Dr Williams voted as one of the least Effective Archbishops in modern times

The current Archbishop of Canterbury has been voted as one of the least effective Archbishop of Canterbury’s in modern times according to a poll conducted using over 200 of his own clergymen.

In a questionnaire, the clergy members were asked ‘who do you think has been the most effective archbishop over the past 60years?’ The response for Williams turned out to be poor, with only 21 votes going his way.

Since his ordination into the role of Archbishop of Canterbury in 2002, Christian communities have often seen him as someone who has lacked a common touch, and who has failed in his attempts to draw and attract worshippers. One voter said about the archbishop, “He needs to express profound thoughts with greater clarity for simpler minds.”

The poll also asked clergy many other questions, including what their favourite hymn was, who was the most inspirational saint, and their most treasured Biblical passage.

Former Archbishop, Michael Ramsey, who was archbishop of Canterbury between 1961 and 1974 was voted the most effective Anglican leader with one in three clergy voting for him. Dr Ramsey may be most well remembered for his historic meeting with Pope John Paul VI in 1966, which was the first ever between a pontiff and an archbishop of Canterbury since the Reformation. Ramsey was also well-respected and commended for his “good sense of humour and absolute holiness”.

Another former archbishop that was given strong praise was Lord Carey, who presided over the vital issue of women ordinations in the 1990’s, and who recently spoke out over the “glaring absence of democracy in Muslim countries”. Carey, who was acting archbishop from 1991 to 2002 when Williams took over, received 20 percent of the vote which placed him second in the poll.

Supporters of Archbishop Rowan Williams would point out that he received so few votes due to the fact that he is still a relatively new archbishop, and he has also created an uneasy feeling amongst many clergy with his handling of the homosexuality in the church issues that have plagued the Church over the past year.

In another question in the poll, clergy were asked about who they thought the most influential living Christian was, and Dr Williams finished a much more respectable second, ahead of the Pope and Nelson Mandela. The winner of this question, however, was the Nobel-Prize winning anti-apartheid campaigner, who received twice as many votes as Williams with a quarter of all votes.

Interestingly the most treasured Biblical passage was voted to be John, Chapter 1:
“In the beginning there was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

The book of John was considered to be the most popular of the Bible, and gained 53 of the 203 votes.

Favourite Psalm was Psalm 139:
“O Lord, thou has searched me, and known me.”

The most popular parable was the ‘Parable of the Prodigal Son’, which amassed a massive 44 percent of the total vote. St. Peter was voted favourite saint ahead of St Francis of Assisi and St Paul, and the deadliest of the seven sins was considered to be Pride; thought by many clergy to be the root of most other evils.

The favourite church building in Britain was Durham Cathedral, established in 1093 and which holds the remains of St Cuthbert, who was the seventh century Bishop of Lindisfarne. In second place was the York Minster from 1220. Surprisingly Canterbury Cathedral collected just nine votes among the polled clergy.

Current Archbishop of Canterbury failed to win a single polled category, however, some voters did give their support to Rev Williams, saying: “He combines three things: a brilliant mind, a prayerful life and political wisdom,” and also, “He is clearly a man of deep faith and conviction. He is an outstanding theologian.”

The archbishop and his spokespersons refused to give comment on the findings in the poll.