Primates to discuss gay bishop

2003-08-08 15:01

London - The Archbishop of Canterbury said on Friday he would summon the primates of the world's Anglican churches to consider the impact of the confirmation of a gay bishop in the United States.

Archbishop Rowan Williams said the meeting was planned for London in October, and invitations would be sent this week.

"I am clear that the anxieties caused by recent developments have reached the point where we will need to sit down and discuss their consequences," Williams said.

The US church this week confirmed the election of the Rev V Gene Robinson, a gay clergyman, as bishop of New Hampshire.

The move provoked outrage in parts of the Anglican communion, particularly in the doctrinally conservative African churches.

"I hope that in our deliberations we will find that there are ways forward in this situation which can preserve our respect for one another and for the bonds that unite us," Williams said in a statement issued by his office.

"I hope we can use the time between now and then to reflect, to pray, to consult and to take counsel," the archbishop added.

Williams is the spiritual leader of the Church of England and of the Anglican communion - a grouping of 38 independent churches around the world. Williams has no authority to impose discipline on the provinces, and they have differed in the past on the ordination of women as priests and the appointment of women as bishops.

The Episcopal Church, at its convention in Minneapolis, decided not to approve a liturgy for the blessing of same-sex unions - another contentious issue within the Anglican Communion.

The diocese of New Westminster in western Canada has approved such a blessing ceremony, despite protests elsewhere in the communion.

Delegates to the Episcopal convention on Thursday approved a measure on blessing same-sex couples that its drafters said affirmed the ceremonies as "an acceptable practice in the church." However, they did not prescribe a form for such a service to be used throughout the church.

Gays and their conservative opponents both called it a victory for the homosexuals.

The Rev Frank Wade, head of the liturgical committee that wrote the document, said he interpreted the measure to mean that dioceses conducting same-sex blessings "are operating within the parameters of the understanding of this church and its doctrine and discipline."

- AP