Williams, Rowan Douglas

Williams, Rowan Douglas,

1950–, archbishop of Canterbury (2002–12), b. Swansea, Wales; grad. Christ's College, Cambridge (B.A., 1971; M.A., 1975), Wadham College, Oxford (D.Phil., 1975). Ordained a priest in 1978, he was a teacher, dean, and chaplain at Cambridge (1977–86) and a professor of theology at Oxford (1986–92). He subsequently served as bishop of Monmouth (1992–2002) and archbishop of Wales (2000–2002). When Williams was enthroned (2002) as the 104th archbishop of Canterbury, succeeding George L. CareyCarey, George Leonard,
1935–, archbishop of Canterbury (1991–2002). From a working-class background, he graduated from the London School of Divinity in 1962 and was ordained the same year.
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, he became the first person from outside England to hold the title since the Reformation. An outspoken and sometimes controversial liberal, Williams has supported the ordination of women and gay priests, favored separation of church and state, and opposed Western (especially American) militarism. His tenure as Anglican primate was marked by worsening relations between liberals and conservatives in the church, especially between conservative African churches and liberal North American ones, and he worked to avoid a schism and maintain Anglican unity. Justin WelbyWelby, Justin Portal,
1956–, archbishop of Canterbury (2013–), b. London, grad. Trinity College, Cambridge (B.A., 1978). An oil executive until 1989, he studied theology at St. John's College, Durham (grad. 1992) and was ordained a deacon in 1992 and a priest in 1993.
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 succeeded him. Williams is a theologian and scholar whose books include Christian Spirituality (1980), The Truce of God (1983), On Christian Theology (1999), Writing in the Dust: After September 11 (2002), Lost Icons (2002), and studies of Arius (1987) and Theresa of Ávila (1991). He has also written volumes of poetry.