Woman archbishop appointment ‘a joke’

NAMIBIAN faith leaders are sharply divided over dame Sarah Mullally’s appointment as the first woman Archbishop of Canterbury, with one even calling the decision a joke.

The Archbishop of Canterbury is the most senior bishop in the Church of England and also the ceremonial leader of the global Anglican Communion, an international network of churches in more than 165 countries.

Bishop Lukas Katenda, the leader of the Reformed Evangelical Anglican Church of Namibia (Reach-Namibia), who was raised an Anglican, says Mullally’s appointment is unfortunate and unorthodox.

“She is not a person to look up to for evangelism, for mission, for proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ, for winning souls or to call people for repentance.

“We don’t have a history of her doing any of that. Otherwise, where is the evidence?” he asks.

Katenda says being a bishop is a serious office, unlike a political office.

According to him, the bishop must be an evangelist, a teacher, missionary, preacher and able to call people for repentance.

Katenda says Mullally is not properly trained to be a bishop and describes her appointment as “merely a joke”.

“A bishop must not be a matter of saying ‘we have the first female archbishop’, but rather people should ask themselves if this person is qualified to lead the flock of Christ and bring people to salvation in Jesus Christ,” he says.

Katenda says events in Canterbury do not directly involve his church nor are they affected by them, because their association to Anglicanism is through faith in Christ alone and not through a person occupying ecclesiastical office.

“We are happy to be aligned with Bible-believing Anglicans and other Christians – both in England and elsewhere. In the meantime, let us proclaim Christ to the nation and work for the restoration of the Bible at the heart of Anglican Communion and reformation now.

“Let us pray for Mrs Mullally and her diocese and whatever remains of the Canterbury-based Anglican Communion to acknowledge that salvation comes by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ, by holy scripture and to the glory of God alone,” he says.

Mullally’s appointment has drawn mixed reactions across the Anglican community globally.

Last week, Nigeria’s Anglican Church broke from the Church of England over her appointment.

Nigeria’s Anglican primate, archbishop Henry Ndukuba, describes Mullally’s election as “insensitive and devastating” for the global Anglican Communion.

SUPPORT FOR SAME-SEX MARRIAGE

According to him, it disregards the biblical convictions of many Anglicans who oppose woman headship in the episcopate and her public support for same-sex marriage blessings.

Reverend Nangula Kathindi, a priest in the Anglican Church, however, welcomes Mullally’s appointment.

She says the appointment of the first woman Archbishop of Canterbury is a milestone for women in leadership within the church.

“We are happy. This is the first woman archbishop of Canterbury. We are truly excited and we hope women around the world will be inspired. This is a big achievement for the girl child, because they will live to know anything is possible and their dreams are valid.

“It has always been about me being elected and appointed into key positions especially in the clergy community, but now things have changed and we are witnessing a first woman archbishop of Canterbury,” she says.

Kathindi made history as the first woman to contest for the position of bishop in the Anglican Church of Namibia in 2018.

She later became the rector of the Parish of St Michael’s in Katutura.

‘WE ARE HAPPY’

She says Mullally’s personal stance on same-sex relationships should not overshadow her appointment.

“I don’t see why we should say no to a woman archbishop because of what she stands for. I’m not saying this because I also support same-sex marriage, because the emphasis should be on her being appointed as woman archbishop.

“For a change, we are happy to have a woman archbishop,” Kathindi says.

Attempts to get comment from other Anglican faith leaders, including the bishop of the Namibian diocese, were not successful.

Some of the leaders initially agreed to speak to us, but later withdrew, referring The Namibian to the bishop.

Mullally was appointed as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury 3 October.

She will officially assume her role in January 2026, with a formal installation ceremony in March.

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