Anglicans Appoint First Full-time Representative to United Nations
Episcopal News Service. July 10, 1990 [90177]
Archbishop of Canterbury Robert Runcie, in his capacity as president of the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC), has appointed His Excellency the Most Rev. Sir Paul Reeves, governor-general of New Zealand, as the Anglican Communion's first full-time representative to the United Nations.
Reeves will assume his duties early next year, after completing his fiveyear term as governor-general, and will have offices at the Episcopal Church Center in New York City, a block from the U.N. building.
The ACC has status as a non-governmental organization at the U.N., with particular interest in the programs of the Economic and Social Council. Reeves will coordinate Anglican contributions to the council and other units of the U.N., sharing concerns and seeking common strategies.
"The Anglican Communion is one of the few worldwide church organizations, and as such we should be able to offer some depth and breadth to discussions of global issues," Reeves said in a brief interview during a recent visit to New York. He cited environmental issues as one area where he hopes to make a difference. "After all, Christ's redeeming act is at the middle of creation -- and that's how we should look at the world. We are finally understanding what has to be done to save that creation -- but now we must ask how we proceed," he said.
Reeves brings a unique blend of church and government experience to his new post. A native of Wellington, New Zealand, he served parishes there and in England until elected bishop of Waiapu (New Zealand) in 1971. In 1979 he was appointed bishop of Auckland and the following year became primate of the Church of New Zealand, a post he held until his appointment as governor-general in 1985.
The Rev. Canon Samuel Van Culin, an American Episcopalian who serves as secretary general of the ACC, expressed his hopes that Reeves will be able to open up "an important new frontier for the ACC and the wider Anglican Communion."
While in New York Reeves will be available to the Episcopal bishop of New York to assist in developing an international ministry for the diocese. He will also be a resource to the faculty and student body at General Theological Seminary in New York where he will live during his three-year appointment.