The Installation of the Archbishop of Canterbury, brought to you by...

Tomorrow, at Canterbury Cathedral, the Most Revd Dame Sarah Mullally will be installed as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury.

This marks the first test for the Global Anglican Communion's claim that stewardship of the Anglican Communion has shifted from the Archbishop of Canterbury to the Global Anglican Council.

The service will be led by the Dean of the Cathedral, the Very Revd Dr David Monteith, an openly gay priest in a same-sex civil partnership. It will be funded by organisations embedded in TEC, The Episcopal Church of the USA.

The Order of Service lists twelve organisations which have offered particular support for "the putting on of this service," including,

• The Compass Rose Society

• Virginia Theological Seminary

• The Diocese of Pennsylvania

• The Diocese of Texas

• Trinity Wall Street Church

• The Church of St Michael and All Angels, Dallas

These six organisations are, without doubt, what Gafcon's Abuja Affirmation would describe as, "compromised sources." Only ten years ago the gathered Primates of the Anglican Communion, said TEC had acted in such a way as to "represent a fundamental departure from the faith". Since then they have continually rejected the Communion's collective call for repentance. For decades they have funded the propogation of the revisionist theology that has fuelled division within the Anglican Communion.

Alongside these six, the Lambeth Partnership, is also mentioned. It is made up of about three hundred wealthy individuals, many of whom are also based in TEC and the Anglican Church of Canada.

There can no longer be any doubt as to where the new Archbishop of Canterbury's allegiances lie. Whether it is in accepting Monteith or the money, Sarah Mullally has shown she is entirely comfortable with aligning herself with the progressive agenda in the Church.

Tomorrow's service will include much pomp and ceremony, including several processions. The processions will offer a clear sign of who has agreed to stand with Sarah Mullally at this time. It is a time when words and actions have to align.

It will make a mockery of the Global Anglican Communion if those who attended G26 in Abuja are celebrating the installation of the Archbishop of Canterbury. Similarly, If a number of Primates from the Global South Fellowship of Anglicans, who have previously stated that they," were no longer able to recognise the Archbishop of Canterbury as the ‘first amongst equals’ leader of the global Communion," attend, it will undermine the idea that a shift in leadership has taken place.

Yet, this is not just a moment of decision for bishops from the Global South - it is also such a moment for those in the Church of England.

The Abuja Affirmation states that "it is a matter of conscience, when rejecting the authority of revisionist leaders, as to whether one remains or not in a compromised ecclesial structure. We stand, for example, with those who remain within the Church of England who assent to the Jerusalem Declaration, who seek to remain as a faithful witness within the Church of England structures."

The Order of Service reveals that the meaning of "rejecting the authority of revisionist leaders" will be sorely tested tomorrow by the part the Bishop of Ebbsfleet, the Rt Revd Rob Munro, will be taking in the service.

Munro was in Abuja and has made much of his need to separate himself from the Archbishop of Canterbury's spiritual authority. This means that while he remains canonically resident in the Diocese of Canterbury and under the jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Canterbury, he has been offered pastoral oversight from the Bishop of Rochester.

Despite this, according to the Order of Service, the Bishop of Ebbsfleet will not only be present in the Cathedral tomorrow but will also be part of a separate procession that will welcome the Rt Revd Sarah Mullally at the door and bring her in to the Cathedral. It is very difficult to imagine that this is an example of the "principled disengagement" required by the Global Anglican Communion. It may also raise questions amongst the respect the conservative evangelicals in England that he is called to serve.

The theme of G26 and the Abuja Affirmation was "Choose this day whom you will serve." Many will be glad that the choices laid before Anglican leaders are simple.

The Church of England has chosen someone who unashamedly affirms liberal, progressive theology to lead them. In doing so they have rejected the views and consciences of the majority of Global Anglicans. Tomorrow, choices will be laid bare. There will be those who choose to "walk together" with the Archbishop of Canterbury and there wil be those who choose to stay away, walkong instead in the ancient paths of faithful Anglicanism.

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Anglican Futures will be reporting on the Installation

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