THE Archbishop of Canterbury will face significant challenges as she seeks to achieve meaningful change in the life of the Church, and wider society, at a moment when the Anglican Communion faces profound — and very public — strains.

Of course, an Archbishop of Canterbury’s ability to get things done rests primarily on authority — and the consequent ability to influence and convene partnerships — rather than on the power associated with executive office.

Archbishop Mullally’s appointment comes in the shadow of church failures on safeguarding, and amid deep divisions, not least over gender and sexuality, which have, in many people’s eyes, eroded the Church’s authority. At home and abroad, including in those parts of Africa where the Church is growing rapidly, many issues related to gender, power, and accountability remain unresolved.

The language of misogyny may make some people uncomfortable, but, the Archbishop has made clear, the Church is not immune from the underlying behaviours that it describes.

The Communion’s ability to exercise moral authority in a troubled and grossly unequal world — which is needed badly at a time of geopolitical turmoil, climate breakdown, and profound inequality — hinges partly on whether it can overcome its internal tensions. But, as it navigates these difficult waters, it can and should draw encouragement and credibility from its undoubted power for good as a significant humanitarian and development actor in many of the world’s poorest and most unstable contexts.

THE Communion has genuine scale — it counts up to 100 million people globally as members — and is increasingly shaped by the Global South. Today, the typical Anglican is not an English parishioner, but a young African woman. In many of the communities in which Christian Aid works, faith is not a private matter, but the organising principle of daily life. More than 90 per cent of people in the Global South identify with a religious tradition, and churches are embedded in communities for the long term, commanding real trust, especially where the State is absent or predatory.

The Communion is home to an array of highly effective agencies that work in health, education, women’s economic empowerment, and emergency response.

This gives the Communion the “Heineken effect”: the ability to reach the places that others cannot reach. It is one reason that, increasingly, governments and international NGOs recognise that to have a sustainable impact, they need to work with faith communities. Translating reach into impact, and influence into effectiveness, requires broad partnerships.

Take conflict. South Sudan’s independence in 2011 was followed by years of violence, displacement, and short-lived ceasefires. External interventions have repeatedly fallen short of what is needed. In that vacuum, churches have been a practical lifeline for communities, while also as acting as mediators between warring parties.

The Anglican Church there, working as a member of the South Sudan Council of Churches, has played a vital part in local peace efforts. People such as Canon Grace Kaiso, through the Anglican Alliance, are engaged in painstaking, long-term work to support reconciliation.

The same pragmatic partnership is needed on climate. The Church has a strong theological basis for environmental stewardship and significant convening power. Initiatives such as the Anglican Communion’s “Communion Forest” seek to mobilise churches globally around ecosystem restoration and advocacy. But to achieve impact at scale requires a shift among the main climate-finance institutions, with the Church leveraging itself as an investor.

ACTION on gender justice may be more contested than on peace and climate, but it is no less necessary. Globally, one in three women will experience physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. These are not isolated acts, but patterns of behaviour reinforced by social norms, which, often, religious institutions have legitimised and reinforced.

But, precisely because of its influence, the Church is also uniquely placed to help to change those norms. Christian Aid’s work with Christian and Muslim leaders, including Anglicans, as part of the “Side by Side” movement against gender-based violence, is an example of what can be done to bring domestic violence out of the shadows and into open discussion, drawing on the scriptural resources of religious communities.

In a world of short-term interventions, divisive political rhetoric, and declining trust, embedded, values-driven leadership matters. The Anglican Alliance, through its unique network of church agencies working with partners — including Christian Aid — is helping to translate moral authority into practical action.

When the Church acts with humility, consistency, and local legitimacy, it can move mountains. If Archbishop Mullally can strengthen and accelerate that work, her enthronement will not just be symbolically powerful: it will mark a real turning point in the world.

Patrick Watt is the chief executive of Christian Aid, which Archbishop Mullally chaired before she became Archbishop of Canterbury.

Christian Aid’s annual fundraising week runs from 10 to 16 May.

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