Updated again Friday evening
The Lead has published Williams won’t allow Robinson to function as priest in England in which it is said that:
…the Archbishop of Canterbury has refused to grant Bishop Gene Robinson of New Hampshire, the right to preach or preside at the eucharist in England. Robinson received the news in an email yesterday morning.
Sources familiar with the email say Williams cites the Windsor Report and recent statements from the Primates Meeting in refusing to grant Robinson permission to exercise his priestly functions during his current trip to England, or during the trip he plans during the Lambeth Conference in July and August…
In the Church of England, the legal position on preaching is not the same as the position on “exercising priestly functions” and it appears that an overseas bishop would not necessarily need permission from anybody but the incumbent of the parish in order to simply preach there.
Nevertheless Bishop Robinson is respecting the wishes of the archbishop and is declining all invitations to preach in England.
Such respect is not to be found everywhere. The Lead continues:
Sources familiar with the email, which came to Robinson through a Lambeth official, say Williams believes that giving Robinson permission to preach and preside at the Eucharist would be construed as an acceptance of the ministry of a controversial figure within the Communion.
Williams has not denied permission to preach and preside to Archbishop Peter Akinola of Nigeria, who gave his support to a failed legislative attempt to limit the rights of Nigerian gays and their supporters to speak, assemble and worship God collectively. Akinola has yet to respond to an Atlantic magazine article which suggests he may have had prior knowledge of plans for retributive violence against Muslims in his country that resulted in the massacre of more than 650 people in Yelwa, Nigeria.
Williams has not denied permission to preach and preside to Bishop Bernard Malango, the retired primate of Central Africa and one of the authors of the Windsor Report. Malango dismissed without reason the ecclesiastical court convened to try pro-Mugabe Bishop Nolbert Kunonga for incitement to murder and other charges.
Williams has not denied permission to preach and preside to Bishop Gregory Venables, primate of the Southern Cone, who has now claimed as his own, churches in three others provinces in the Anglican Communion (Brazil, Canada and the United States). Nor has he denied permission to preach and preside to Archbishops Henry Orombi of Uganda, Emanuel Kolini of Rwanda, or Benjamin Nzimbi of Kenya, all of whom have ignored the Windsor Report’s plea not to claim churches within other provinces of the Communion.
Ruth Gledhill has elaborated on the “banning” question in Bishop Gene ‘banned’.
The Living Church has an article about this also, No Pulpit Ban for Bishop Robinson by George Conger.
Episcopal Café has a quibble about this.
The Guardian had an item about it also, see here.
56 CommentsBrazilian Bishops respond to the St Andrews’s Draft of the Covenant
During its last meeting in Curitiba, the House of Bishops of the Episcopal Anglican Church of Brazil generated an official response to the Anglican Covenant – St. Andrew’s Draft. Such draft was sent to all Anglican Communion provinces, so they would examine it and send suggestions to it.
The document, entitled “Life in Communion and the Communion of Life” reiterates that there are aready instruments that define how Anglican provinces interact with eath other, and concludes that there is no need for a new covenant which would be more restrictive than what we already possess.
It is also available as a PDF file here.
45 CommentsThe press release from the Diocese of Melbourne is titled First woman bishop appointed in Victoria.
The Herald Sun reports it as Canon Barbara Darling to become Victoria’s first female bishop.
The ABC has Congratulations Darling! Female vicar becomes bishop.
Update
A somewhat misleading headline on this story in the Herald Sun Another historic woman bishop for Church of England.
Note to Herald Sun from here:
28 CommentsWhen did the Church of England become the Anglican Church of Australia?
The Anglican Church of Australia has been known by this name since 24 August 1981.
Anglican Mainstream has KENYA: Bishop Says GAFCON not LAMBETH is Anglican Province’s Choice.
10 CommentsWhen the Rt. Rev. Dr. Eliud Wabukala, from Bungoma in Western Kenya, was asked why he was going to GAFCON, but not to the Lambeth Conference in July, he told a congregation of Kenyans in his diocese that you don’t go to a place where men marry men.
“For us it is not just a theological issue, it is a practical issue. We don’t go to a meeting where men marry each other. That is not the way of God. It is not the way of the Lord or Scripture. This is the Sensus Fidelium. It is what the people of God believe, accept, and reject.”
The bishop said it was a “hard agonizing decision to make choosing not to go to Lambeth. The question then was what do we do? It became clear to us that we had to go to GAFCON.
“GAFCON was never conceived as an alternative to Lambeth. We cannot go there (Lambeth) so what is the alternative then? We need to recover accountability in the church. We need to re-establish confidence in the church. While we believe dialogue has ended over sexuality issues not all the orthodox believe that dialogue with Lambeth has ended. Many believe it has ended and we are among them. Some orthodox want to continue to talk and dialogue. We are in a period of discernment for the orthodox, but we cannot do that by going to Lambeth, it would compromise us…
Nigeria: Archbishop Denies Attack On Homosexuals
[ Linked via AllAfrica. The original of this story was at this URL but has now gone.]
Leadership (Abuja)
23 April 2008
Posted to the web 23 April 2008
Abuja
Archbishop Benjamin Kwashi, of the Jos province, (Anglican Communion), has denied allegations that the leader of a group representing “Anglican” homosexuals in the country was attacked.
In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday in Abuja, Kwashi rebuffed a statement credited to the Archbishop of Canterbury (ABC) on the alleged attack.
Kwashi was reacting to an allegation by Mr Davis Mac-Iyalla, leader of Changing Attitude Nigeria, that homosexuals were being physically assaulted in the country.
Iyalla had requested the intervention of the ABC as the ‘spiritual leader’ of the global Anglican Communion.
According to Kwashi, the ABC criticised the alleged assaults on gay Anglicans in Nigeria , describing it as ” latest round of unchristian bullying .”
However, the Jos archbishop said: “I have personally tried to discover the place or nature of the attacks and threats without success.
“It is wrong for Canterbury and a group of English Bishops to accuse the Church of Nigeria of being the perpetrator of a physical attack on the streets.
“If a Nigerian Bishop or church leader was mugged in England would the Archbishop of Canterbury or even the Church of England in general be blamed for this?”
He maintained that “the Church of Nigeria would not be bullied and was committed to the human rights of all people”.
“We will not condone violence against people even though they behave in a way that is not acceptable to us.
“And none of us wishes to be responsible (either directly or indirectly) for murder or violence perpetrated by another person, ” he added.
The arguments in the Anglican Church over homosexuality came to the fore in 2003 with the ordination of a gay Bishop, Rt. Rev Gene Robins of USA.
Since then the Church has been sharply divided between conservative Anglicans who were adamant that ordaining gay clergy or blessing in the church is a sin.
However, the liberals insist on tolerance and inclusion of homosexual people. Kwashi, is the Coordinating Bishop of the Convocation of Anglicans in North America (CANA), a missionary initiative of the Church of Nigeria.
He said that Nigeria would do all in its power to maintain the unity of the Body of Christ. “But we shall not compromise or “dilute” the gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ,” he said.
(NAN)
Updated Thursday evening
The Archbishops of Canterbury and York have today issued a joint statement in support of the strong voice of fellow bishops in Zimbabwe.
Read the Lambeth Palace press release and full text of the statement here.
The statement itself reads as follows:
Those of us who witness the events in Zimbabwe from a distance are bound to approach this crisis with a degree of foreboding and sorrow. Independent Zimbabwe promised much and was a beacon of hope and representative democracy in post-colonial Africa. But as members of the Body of Christ we also know what the Lord requires of us in terms of doing justice, loving mercy and walking humbly with our God in all times and in all places. So it is with this in mind that we as Primates and Bishops of the Church of England speak now in solidarity with our brother bishops in Zimbabwe and fellow bishops and other church leaders of the region. The ecumenical calls for action from within Zimbabwe in recent days must be heard and it is these voices we seek to support.
They rightly praise the bravery and endurance of the people of Zimbabwe throughout its protracted suffering and its quest for representative democracy and peaceful national political life; they call for true election results to be published and they speak of a dreadful fear of political violence possibly escalating to the horrific levels seen elsewhere on the African continent. They call for immediate, concerted and effective action by the government of South Africa, SADC and other regional organs and the UN to mediate and intervene as needed. Continuing political violence and drift could unleash spiralling communal violence, as has been seen elsewhere in the Continent where early warning systems or the international community failed to act in time.
Faithful men, women and young people who seek better governance in either political or church affairs continue to be beaten, intimidated or oppressed as was the recent Mothers’ Union gathering in Mbare. Anglicans can not worship in their Cathedral in Harare and Mothers’ Union groups can not now gather without fear of violence or intimidation against them as in Mbare.We join in particular the call from the heads of Christian denominations in Zimbabwe and our brother Archbishop of Cape Town, the Most Revd Thabo Makgoba, for the government of South Africa, the SADC region and the United Nations to act effectively. There must be an immediate arms embargo and any ships carrying arms must be recalled.
A year ago we committed ourselves, with the Anglican Archbishop of the province, to work with the bishops of Zimbabwe to support those who spoke on behalf of the poor and marginalised in that country and to denounce those that would not leave ministers of the gospel free to serve them. As we have just heard one bishop say, “It is Zimbabweans who are suffering at the hands of Zimbabweans. The political parties must protect the people who are voting.”
The current climate of political intimidation, violence, vote rigging and delay has left the presidential election process without credibility. Now the people of Zimbabwe are left even more vulnerable to conflict heaped upon poverty and the threat of national disintegration. It is therefore crucial that the international community act in support of regional efforts to bring a mediated settlement to this political crisis so that the social and economic and spiritual crisis of the country can be addressed. We commend the efforts of governments and agencies actively seeking to end the crisis and pray that those whose efforts have seemed lacklustre to renew their commitment as fellow Christians, Africans and members of the human family and international community.
Churches across England have been praying for Zimbabwe before, during and after the polls. Agencies and dioceses from the UK have worked ably to support partners and parishes. We join with those now calling for an international day of prayer for Zimbabwe this Sunday (April 27) as part of a search for increased solidarity and justice for the people of Zimbabwe at home and in the UK. Ecumenically, and as part of a broad based coalition, we must work to build a civil society movement that both creates political will and gives voice to those who demand an end to the mayhem that grows out of injustice, poverty, exclusion and violence.
Thursday evening update
Video: Archbishop – Pray for Zimbabwe
Thursday 24 April 2008
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, after giving joint interviews with the Archbishop of York, reflects on the issues surrounding Zimbabwe and calls for a day of prayer on Sunday, 27 April 2008.
Watch the video and read the full transcript here.
Also Desmond Tutu has issued a statement about Zimbabwe, read it in full here.
2 CommentsA conference was convened in New York City by the General Theological Seminary at the Desmond Tutu Center, April 10-12, 2008 and sponsored by the seminaries of the Episcopal Church and the seminaries of the Anglican Church of Canada. The title was An Anglican Covenant: Divisive or Reconciling?
News reports on this:
Church Times Covenant will protect male power, says critic
Episcopal News Service Anglican covenant conference draws international group, elicits varied viewpoints
Photographs are here.
Audio and Full Texts of Conference Papers
PDF files and MP3 files of the sessions can be found in this archive.
Go there for the links, but here is a list of the speakers to whet your appetite:
First Keynote Address:
First Panel:
Second Keynote Address:
Second Panel:
Third Panel:
Fourth Panel:
Third Keynote Address:
The Anglican Communion News Service press release is headed Archbishop of Canterbury: Better Bishops for the sake of a better Church:
The Archbishop of Canterbury today set out his hopes for this year’s Lambeth Conference in a video message addressed to Bishops and Dioceses across the worldwide communion…
The Lambeth Palace website has Video: Lambeth Conference ‘08
The Archbishop reflects on the forthcoming Conference in July ‘08 in an exclusive video message. The decennial event ‘has been a place where Bishops come to pray together, to read the Bible together and quite simply to help one another to be Bishops’.
Both pages lead to the video and to a transcript of the video.
If you have a problem linking to the video from those pages, try here.
7 CommentsUpdated Wednesday evening
The Anglican Communion News Service has published this: World Day of Prayer for Zimbabwe on Sunday 27th April 2008
A desperate cry from the hearts of Zimbabwe screams across the world.
It calls upon all Christians of every denomination in every nation to focus their prayers, in churches, halls, homes or elsewhere, on Sunday 27th April, 2008 on the critical situation in Zimbabwe, a nation in dire distress and teetering on the brink of human disaster.
Let the cry for help touch your heart and mind. Let it move you to do what you can immediately to ensure this Day of Prayer takes place in your country and neighbourhood.
Please pass on this message right now to all the churches and Christian organisations known to you and to the media as well as to everyone anxious to rescue Zimbabwe from violence, the concealing and juggling of election results, deceit, oppression and corruption, and to bring about righteousness, joy, peace, compassion, honesty, justice, democracy and freedom from fear and want.
May a continual strong stream of prayer and supplication flow up to the Lord on behalf of all the people on this Day of Prayer, exhorting His divine intervention throughout the nation.
“It is by making the truth publicly known that we recommend ourselves to the honest judgment of mankind in the sight of God.” (2 Corinthians 4:2)
Some advice to Zimbabweans
“Who so putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe.” (Proverbs 29:25) “Stand fast, and do not let yourselves be caught again in the yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1) “Make no mistake, you cannot cheat God.” (Galatians 6:7) “Do not be overcome by evil but overcame evil with good” (Romans 12:21)
Bob Stumbles, Chancellor – The Anglican Diocese of Harare
See also Zimbabwe, abuse and silence at Only Connect.
And a statement by the Archbishop of Cape Town is here.
Wednesday evening update
Dave Walker has a roundup of links to related stories at the Church Times blog Zimbabwean Christians call for a World Day of Prayer on Sunday.
8 CommentsThis item relates to the earlier report here.
Changing Attitude has published Report on contents of syringe used in attack on Davis Mac-Iyalla. Note: the text of this article has been amended.
The report itself can be seen at Original report on contents of syringe used in attack on Davis Mac-Iyalla.
50 CommentsIn his Fulcrum lecture last Saturday, Bishop Tom Wright said this (emphasis added):
…Fourth, we have seen, predictably but sadly, the rise of the super-apostles, who have wanted everything to be cut and dried in ways for which our existing polity simply did not, and does not, allow. Please note, I do not for one moment underestimate the awful situation that many of our American and Canadian friends have found themselves in, vilified, attacked and undermined by ecclesiastical authority figures who seem to have lost all grip on the gospel of Jesus Christ and to be eager only for lawsuits and property squabbles. I pray daily for many friends over there who are in intolerable situations and I don’t underestimate the pressures and strains. But I do have to say, as well, that these situations have been exploited by those who have long wanted to shift the balance of power in the Anglican Communion and who have used this awful situation as an opportunity to do so. And now, just as the super-apostles were conveying the message to Paul that if he wanted to return to Corinth he’d need letters of recommendation, we are told that, if we want to go on being thought of as evangelicals, we should withdraw from Lambeth and join the super-gathering which, though not officially, is clearly designed as an alternative, and which of course hands an apparent moral victory to those who can cheerfully wave goodbye to the ‘secessionists’. I have written about this elsewhere, and it is of course a very sad situation which none of us (I trust) would wish but which seems to be worsening by the day…
This has been commented on at Fulcrum by Graham Kings who suggests that this is a response to what the Dean of Sydney said:
Phillip Jensen, in his address in Sydney on 14 March 2008, ‘The Limits of Fellowship’, said:
To those bishops who go to Lambeth knowing the unrepentant homosexual activity is wrong – your profession of evangelical credentials will always be tarnished.
And he also explains the reference to elsewhere in the last sentence quoted above:
…that last sentence, which refers to an earlier article. This, it seems to me, is the one written for the Church Times, 28 January 2008, and co-published with permission on Fulcrum, ‘Evangelicals are not about to jump ship’…
In that earlier article, Bishop Tom had said (again emphasis added):
The rationale of GAFCON (the Global Anglican Future Conference) is: “The Communion is finished; nothing new can happen; it’s time to split.” No mention is made of the Windsor report, the proposed Anglican Covenant, or, indeed, the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Advent letter, insisting as it does on scriptural authority, which GAFCON seems to regard as its monopoly.
That last point is crucial. To say “scripture is our authority” does not commit anyone to joining the small group represented by Chris Sugden, Martyn Minns, and Peter Jensen. It is clear that they are the prime movers and drafters, making a mockery of Canon Sugden’s claim (Comment, 11 January) that GAFCON is about rescuing the Churches from Western culture. But they have marshalled impressive support, particularly from great leaders like Henry Orombi of Uganda.
And later:
Our Communion has for the past five years been living through 2 Corinthians: the challenge to re-establish an authority based on the gospel alone and embodied in human weakness. Inevitably, “super-apostles” then emerge, declaring that such theology is for wimps.
To them I would say: Are they Evangelicals? So am I. Are they orthodox? So am I. Do they believe in the authority of scripture? So do I (including the bits they regularly downplay). Are they keen on mission? So am I, and on the full mission of God’s kingdom which an older Evangelicalism often ignores.
Those who want to be biblical should ponder what the Bible itself says about such things. There are many in the GAFCON movement whom I admire and long to see at Lambeth, but the movement itself is deeply flawed. It does not hold the moral, biblical, or Evangelical high ground.
To say no to GAFCON is not to say yes to the revisionist agendas prevailing in much of the Episcopal Church in the US. It is to say yes to a Lambeth Conference based on and taking forward the Archbishop’s agenda of Windsor and the Covenant, in pursuit of what Dr Williams refers to in his recent letter as “an authoritative common voice”.
Anglican Mainstream has responded to the recent lecture by publishing an article by Charles Raven Gospel Grip and Fulcrum Fantasy – a response to Tom Wright’s Fulcrum Conference Lecture ‘Conflict and Covenant in the Bible’. (Mr Raven is now Senior Minister of Christ Church Wyre Forest.)
44 CommentsThe Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) has published Response to alleged attacks on Changing Attitude leaders in Nigeria: Archbishop Benjamin Kwashi.
This is in response to the material reported earlier here and here.
40 CommentsUpdated Tuesday afternoon
The talks given on Saturday by the Bishop of Durham and by Andrew Goddard are published in full:
Conflict and Covenant in the Bible by Tom Wright
Conflict and Covenant in the Communion by Andrew Goddard
Episcopal Café and Pluralist have drawn attention to one point made by Bishop Tom. See What is Bishop Wright talking about? and Repressive Letters Go Out.
Update Monday morning
The Advent Letter can be found in full here. The relevant passage appears to be:
I have underlined in my letter of invitation that acceptance of the invitation must be taken as implying willingness to work with those aspects of the Conference’s agenda that relate to implementing the recommendations of Windsor, including the development of a Covenant. The Conference needs of course to be a place where diversity of opinion can be expressed, and there is no intention to foreclose the discussion – for example – of what sort of Covenant document is needed. But I believe we need to be able to take for granted a certain level of willingness to follow through the question of how we avoid the present degree of damaging and draining tension arising again. I intend to be in direct contact with those who have expressed unease about this, so as to try and clarify how deep their difficulties go with accepting or adopting the Conference’s agenda.
And what Bishop Wright said was:
…After a summer and autumn of various tangled and unsatisfactory events, the Archbishop then wrote an Advent pastoral letter in which he reiterated the terms of his initial invitation and declared that he would be writing to those bishops who might be thought particularly unsympathetic to Windsor and the Covenant to ask them whether they were really prepared to build on this dual foundation. Those letters, I understand, are in the post as we speak…
Emphasis added in both quotes.
Tuesday afternoon update
Ruth Gledhill has been talking to Lambeth Palace and to Tom Wright and she reports all that here.
Update Wed And now also here.
Some other bloggers who have written about this are listed in the comments below.
40 CommentsUpdated Sunday morning
The Diocese of Perth, in Western Australia, will have the first woman bishop in Australia.
See the announcement from the diocese (PDF) KAY GOLDSWORTHY APPOINTED AUSTRALIA’S FIRST WOMAN BISHOP and also Archbishop Roger Herft’s Statement… on the appointment of Australia’s first woman bishop.
There is a nice background piece about Kay Goldsworthy in the local newspaper, Bishop Kay Goldsworthy – up close and personal.
And the Sydney Morning Herald has Mum of twins becomes first female bishop.
The Age in Melbourne has From epiphany to bishop.
And the ABC interviews Bishop Rob Forsyth from Sydney who explains why he does not agree with the idea.
Sunday update
There is some more background in the ENS report by Matthew Davies.
The Perth newspaper West Australian has a further report of some opposition, here.
49 CommentsChanging Attitude reports on blogosphere attacks made against it following its recent press release and letter. That was reported, along with numerous earlier follow-ups here.
See Changing Attitude urges GAFCON leaders to repudiate violence.
56 CommentsAffirming Catholicism has issued this press release:
10/04/08 – for immediate release
Vote on women bishops in Church in Wales exposes a key issue for the Church of England too.
Affirming Catholicism shares the disappointment of most members of the Church in Wales that the move to ordain women as bishops did not receive a large enough majority to be passed. We regret that the God-given gifts that women have to offer as bishops for the Church in Wales continue to be refused.
Hendrik Haye, convenor of Affirming Catholicism South Wales, said: ‘Although we are saddened by the result, we are glad that there was no compromise on the principle that women bishops must be accepted on exactly the same terms as men’.
Rev’d Jonathan Clark, a member of the General Synod of the Church of England and of Affirming Catholicism’s Board, said: ‘We believe that the church can and should include, as it does now, people who disagree about this issue. But the debate in the Church in Wales has highlighted the problem also facing the Church of England: some members don’t believe their own church has the right to make decisions about who will be ordained. The issue was fudged when women were ordained as priests: now it has come out into the open.’
The Church of England’s General Synod is expected to debate the ordination of women as bishops at its meeting in July.
• Affirming Catholicism is ‘a movement of inspiration and hope in the Anglican Communion, seeking to bring together and strengthen lay and ordained people who recognize the positive, inclusive and joyful currents in the Catholic tradition of Christianity.’
8 CommentsEpiscopal News Service reports BRAZIL: Bishops protest Southern Cone archbishop’s unauthorized visit, violation of Windsor Report.
The bishops of the Episcopal Anglican Church of Brazil issued an open statement April 9 expressing their “strong repudiation” of a recent unauthorized visit by Southern Cone Archbishop Gregory Venables to Recife “where he took part in and celebrated at official occasions outside his Province without the knowledge and consent of the Archbishop of the Province of Brazil and this House of Bishops…”
The full text of the open statement is included there, and is reproduced here below the fold.
This is not the first complaint that Brazilian bishops have made, see for example this letter (PDF) dated October 2005 addressed directly to the Primate of the Southern Cone, and this letter (PDF) dated November 2005 addressed to the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Footnote: photos of his visit can be found here.
3 CommentsUpdated again Friday morning
The following letter has been sent to the Leadership Team of GAFCON. A press release from Changing Attitude LGBT Anglican leaders threatened with murder and violently attacked in Nigeria and England explains the background to the letter.
Open Letter to the Leadership Team of GAFCON
Dear friends in Christ,
You may know that there were several instances of actual physical violence and threats of violence and death enacted against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) leaders of Changing Attitude in Nigeria over the Easter Weekend 2008. The leader of a Changing Attitude group was violently beaten. Subsequently, death threats have been issued against the Directors of Changing Attitude in Nigeria and England.
The discourse taking place in the Anglican Communion about the presence of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in our churches must be conducted in the context of Christian love and mutual respect. If it is not, then people will continue to perpetrate abuse and violence against LGBT people.
Some Anglican Christians act in this way because they believe that the language of criticism articulated against LGBT people in general and the Episcopal Church in particular gives them permission to perpetrate violence and abuse against Christians who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender. We know that is not your intention, but it is the reality as many experience it.
Changing Attitude understands that the Anglican Communion is engaged in an extended period of debate about the place of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in our churches. We are committed to engage in this debate and in the Listening Process which is integral to it and authorised by the Councils of the church.
Conservative Anglicans will want to argue against the position which Changing Attitude represents. They will continue to question the pattern of life and identity adopted by some lesbian and gay Christians. We recognise the integrity of those who hold this position at the same time as we disagree with it. We are not resistant to engaging in the debate with those who hold radically different views.
We recognise that it is extremely difficult to conduct this debate in language that does not polarise opinions or inflame tensions. Tension will grow more intense in this period immediately prior to the Lambeth Conference and the GAFCON event.
The language we use has direct consequences on the lives of LGBT Christians. Language affects us emotionally, spiritually and physically. We ask that all of us within the Anglican Communion be mindful of the words we use and the opinions we express when talking about LGBT people. We ask that all of us actively discourage any form of threatening behaviour so that we may all engage in respectful listening and conform the pattern of our lives to the pattern of love embodied by our Lord Jesus Christ.
None of us wishes to encourage or condone violence and none of us wishes to be responsible, indirectly, for murder or violence perpetrated on another person, whatever their sexual identity.
Yours in Christ,
(Signed)Revd Canon Professor Marilyn McCord Adams
Rt Revd Michael Bourke
Rt Revd Ian Brackley, Bishop of Dorking
Rt Revd Stephen Conway, Bishop of Ramsbury
Very Revd Vivienne Faull
Rt Revd Lord Harries of Pentregarth
Rt Revd Richard Holloway
Rt Revd Stephen Lowe, Bishop of Hulme
Revd Sr Una Kroll
Rt Revd Richard Lewis
Rt Revd Jack Nicholls, Bishop of Sheffield
Rt Revd John Oliver
Rt Revd John Packer, Bishop of Ripon & Leeds
Christina Rees
Rt Revd Gene Robinson, Bishop of New Hampshire
Rt Revd John Saxbee, Bishop of Lincoln
Rt Revd Dr Peter Selby
Rt Revd Kenneth Stevenson, Bishop of Portsmouth
Revd Dr Anne Townsend
The Revd Canon Angela WeaverLetter sent to:
Rt Rev Nicodemus Okille, Archbishop Henry Orombi, Rt Rev Wallace Benn, Rt Rev Martyn Minns, Canon Dr Chris Sugden, Archbishop Greg Venables, Archbishop Peter Akinola, Archbishop Emmanuel Kolini, Archbishop Peter Jensen, Archbishop Benjamin Nzimbi, Archbishop Justice Akrofi, Archbishop Donald Mtetemela, Rt Revd Michael Nazir Ali
Update Wednesday evening
The Archbishop of Canterbury has issued this statement:
Archbishop condemns recent violence against lesbian and gay people
Wednesday 09 April 2008
In response to reports of violence and threats towards Christians involved in the debate on human sexuality, the Archbishop has given the following statement:
“The threats recently made against the leaders of Changing Attitudes are disgraceful. The Anglican Communion has repeatedly, through the Lambeth Conference and the statements from its Primates’ Meetings, unequivocally condemned violence and the threat of violence against gay and lesbian people. I hope that this latest round of unchristian bullying will likewise be universally condemned.”
Update Thursday
Additional information from Changing Attitude at Nigerians threaten English and Nigerian Directors of Changing Attitude.
And the BBC has published Archbishop criticises gay threats.
Friday morning
The Church Times has Gay Nigerians suffer violent abuse by Pat Ashworth.
Margaret Duggan’s full report of the debate is now available at the Church Times site, see Welsh turn down women bishops.
1 CommentMark Oakley wrote a comment article for the Church Times last week, arguing that those who divide the Communion lack an Anglican spirit.
Read it all now: An issue! An issue! We all fall down.
18 Comments