Gafcon, a worldwide Anglican movement, has voiced strong criticism following the appointment of Dame Sarah Mullally as the first female archbishop of Canterbury.
Gafcon leaders criticized Mullally’s support for introducing prayers of blessing for same-sex marriages and her 2023 comment suggesting that some same-sex relationships could be blessed, asserting that these actions demonstrated she had failed to uphold her consecration vows.
The Most Rev. Laurent Mbanda, chairman of the Gafcon Primates Council, stated in a message to the Gafcon community on October 3 that the Church of England had “chosen a leader who will further divide an already split Communion.”
“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,” he continued. “As we made clear in our Kigali Commitment of 2023, we can ‘no longer recognize the Archbishop of Canterbury as an Instrument of Communion’ or the ‘first among equals’ of global Primates.”
While some may see Mullally’s appointment as a historic milestone for women in church leadership, Mbanda emphasized that many Anglicans still believe that episcopal leadership should be reserved for men.
He expressed concern that Mullally’s actions indicate a failure to uphold her vows, stating, “When she was consecrated in 2015, she took an oath to ‘banish and drive away all strange and erroneous doctrine contrary to God’s Word,’” and added, “And yet, far from banishing such doctrine, Bishop Mullally has repeatedly promoted unbiblical and revisionist teachings regarding marriage and sexual morality.”
He pointed to her 2023 remarks, when asked whether sexual intimacy in a same-sex relationship is sinful, in which she said that some such relationships could be blessed, and noted that she also voted in favor of blessing same-sex marriages within the Church of England.
“Anglicans believe that the church has been given authority by God to establish rites and ceremonies and to settle doctrine controversy, ‘and yet it is not lawful for the Church to ordain any thing that is contrary to God’s Word’ (Article XX),” Mbanda explained. “The church cannot bless or affirm what God has condemned (Numbers 23:8; 24:13). This, however, is precisely what Bishop Mullally has sought to allow.”
According to Mbanda, since the new Archbishop of Canterbury has failed to guard the faith and has been “complicit in introducing practices and beliefs that violate both the ‘plain and canonical sense’ of Scripture and ‘the Church’s historic and consensual’ interpretation of it (Jerusalem Statement), she cannot provide leadership to the Anglican Communion.”
He added, “The leadership of the Anglican Communion will pass to those who uphold the truth of the gospel and the authority of Scripture in all areas of life.”
Mbanda recalled that Gafcon first convened in Jerusalem in 2008 to restore the Anglican Communion to biblical foundations.
He stated that Mullally’s appointment indicates that Canterbury has surrendered its authority to lead, leaving Gafcon to take responsibility for guiding the Communion forward.
Gafcon has scheduled a major gathering of orthodox Anglican bishops in Abuja, Nigeria, from March 3-6, 2026, called the G26 Bishops Assembly, to discuss these issues, which is expected to be the most significant gathering of “faithful Anglicans” since 2008, according to Gafcon.
