Māori Anglican priest, the Reverend Canon Isaac Beach (Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Rangitihi), has been appointed a voting member of the Canterbury Crown Nominations Commission (CNC) for the new Archbishop of Canterbury.

He joins the 20-member Commission of primates, clergy and lay people as the Oceania representative.

“I was honoured to be nominated by the Oceania Primates on the Anglican Consultative Council to serve as the region’s delegate,” says Canon Isaac.

Canon Isaac currently serves as a member of the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC), one of the Communion’s highest governing bodies and a key site for the Archbishop of Canterbury’s leadership across the global church.

“I feel comfortable working among a group of respected leaders I’ve long admired. Working alongside people like Archbishop Hosam Naoum, whose ministry continues to inspire me, feels natural and energising.”

Canon Isaac is a governance leader and passionate social entrepreneur, whose life’s work has centred on indigenous Anglican expression, climate resilience, and growing young leaders.

He was raised in Te Hāhi Mihinare, the Māori strand of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia, which continues to shape his faith and vocation.

“Archbishop Brown Turei was one of the first to encourage me in my calling, and I’ve been deeply shaped by the guidance of Archbishop Don Tamihere.”

“The search for a new Archbishop of Canterbury is sacred work, and so we commend all the members of the CNC, alongside all those working to support them, into the loving care and guidance of the Holy Spirit,” says Archbishop Don Tamihere.

“We’re proud and humbled on Canon Isaac’s behalf that he’s been called to be a part of

this sacred work. We already know Canon Isaac to be a person full of humility and integrity. He will embrace this responsibility not only as the proudly Indigenous Anglican priest that he is, but also as a committed servant who cares deeply about our whole Anglican family, both local and global, both great and small.

“We know that the CNC will bring that same spirit to the search for an Archbishop of Canterbury who will help lead and serve the Anglican Communion with love, joy, and peace, for the flourishing of all peoples.”

In 2019, Isaac served as one of the first Global Youth Representatives on the ACC. Over his six years in this role, he took part in two global meetings, ACC-17 in Hong Kong and ACC-18 in Ghana, helping to bring a youthful and indigenous voice to the heart of the Anglican Communion's decision-making.

The Crown Nominations Commission will begin its discernment process for the next Archbishop of Canterbury with meetings in May, July, and September 2025, starting by reflecting on the qualities and attributes gathered through a public consultation across the global Anglican Communion.

We uphold the Anglican Communion and the Commission in our prayers as they enter this sacred time of discernment.

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