So, farewell, Rowan Williams. Actually he still has nine months left as Archbishop of Canterbury, apart from the England manager’s job, the most poisoned chalice of all. But now he’s announced his departure, he’s on borrowed time.
In Britain we marvel at the excesses of American Christianity and pat ourselves on the back that it couldn’t happen here. But the position of Williams was such that his role was to paper over the cracks. We expect intolerant ravings from the Catholics and the Muslims but the good old CofE is supposed to be above all that, and in the minds of many is supposed to reflect both our spiritual (whatever that is) and our national identity. This wasn’t Henry VIII’s initial purpose, to be sure. Continue reading