Anglican Communion Announces The New Deputy Secretary : Report from Premierchristian.news has it that the Bishop for Episcopal Ministry in the Anglican Communion, the Right Revd Dr Jo Bailey Wells has been announced as the new Deputy Secretary General of the Anglican Communion.
Bailey Wells’ appointment was announced on Wednesday by the Secretary-General, the Right Revd Anthony Poggo. In her new position, she will support Bishop Anthony Poggo in managing the activities of the Anglican Communion Office, which is in charge of a worldwide family of churches spread over more than 165 nations.
Bishop Anthony said Bishop Wells’s appointment would: “foster a collaborative, engaged, enriched fellowship among the bishops of the Anglican Communion, inspiring ever greater companionship, learning and interchange between provinces.
“As my deputy, she will play an increased role of the leadership in the Secretariat while continuing to develop connections between bishops around the world,” he added.
The Chair of the Anglican Communion Standing Committee, Canon Maggie Swinson, said: “Although Bishop Jo has served in her current role for less than a year, she has already had a significant impact in developing connections between bishops across provinces and cultures. Her new role as Deputy Secretary General is indicative of the importance of this work and I am delighted that she has accepted the invitation to take on this new additional responsibility.”
Speaking of her appointment, Bishop Jo said: “I am hugely honored now to be invited to serve as Deputy Secretary General.
“The global Communion has ever been at the heart of my commitment within the body of Christ. Though my faith was nurtured in the Church of England, it was in Uganda that I came to understand Anglicanism; and it was during my first spell in the United States that I discovered the call to ordination.”
The 58-year-old Bishop was ordained in the Church of England as a deacon, priest, and bishop in 1995,1996 and 2016 respectively. She has served as Dean of Clare College, Cambridge. She is also the founder of the Anglican Episcopal House of Studies.
Wells became Chaplain to the Archbishop of Canterbury in 2013. In 2016, she moved to the Diocese of Guildford as Bishop of Dorking. In January 2023 she took up her role as Bishop for Episcopal Ministry in the Anglican Communion.