Election of the First Openly Lesbian Archbishop
The Most Rev. Cherry Vann, aged 67, made history in July as the first openly lesbian archbishop in Christianity. Elected as the 15th Archbishop of Wales by an electoral college of clergy and lay members from the Church in Wales—an independent part of the Anglican Communion since 1920—her appointment has sparked both celebration and controversy within global Anglicanism.
Vann’s Reflections on Opposition and Inclusivity
In a recent BBC interview, Vann addressed the backlash to her election, particularly from those protesting her gender and sexuality:
- She described the opposition as “quite hostile” at times and “very hurtful,” noting it feels like “an attack on who I am and who God has made me to be.”
- Despite the pain, she emphasized respecting differing views: “There are still patches all over the place where people continue to struggle with women in leadership and I have to respect that.”
- Vann acknowledged that some members have left the Church in Wales due to its efforts to welcome LGBT+ people, stating, “The Church in Wales is working hard to welcome LGBT+ people, but also I respect that there are people in the Church in Wales who find that really difficult. Some, sadly, have felt the need to leave and I take that very seriously.”
- She advocated for dialogue: “I don’t want people to feel shut down or silenced just because I hold a different view… We have to find a way as a Church to respect one another’s views and find a commonality in our faith in Christ, despite our differences.”
Vann also highlighted positive responses, with many contacting her to express joy and hope from her election as a civilly partnered woman in leadership. She noted that some find her story “fascinating.”
Broader Context and Global Reactions
Vann’s election has contributed to fractures in the Anglican Communion, exacerbated by other progressive moves, such as King Charles III’s appointment of Dame Sarah Mullally as the first female Archbishop of Canterbury. Mullally, who supports homosexuality, is set for formal installation in 2026.
Conservative Anglican groups have strongly criticized Vann’s appointment:
The Most Rev. Laurent Mbanda, chairman of the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans (GAFCON) Primates Council, called it “an act of apostasy” and “another painful nail in the coffin of Anglican orthodoxy” in an August statement.
Citing the warning in Romans 1:26 that teaches widespread homosexuality among women is a sign of profound divine judgment upon a society, Mbanda said, “We must stand again against the relentless pressure of Anglican revisionists who blatantly impose their immorality upon Christ’s precious church.”
For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature;
Romans 1:26 ESV
The Anglican Church of Nigeria severed ties with the Church in Wales shortly after her election.
Personal Background and Faith Journey
Vann lives with her civil partner, Wendy, and their two dogs. In a Premier Christian News interview last summer, she shared her lifelong sense of her sexuality: “I always believed I was gay and never heard God say to me, who you are is wrong, who you love is wrong, you are living in sin. I have never heard that from God, and that’s all I can say.”
Citing Romans 1:26 as a warning against homosexuality, Mbanda urged resistance to “the relentless pressure of Anglican revisionists who blatantly impose their immorality upon Christ’s precious church,” signaling a need for schism.
She succeeded the Rt. Rev. Andrew John, who resigned in June after three-and-a-half years amid a safeguarding review at Bangor Cathedral. The review uncovered a culture of sexual misconduct, bullying, blurred sexual boundaries, and excessive drinking, though John was not directly implicated.
