Many dioceses, one body

In Anglican life, the word Province is often heard but not always understood. Yet it is one of the most important concepts holding together a global communion of more than 80 million believers. A Province is not merely an administrative layer in church bureaucracy; it is a theological expression of how Anglicans understand unity, authority, and shared mission in a diverse world.

At its heart, Anglicanism is a communion rather than a centrally governed church. Unlike traditions with a single global hierarchy, Anglicans are organised as self-governing churches – commonly called Provinces or National Churches – linked together by faith, worship, and historic episcopal order. Each Province has responsibility for its own life and mission, while remaining in fellowship with the wider Anglican family.

PROVINCE IN ANGLICAN HISTORY

The idea of Province is ancient. From the earliest centuries, Christian communities were organised regionally, with bishops exercising pastoral oversight within defined territories and meeting together in councils. This pattern was inherited by the Church of England and reshaped at the Reformation. When Anglicanism spread beyond England through mission and empire, it became neither practical nor theologically sound for every decision to be controlled from Canterbury. Provinces emerged as the means by which local churches could govern themselves faithfully in their own contexts.

In Anglican usage, a Province is therefore a communion of dioceses, united by shared doctrine, worship, and discipline, and governed synodically by bishops, clergy, and laity. Because of this, a Province is often referred to as a National Church. In some cases, such as the Church of England or the Anglican Church of Canada, a Province corresponds closely to a nation-state. In other regions, including the Caribbean, a single Province embraces several nations and territories, reflecting shared history and regional identity.

UNITY WITHOUT COERCION

What holds these Provinces together globally are not laws imposed from above, but relationships of communion. This is expressed through the Instruments of Communion: the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Lambeth Conference of bishops, the Anglican Consultative Council, and the Primates’ Meeting. Together, they foster consultation, prayer, and mutual accountability.

The office of Archbishop of Canterbury traces its origins to Augustine of Canterbury, sent in 597 CE to lead the mission to England. Over time, the role came to serve as a focus of unity for Anglicans worldwide. In a historic moment for the Church, Sarah Mullally was confirmed in January 2026 as the first woman to occupy that office. Significantly, the Archbishop of Canterbury exercises moral and relational leadership, not coercive authority. Provinces remain autonomous, yet committed to walking together.

BEYOND ANGLICAN BOUNDARIES

Anglican communion extends beyond Provinces alone. The Old Catholic Churches of the Union of Utrecht have been in full communion with Anglicans since the Bonn Agreement of 1931, sharing episcopal succession and sacramental life while retaining their own identity. Likewise, the united churches of South Asia – the Church of South India, Church of North India, and Church of Pakistan – bring together Anglicans, Methodists, Presbyterians, and others into single churches in communion with Canterbury. These relationships underline a vital Anglican insight: unity does not require uniformity.

THE CARIBBEAN JOURNEY TOWARD PROVINCE

The Caribbean story illustrates this vision vividly. Long before the formal creation of a Province, Anglican episcopal life was taking shape in the region. In 1824, two foundational dioceses were established: Jamaica and Barbados. That year, Christopher Lipscomb and William Hart Coleridge were consecrated bishops on St James’ Day, July 25, 1824, and arrived in their dioceses by naval transport early in 1825. Their jurisdictions were vast, covering multiple islands and mainland territories, and they laid the groundwork for a regional Anglican identity.

This trajectory matured in 1883 with the formation of the Church in the Province of the West Indies (CPWI). Province here was not a bureaucratic invention, but a recognition that Caribbean dioceses could together take responsibility for doctrine, worship, discipline, and mission. Leadership figures such as Enos Nuttall articulated Province as communion rather than hierarchy, rooted in synodical governance and regional solidarity.

A DISTINCTIVE TRINITARIAN VOICE

One of the most distinctive features of the CPWI lies in its Trinitarian and liturgical theology, especially as expressed in Eucharistic worship. The Province draws on a Mozarabic-derived Trinity Preface that emphasises mystery, splendour, and glory, proclaiming the Triune God as “three Persons equal in majesty, undivided in splendour.” Rather than reducing the Trinity to abstract definition, the liturgy invites worshippers into awe and praise. This vision of unity-in-diversity resonates deeply with the Caribbean experience itself. It is further reinforced by the CPWI’s use of the Nicene Creed without the Filioque clause, aligning the Province with the faith of the undivided Church and expressing an ecumenically sensitive Trinitarian theology rooted in catholic tradition.

A LIVING ECCLESIOLOGY

Today, the CPWI embraces dioceses in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands, Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, the Windward Islands, and the North Eastern Caribbean and Aruba. Its leadership reflects this breadth. The current Archbishop and Primate, Philip S. Wright, elected in 2025, is both the 13th Archbishop of the Province and the 14th Bishop of Belize – a reminder that diocesan and provincial successions are distinct.

What, then, does Province mean in practice? It means shared discernment rather than imposed solutions; mutual support rather than isolation; and mission shaped by local realities within a global fellowship. In a world marked by fragmentation – political, cultural, and even ecclesial – the Anglican understanding of Province offers a compelling model: unity without rigidity, diversity without division.

Many dioceses, one body. This is not merely a slogan, but a lived ecclesiology – one that continues to shape Anglican witness in Jamaica, the Caribbean, and the wider world.

Dudley McLean II is the Church Teachers’ College Diamond Jubilee Alumni 2025 Awardee for Journalism and a graduate of Codrington College, UWI, Cave Hill, Barbados. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com or dm15094@gmail.com