Sarah Mullally named the next Archbishop of Canterbury

A Statement from Bishop Daniel Gutiérrez

My family in Christ,

The Right Reverend and Right Honorable Dame Sarah Mullally, currently the Bishop of London, has been chosen to become the next Archbishop of Canterbury.  In this role, she will serve as the spiritual leader of 85 million members of the Anglican Communion worldwide.  This is a historic step for the church to which we belong.  

I know Bishop Mullally, and I have sent her a note expressing our congratulations, prayers, and blessings.  Suzanne and I had the opportunity to have lunch with her shortly after she was elected Bishop of London, and our paths have continued to cross over the years because of my ministry with the Compass Rose Society.  She is wise, compassionate, and deeply faithful.  She brings to her faith and ministry all her previous experience as a nurse, and she speaks beautifully of her relationship with Jesus Christ.

Bishop Mullally faces tremendous challenges ahead, given the political, theological, and financial challenges facing the Body of Christ and all of God’s beloved.  As Bishop Mullally said in her address today, “Hope doesn’t skip over grief, pain, and the messiness of life but enters into it, and tenderly tells us that God is with us.”  God is with us, and we share one hope founded in the Good News of Jesus. 

As members of the Compass Rose Society, we remain steadfast in our commitment to support the unity and mission of the Anglican Communion through the work of the Anglican Communion Office.  We look forward to working with Bishop Mullally as she steps into her new role.  We are called to support and sustain one another as siblings in Christ.  I ask that you pray for this courageous disciple as she accepts this burden and responsibility.

In Christ,

Daniel G.P. Gutiérrez

XVI Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania

President of the Compass Rose Society