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Anglicans warn of split over gays
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Leaders of international Anglican churches pressured the U.S. Episcopal Church Thursday not to consecrate an openly gay man as a bishop next month, saying the move could split the worldwide Anglican Communion. At the conclusion of a two-day emergency meeting, the primates of 37 Anglican churches issued a statement saying that if the Rev. Gene Robinson is consecrated as bishop of New Hampshire, "the future of the communion itself will be put in jeopardy." "This will tear at the fabric of our communion at its deepest level," the statement said. The Anglican leaders called for creation of a commission to make a yearlong study of how to deal with deep theological disagreements between individual churches in the decentralized 77 million-member Anglican Communion. In the meantime, they asked individual churches not to react hastily. Among those at the meeting was Presiding Bishop Frank Griswold of the U.S. Episcopal Church, who voted to confirm Robinson's selection as bishop at the U.S. church's national convention in Minneapolis in August. Queried by reporters if he would ask Robinson to step aside, Griswold said, "I might do many things." He said events could intervene before the installation of Robinson as bishop November 2. "I'm simply saying anything could happen. The Second Coming [of Christ] can occur, which would certainly cancel an ordination," Griswold said. "At this point, I am scheduled to be in New Hampshire on the second of November. Something could happen to me, but I hope it won't." But Griswold said he fully supported the Diocese of New Hampshire in the process that led to Robinson's election as well as the national convention's decision to confirm it. Griswold said one result of the primates' meeting was the recognition that "what may, in fact, be good news to a majority in one province may in fact be bad news somewhere else in the world." Under U.S. church law, lay people and clergy in individual dioceses elect bishops, who are then confirmed by the national convention and consecrated. Normally, approval of diocesan choices is routine, but the decision by New Hampshire Episcopalians to pick Robinson, who lives openly with a male partner, set off a firestorm. Conservatives appealConservatives within the U.S. church, who object to the decision on biblical grounds, turned for support to primates of Anglican churches in the Third World who believe gay and lesbian relationships are a violation of traditional Christian teaching. Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, recognized by Anglicans as the spiritual head of the communion, summoned Griswold and the other primates to Lambeth Palace in London, for an emergency meeting to discuss the controversy over Robinson's appointment. The meeting also addressed a decision by an Anglican diocese in Vancouver, Canada, to approve a liturgy to bless same-sex relationships. Williams noted, however, that because of the decentralized structure of the Anglican Communion, the ultimate decisions on such issues are in the hands of individual national churches. "The challenge we have worked hard to meet has been to find some way of coping with divisive issues as a communion," Williams said. "We can't constrain anyone. All we can do is just say who we are." The primates' final communique said that "as a body we deeply regret" the decisions of the U.S. and Vancouver churches because they "could be perceived to alter unilaterally the teaching of the Anglican Communion." They also reaffirmed a 1998 resolution on human sexuality by the Lambeth Conference, a worldwide gathering of Anglicans, that said the only appropriate type of sexual relationship is a lifelong marriage between a man and a woman, with abstinence the only option "for those not called to marriage." That statement, supported by church leaders from Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, precluded both blessings of same-sex relationships and ordination of openly gay people to the priesthood. It was repudiated by many Anglicans in countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia and Britain. Thursday's statement from the Anglican leaders was described as unanimous. Griswold noted that the deep regret was expressed by the primates "as a body" and did not contradict his vote to approve Robinson as a bishop. "It says that so that those of us who are not part of that deep regret can at least honor the fact that we're part of a body," he said. 'Substantial intervention'Conservative dissidents within the U.S. church who met last week in Dallas, Texas, pressed the primates to allow individual U.S. churches that disagree with their bishops on gay issues to seek oversight from more conservative bishops from outside their dioceses. In their statement, the primates called for creation of such a structure, and Griswold said the U.S. church is "always open to further consideration of that kind of ministry." The Rev. Canon David Roseberry, whose church in Plano, Texas, was host of last week's meeting, called the primates' communique "a substantial intervention." "If the Episcopal Church decides to proceed with the consecration of Gene Robinson, they will be rendering an action that will clearly be schismatic," Roseberry said in a statement. In Washington, David Anderson, president of the American Anglican Council, one of the leading conservative groups, said he was pleased by the primates' stand. A spokeswoman for the group, Cynthia Brust, said the AAC was hopeful Robinson would step aside or that Griswold would stop his consecration. A decision by Robinson to step aside would not be unprecedented. Canon Jeffrey John, an openly gay priest in the Church of England, was nominated as bishop of Reading but withdrew amid strong objections from Anglican conservatives. His decision allowed the English church to avert the controversy now threatening schism of its American counterpart. Copyright 2003 CNN. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report.
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