Editing Commissary (section)

===Ecclesiastical===
====Anglican Communion====
The [[Canon law of the Church of England|Canons of the Church of England]], referring to the metropolitical jurisdiction of archbishops and to the ordinary jurisdiction of diocesan bishops, states that: "Such jurisdiction is exercised by the bishop himself, or by a Vicar-General, official, or other commissary to whom authority in that behalf shall have been formally committed by the bishop concerned.".<ref>{{cite web |last1=Canons C 17.3 and C 18.3 |title=Section C: Ministers, their ordination, functions and charge |url=https://www.churchofengland.org/more/policy-and-thinking/canons-church-england/section-c |website=Canons of the Church of England |publisher=The Church of England |access-date=12 December 2018}}</ref>

In previous centuries Bishops sometimes appointed representatives, called commissaries, to perform functions in distant portions of their dioceses. In 1684 [[Henry Compton (bishop)|Henry Compton]], the Bishop of London, resolved to use the commissary system to provide leadership for churches in the [[Thirteen Colonies|American colonies]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Prichard |first1=Robert |title=A History of the Episcopal Church |date=1991|publisher=Morehouse Publishing |location=Harrison PA}}, reprinted in 2014</ref> ([[James Blair (Virginia)|James Blair]] was an early such commissary). Commissaries were appointed to some, but not all, of the thirteen colonies into the second half of the eighteenth century. Later, commissaries were sometimes appointed for other parts of the [[British Empire]]. The practice continues in respect of the [[Channel Islands]] which, although attached to the English [[diocese of Salisbury]], are separate legal jurisdictions with their own [[canon law]]; the Deans of [[Dean of Jersey|Jersey]] and [[Dean of Guernsey|Guernsey]] are the Bishop's Commissaries in their respective Islands.<ref>Numerous references to the Dean as the Bishop's Commissary are in the {{cite web|title=Canons of the Church of England in Jersey|url=https://www.jerseylaw.je/laws/enacted/Pages/L-33-2022.aspx |website=Jersey Law |access-date=20 April 2025 |date=19 July 2022}} - for example, canons B2(b), B29.3 and C9.3</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Rules & Regulations|url=http://www.churchofengland.org.gg/rules-regulations|website=Deanery of Guernsey|access-date=20 April 2024|language=en}}</ref>

In 2011 the [[Archbishop of Canterbury]] appointed commissaries to conduct a [[Canonical visitation|visitation]] upon the [[Diocese of Chichester]] with regard to safeguarding failures in the diocese over many years. According to their interim report: "Our appointment by the Archbishop of Canterbury — the first such appointment of Commissaries for over 100 years — is evidence of the deep concern held in the Church of England for this diocese and its failure properly to protect children in its care".<ref>{{cite web |title=INTERIM REPORT OF THE COMMISSARIES APPOINTED BY THE ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY IN RELATION TO A VISITATION UPON THE DIOCESE OF CHICHESTER |url=https://www.chichester.anglican.org/media/assets/file/Visitation_Interim_Report_August_2012.pdf |website=Diocese of Chichester |access-date=12 December 2018 }}{{Dead link|date=July 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

In current practice in the Church of England, the relevant archbishop appoints an ''episcopal commissary'' during a diocesan [[vacancy in see]]; that bishop (usually the senior suffragan in the diocese) is commonly called Acting&nbsp;Bishop of the diocese (e.g. Acting&nbsp;Bishop of Birmingham).<ref>{{cite web |website=Church of England Birmingham |title=Section: Welcome |url=https://www.cofebirmingham.com/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230506004444/https://www.cofebirmingham.com/ |archive-date=6 May 2023 |access-date=21 May 2023 }}</ref>