If no sane person of sufficient quality wants to be archbishop of Canterbury, then why not simply leave the see vacant? The Church seems to be getting on perfectly well, albeit with its customary quotient of moral failure and scandal, without a primate of All England. Why is one necessary? In the early modern period it was not uncommon (though not with respect to the see of Canterbury) for bishoprics to be left vacant, albeit so that the crown could harvest their temporalities. Another option might be to take suitable laypeople and ordain and consecrate them within a short period… Read more »
If no sane person of sufficient quality wants to be archbishop of Canterbury, then why not simply leave the see vacant? The Church seems to be getting on perfectly well, albeit with its customary quotient of moral failure and scandal, without a primate of All England. Why is one necessary? In the early modern period it was not uncommon (though not with respect to the see of Canterbury) for bishoprics to be left vacant, albeit so that the crown could harvest their temporalities. Another option might be to take suitable laypeople and ordain and consecrate them within a short period… Read more »