Dr Rowan Williams is understood to have told friends he is ready to quit the highest office in the Church of England to pursue a life in academia.
The news will trigger intense plotting behind the scenes over who should succeed the 61-year-old archbishop, who is not required to retire until he is 70.
Bishops have privately been arguing for Dr Williams to stand down, with the Rt Rev Richard Chartres, the Bishop of London, telling clergy he should give someone else a chance after nearly ten years in the post.
Lambeth Palace would not be drawn into confirming or denying whether the archbishop will be leaving next year.
A spokesman would only say: "We would never comment on this matter."
Sources close to the archbishop say he will leave after the Queen's Diamond Jubilee next June and having seen the Church finally pass legislation to allow women to become bishops.
It is understood that Trinity College, Cambridge, is preparing to create a professorship for Dr Williams, who studied theology and was a chaplain at the university. » | Jonathan Wynne-Jones, Religious Affairs Correspondent | Saturday, September 10, 2011
Now that Dr. Rowan Williams is going, it is to be hoped that he will be replaced by a committed Christian in the traditional sense of the word. In my opinion, the most suitable person to replace him is Dr. Michael Nazir Ali. It is to be hoped that he will be chosen. I can think of no more suitable a candidate than him. With the pews in churches emptying more quickly than cinema seats after a bomb scare, the Church needs someone who is determined to bring people back into the fold, and determined to show those who are not Christians that the path to salvation is through Jesus Christ. Dr. Rowan Williams didn't do this; he didn't evangelize. As I understand Christianity, this is a must for any serious Christian, still more so for the Archbishop of Canterbury.
The West in general, and the UK in particular, is being challenged by Islam. Dr. Michael Nazir Ali is therefore the ideal candidate to replace Dr. Rowan Williams, since he was raised in Pakistan, in Karachi, by Christian parents, his father being a convert from Islam. This man is a committed Christian who understands Islam thoroughly. Given the challenges we face, he is the only sensible choice. – © Mark
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