Anglican Church in Wales appoints lesbian archbishop

The Church in Wales, a branch of the Anglican church, on Wednesday elected Cherry Vann as its 15th archbishop. The female priest was one of the first Anglican women to be ordained in 1994 and will also continue to serve as the Bishop of Monmouth, a position she has held since 2020. Church electors chose Vann by a two-thirds majority, according to the church’s website.

Vann is also the first Anglican clergy member identifying as homosexual to become an archbishop. She lives with her civil partner, Wendy, in a same-sex relationship, according to the Christian Concern advocacy group. The church’s endorsement of Vann contradicts its own historical and Biblical teaching on marriage, Christian Concern said. The Church in Wales blesses same-sex civil marriages but holds to the official definition of marriage as between one man and one woman.

Did Vann indicate what her priorities as archbishop would be? She said she would work to address issues the church has faced over the past six months and bring healing and reconciliation, according to the church’s website. 

A series of sexual abuse allegations and scandals recently rocked the Anglican Communion. The previous Archbishop of Wales resigned after a Christian safeguarding agency’s report found a culture of bad language, excessive drinking, and promiscuity among church staff at his cathedral. In January, the Bishop of Liverpool resigned, writing in a statement that he was forced out by allegations of sexual assault, which he denied. The head of the Church of England, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, stepped down last year after he mishandled claims of sexual abuse against a volunteer Christian camp leader.

Dig deeper: Listen to Jenny Lind Schmitt’s story on an Anglican chaplain disciplined for teaching about Biblical marriage.