrote these words in a March 26, 2026, letter to Sarah Mullally, installed as Archbishop of Canterbury the day before. The Pontiff said he's praying for her; she is the first woman to become Primate of the Anglican Communion. Furthermore, he noted his awareness of the "challenging moment" her church is currently facing.

Officials first announced Mullally's nomination on October 3, 2025. The college of canons then officially elected her in December. Finally, her election was legally confirmed on January 28.

Her predecessor, Justin Welby, served from 2013 to 2025. He stepped down after receiving harsh criticism for his handling of an Anglican priest convicted of abusing minors. 

Mullally was solemnly installed on Wednesday at Canterbury Cathedral, the mother church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. This historic site serves as the Church of England's primary episcopal see and was founded in 597.

In his letter, Leo XIV sent his "prayerful greetings" to Mullally. He emphasized how her role carries a "weighty” responsibility toward the entire Anglican Communion. The Pope said he prays the new archbishop will be "guided by the Holy Spirit in serving [her] communities."

Following the English Reformation in the 16th century, strong tensions persisted with Canterbury for several centuries. This led to persecutions against English Catholics and the excommunication of Anglican Church supporters.

However, the first signs of reconciliation appeared in the United Kingdom during the 19th century. "Catholic emancipation" removed strict restrictions placed on English and Irish Catholics. Additionally, the Anglo-Catholic movement and the Oxford Movement emerged. These groups distanced themselves from the Puritan tradition by reclaiming their Catholic heritage.

Despite this, Rome stood firm against Canterbury throughout the 19th century. This was especially true under Pope Leo XIII. In his 1896 bull Apostolicae Curae, he declared that Anglican ordinations "have been and are absolutely null and utterly void."

A preliminary shift occurred during the "Malines Conversations" under Pope Benedict XV. This marked the first rough outline of ecumenical dialogue between the two groups.

However, true reconciliation began under Pope John XXIII. He created the Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity in 1960. The Second Vatican Council (1962-1965) furthered this progress. It ultimately led to the conciliar decree Unitatis Redintegratio, which Pope Paul VI promulgated in 1964.

In his letter, Leo XIV also recalled a "historic encounter" in Rome. Their predecessors, Pope Paul VI and Archbishop Michael Ramsey, met there in 1966. This encounter led to the signing of a joint declaration. It marked "a new stage in the development of fraternal relations, based upon Christian charity."

"That fresh chapter of respectful openness has borne much fruit over the past six decades and continues to this day," the Pontiff stated. He specifically cited the 1971 creation of the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC).

This reconciliation has allowed Catholics and Anglicans "to witness together more effectively," the Bishop of Rome emphasized. He considers this "especially vital given the manifold challenges facing our human family today."

Leo XIV said he's "grateful, therefore, that this important dialogue continues." However, he also acknowledged that "the ecumenical journey has not always been smooth."

The Pope notably recalled the 2016 common declaration by Justin Welby and Pope Francis. They had recognized that "new circumstances have presented new disagreements among us."

Nevertheless, he shared his firm belief "that we need to continue to dialogue in truth and love, for it is only in truth and love that we come to know together the grace, mercy and peace of God."

“The unity which Christians seek is never an end in itself, but is directed towards the proclamation of Christ, in order that, as the Lord Jesus himself prayed, ‘the world may believe,’” the pope emphasized.

He also assured her of his certainty that proclaiming the Gospel is only possible "through the witness of a reconciled, fraternal and united Christian community."

This desire for unity and reconciliation was beautifully illustrated on October 23 of last year. Pope Leo XIV and King Charles III prayed together in the Sistine Chapel. This marked a first since the Anglican Reformation and the separation of the two Churches in 1534.

During the event, the British monarch conferred a special title upon Leo XIV. He made the Pope a "Papal Confrater" of St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle. In return, the King was instituted as a "Royal Confrater" of the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome.

The Pope deliberately chose to sign his letter to Archbishop Mullally on March 20, 2026, noting it was on the “Memorial of St. Cuthbert.” This saint was a 7th-century monk and bishop, also known as Cuthbert of Lindisfarne. He remains one of England's most important medieval saints. Bede the Venerable famously described him as one of the great architects behind the British archipelago's evangelization.

Pope Leo XIV specifically pointed to a "challenging moment in the history of the Anglican family." This references the sometimes separatist tendencies of several conservative Anglican factions. These groups have openly opposed Canterbury's leadership in recent years, specifically regarding matters of sexual morality and the ordination of women to the episcopacy. More profoundly, they criticize what they perceive as a tendency to let contemporary culture dictate the direction of the Anglican Communion, instead of Sacred Scripture. Consequently, many of them strongly criticized Mullally's appointment.

GAFCON (the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans) is one of the largest and most outspoken Anglican groups. Founded in 2008, it brings together conservative Anglican churches, mostly from Africa and the rest of the Global South. It claims to represent more than 85% of the world’s active Anglicans, although this number is disputed.

After growing tensions with the Church of England and other more liberal Anglican provinces, it has taken a stand against having Archbishop Mullally at the head of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The chairman of GAFCON, the Most Reverend Dr. Laurent Mbanda, Archbishop of the Anglican Church of Rwanda, issued a statement in this regard on October 3, 2025.

“This appointment abandons global Anglicans, as the Church of England has chosen a leader who will further divide an already split Communion,” he wrote. The Archbishop of Canterbury is historically one of the four “Instruments of Communion” in the Anglican church. However, he says, “due to the failure of successive Archbishops of Canterbury to guard the faith, the office can no longer function as a credible leader of Anglicans, let alone a focus of unity.”

This leads him to conclude that members of GAFCON “can ‘no longer recognize the Archbishop of Canterbury as an Instrument of Communion’ or the ‘first among equals’ of global Primates.” Consequently, he called a meeting of “global orthodox Anglican bishops” in Abuja, Nigeria, on March 3-6 of 2026.

Shortly after this statement, on October 16, 2025 he issued another message declaring that GAFCON Primates are going to “reform the Anglican Communion” in line with their Jerusalem Statement of 2008. Among other things, that includes “reordering” the Communion with “only one foundation,” the Holy Bible, abandoning Anglicanism’s traditional “Instruments of Communion” (the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Lambeth Conference, the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC), and the Primates Meeting), “which have failed to uphold the doctrine and discipline of the Anglican Communion.”

“Today,” he concludes, “GAFCON is leading the Global Anglican Communion. As has been the case from the very beginning, we have not left the Anglican Communion; we are the Anglican Communion.”

The posterior meeting in Abuja fell short of naming a rival “first among equals,” one of the goals mentioned in October. Nonetheless, it formed a new leadership council and declared that it recognizes Archbishop Laurent Mbanda as its leader.

As the BBC notes, “Where this leaves the relationship between GAFCON and the Church of England is not clear.” The Anglican Communion already has a less centralized structure than the Catholic Church and can perhaps maintain a kind of unity despite this “parallel leadership structure.” Whether it will lead to a full-on schism in the Anglican Church is yet to be seen.