St. Catharine's, Ont. — Montreal's Archbishop Andrew Hutchison, regarded as a liberal in the divisive dispute over homosexuality, was elected Monday as new national leader of Anglican Church of Canada.
He was chosen as primate on the fourth ballot over Bishop Ronald Ferris of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., a conservative on the issue.
Church delegates face a Wednesday night showdown on whether to give dioceses the go-ahead to provide blessing ceremonies for same-sex couples.
In 1998, after a meeting the world's Anglican bishops voted overwhelmingly to oppose actively gay clergy and blessing rituals for same-sex couples as “incompatible with Scripture,” Archbishop Hutchison joined 146 bishops in issuing a dissent.
The group, which included Canada's retiring primate, Archbishop Michael Peers, apologized to gays and lesbians over the action and pledged to “work for your full inclusion in the life of the church.”
Archbishop Hutchison, who speaks French fluently, has headed the Montreal diocese since 1990 and later added the post of archbishop, supervising one of four sectors in the denomination.
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