The Archbishop of Canterbury is resigning. Mark Stevens wants the job. I’d vote for him if I had a vote.

The issue with the Catholic Church and the Anglican Church is similar. The Catholic Church will face the selection of a new pope before too long, I’m sure. When Pope John Paul II died, they had the opportunity to step up to new realities, but declined. The Anglican Church is in the same position.

As Ross Douthat points out, the new reality is both churches are in decline in their “home turf” yet growing rapidly in other parts of the world. Maybe it’s time to step up and embrace that reality.

Not being Catholic or Anglican, I don’t get to make that call, or even have a voice in that call. It’s their communion. But when there is an opportunity to recognize the shift of the church’s base, why not make a fresh step? Both the Catholic and Anglican communions could embrace African leaders, where their churches are actually growing.

Not that they will take that opportunity, but it is a refreshing thought.