The Rt. Rev. Anthony Ball, a native of Southern Africa with extensive diplomatic and ecumenical experience, has been selected as the new director of the Anglican Centre in Rome and the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Representative to the Holy See. He succeeds the Most Rev. Ian Ernest, who has led the Anglican Centre since 2019.
Ball, 56, was consecrated as a bishop in the Province of Alexandria in 2021, and has served for the last year as Bishop of North Africa, overseeing congregations and missions in Algeria, Chad, Libya, Mauretania, and Tunisia. Based in London, Ball also currently serves as canon steward of Westminster Abbey and Archdeacon of Westminster.
“It is an extraordinary privilege to be offered this opportunity to serve the Anglican Communion, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and the cause of Christian unity,” Ball said.
“I look forward to developing further the connections and collaboration with institutions, organizations, and all those, within our Communion and beyond, committed to education, pilgrimage, encounter, and deepening mutual understanding. Establishing friendships was core to the founding vision of the Anglican Centre in Rome, and is as vital today as it was nearly 60 years ago — I relish the chance of sharing in this endeavor.”
The Anglican Centre was founded in 1966, during the watershed of ecumenical engagement that followed the Second Vatican Council. It hosts lectures, exhibitions, special courses, and other public events that foster deeper understanding between Anglicans and Roman Catholics. It also works closely with the Catholic lay community St. Egidio, in projects that serve the poor and disadvantaged in Rome. The director represents the Anglican Communion at ecumenical events and ceremonial occasions in the city.
The center has been based for many years at the Palazzo Doria Pamphilj, a 17th-century palace near the Roman Forum that also houses an important collection of Renaissance and Baroque art. Still owned by the same princely family that built it in the 1640s, it is thought to be the largest palace still in private hands in the city.
Most of the center’s directors for the last 25 years have been bishops. Ball’s two predecessors, Ernest and Archbishop Bernard Ntahoturi of Burundi, have like him led dioceses in African Anglican provinces that have maintained ties to the Anglican realignment while also participating actively in the Canterbury-centered Instruments of Communion.
Ball was born and lived for many years in Southern Africa. Following studies at Durham University, his first career was as a diplomat, with postings in Spain and the Middle East. He served as the Archbishop of Canterbury’s representative to the Heads of the Orthodox Churches in Syria and Lebanon while chaplain of All Saints, Damascus.
He returned to England in 2005 to work at Lambeth Palace as an adviser for Archbishop Rowan Williams on Anglican Communion, ecumenical, interreligious and international relations, and was also Williams’s chaplain for several years. He served several parishes in England before beginning his ministry at Westminster Abbey in 2016.
Ball also serves on the boards of several religious and educational charities, including the Christian-Muslim Forum and the Council of Christians and Jews’ Central London Branch. He is chair of the venerable and influential Jerusalem and the Middle East Church Association, which coordinates support for Anglican ministry in the region.
Archbishop Justin Welby celebrated the appointment, saying: “Throughout his ministry to date, Bishop Anthony Ball has served God’s church in several contexts. This has imbued him with a deep commitment to the unity of the church and the value of ecumenism. I know that he will play a vital role in growing the Anglican Communion’s relationship with the Holy See, as together we celebrate our warm friendship and collaboration in mission.”
“It is hard to think of the fruitfulness of Anglican-Catholic dialogue in the last almost 60 years without thinking of the Anglican Centre in Rome as a place of personal encounter and friendship,” said the Rt. Rev. Anthony Poggo, General Secretary of the Anglican Communion. “In April 2024, it played an important role in hosting the Anglican Primates’ Meeting, which included an historic meeting with Pope Francis. I look forward to all that Bishop Anthony Ball will do as director, and share our prayers and support.”
