The official bulletin for Thursday: Primates’ Meeting – Briefing #2.
The Church Times has Ed Beavan on the scene, and his first report is Primates depleted as Dublin summit kicks off.
The Church of England Newspaper has a report by George Conger 15 Archbishops skip Dublin primates meeting.
Patsy McGarry reports in the Irish Times: Church of Ireland group urges that Ugandan ‘homophobia’ be confronted.
THE CHURCH of Ireland Changing Attitude group has called on the Taoiseach and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Brian Cowen, and international Anglican primates meeting in Dublin “to confront the problem of homophobia in Uganda”.
It follows the murder there last Wednesday of gay rights campaigner David Kato.
The group said that in recent years “anti-gay feeling in Uganda has been stirred up by religious leaders, a group of USA evangelicals and politicians”.
Senior bishops from Anglican churches worldwide are in Dublin and “needed to assume their responsibilities in tackling homophobia and the churches collusion in it”.
The Anglican primate of the Church of the Province of Uganda, Most Rev Henry Luke Orombi, is among seven primates of the Anglican Communion who have boycotted the Primates Meeting now under way at the Emmaus Centre near Swords, Co Dublin…
Some background to this:
The Kampala-based Daily Monitor carries this editorial comment today: Can we talk honestly about homosexuality? . It concludes:
People like David Kato and others who might be gay are Ugandans and enjoy the same rights and protections of the law as heterosexuals. We cannot send them into exile neither, lock them away, or hang them.
We need to have an honest discussion about how to ensure that their rights are upheld without violating the rights of other Ugandans.
Peaceful and stable societies only emerge when we understand and try to accommodate those who are different from us, or who disagree with us – not by ostracising or killing them.
Box Turtle Bulletin comments on this editorial here, and says:
What makes this editorial remarkable is that it is being printed in Uganda’s largest and most influential independent newspaper, and it expresses the need to ensure the rights of LGBT people are upheld in a nation whose leadership refuses to recognize gay people as humans beings deserving of human rights. That’s remarkable, and a most welcome addition to the debate.
More material is available from that site, and from the blog of Warren Throckmorton.
What a remarkable editorial. I think the key quote is the summation of two major problems with the way the whole issue has been debated: “First…a lot of the debate is shouted down from extreme positions of moral self-righteousness; as a result there is little common understanding among those who oppose gay rights and those who advocate for them. Secondly, a lot of the debate is carried out or influenced by foreign actors – both in favour of and against homosexuality.” I think it’s quite a big step to acknowledge the presence of foreign actors in Ugandan domestic debates. Could… Read more »
This neatly contradicts Rowan’s contention that the church speaks out against homophobic violence!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/news/world-africa-12306077
“An excommunicated priest who has in the past called for people to respect the rights of homosexuals then presided over the rest of the service.” – BBC, Kenya Report –
This is just one more bit of evidence on the Ugandan Churchs’ vilification of Gays there. Thank God there was a priest with a clear conscience ready and willing to continue the funeral service for this Ugandan Martyr. One wonders, who was the Ugandan Bishop who called for the excommunicated this priest/pastor for his support of the LGBT community in Uganda?
It was Bishop Christopher Senyonjo who closed the ceremony after not having been allowed to speak by the official representative of the Church of Uganda, the Lay Reader.
Sorry All! My last post seems a little confused – but now I know that the ‘excommunicated priest’ who took over from the AC Uganda lay-reader was none other than Bp. Christopher, I can correct my posting on Sat.29 July to read (in part): “One wonders, who was the Ugandan Bishop who called for the excommunication of this priest/pastor” – From Goran’s subsequent posting we know that the ‘priest/pastor who intervened to take over from the representative of the ACU was none other than Bp. Christopher Senyonjo, who, himself, was excommunicated for his support of LGBTs in Uganda) The instrument… Read more »