The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, has stepped down as the leader of the 80-million strong Anglican Communion amid a struggle with the Church's liberal wing over the issue of homosexuality.

The Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams

LONDON - The Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, leader of the Anglican Communion, who has long struggled to prevent a schism over women and gay bishops and same-sex unions, announced on Friday he will step down at the end of the year.

The 80-million-strong worldwide Communion has been threatened with division for several years, with reformists and conservatives failing to bend to his authority or attempts at consensus.

Dr Williams has been long known for his socially liberal views but he frustrated the liberal wing of the Church by siding with conservatives over the issue of the appointment of homosexual priests.
He faces defeat over the Anglican Communion Covenant, a deal designed to prevent the Church splitting. It effective prevents openly gay clergy from becoming bishops by preventing branches doing anything that might cause a schism.
When Dr Williams unveiled the document in 2010, he urged the church to endorse it or risk seeing the “piece-by-piece dissolution” of the Anglican Communion.
In the Church of England it requires the approval of a majority of the 44 dioceses to proceed to a final vote at the General Synod.

But so far 17 dioceses have voted against, and only ten in favour. The rebellion is being led by liberal dioceses who say they would be punished under the arrangements.
The Covenant was drawn up in response to the split that emerged in 2003 when Gene Robinson was elected the first openly gay Anglican bishop by the Episcopal Church in the US.
Dr Williams set up a commission to try to heal the divisions after protests from conservative clergy, particularly in Africa.

The Covenant does not directly address the issue of gay bishops. But it says the 38 branches should take into account the views of the wider Anglican church when doing anything that “may provoke controversy”.

Williams, 61, the head of the Church of England, the Anglican mother church, will return to academia, taking up a role as Master of Magdalene College, a senior role at Cambridge University. He previously taught theology at Cambridge and Oxford universities.
The normal retirement age for Church of England bishops is 70.
Williams, who was appointed to the post in 2002, will step down at the end of December and take up his new role in January.

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