Anglican Church facing split over homosexuality

[-:Undertaker:-]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/reli...ource=Facebook

'Dire' split looms as Anglican rivals use separate rooms at global summit

Lambeth Palace advisers privately admit summit is a “last throw of the dice” to save the Communion

The global heads of Anglican national Churches seated around the former Archbishop of Canterbury in 2008

The global Anglican Church faces "dire consequences" unless it enforces a traditionalist line on homosexuality at a crucial summit in Canterbury this week, says a leading cleric taking part. Bishop Mouneer Anis of Egypt, convenor of Anglican primates in the "global south" – the bulk of the church’s 80 million members, told The Sunday Telegraph unless the issue is resolved there will be “irreparable” splits not just between countries and dioceses but even individual parishes.

The heads of almost 40 separate churches meet for the first time in more than a decade in what the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev Justin Welby, sees as a “last roll of the dice” to save the Anglican Communion. The split is said to be so deep he is providing separate chapels amid fears the groups will not even pray together. It is expected to be a stormy week-long primates’ meeting to discuss a plan the Rev Welby hopes will avert a permanent schism between liberals and conservatives.

The faith has been in turmoil for 12 years since its US branch, The Episcopal Church (Tec), ordained its first openly-gay bishop, Gene Robinson, causing traditionalists especially in the southern hemisphere to break from more liberal wings and the creation of a separate American church. The Anglican Church in Canada has endorsed blessings for same-sex unions and Tec altered its marriage definition.

Some conservatives have called the leadership of the liberal US and Canadian churches heretics. They in turn were accused of homophobia for backing strict anti-gay laws in Africa. After many reports, commissions and meetings failed to reconcile the factions, Archbishop Welby wants to recast Anglicanism as a loose confederation. Individual national churches would be formally linked only to Canterbury, rather than to each other, to let them disagree on issues such as gay bishops without severing ties. One of his aides likened the move to “separate bedrooms” rather than divorce.

Such a move would effectively scale back the once-powerful Anglican Communion and formalise a rift, rather than trying to heal it. Lambeth Palace advisers privately admit it is a “last throw of the dice” to save the Communion.

I am protestant (although not formally) and where I stand on this issue is this. Homosexuality quite clearly doesn't fit into Christianity at least in a positive sense so let's just establish that very basic which some western Churches seem to be confused over. That means that the idea of gay bishops is rather silly. On the other hand, the African Anglican Churches are quite clearly OTT on the issue of homosexuality which isn't acceptable either.

If Lambeth Palace had any sense on this, it would state that gay bishops and promoting homosexuality in Churches is unacceptable to the Church as a whole but that criminalising gay behaviour and treating gay people badly is also unacceptable to the Church as a whole. In other words, a common sense compromise that still fits in with Christian teachings on the subject and should be acceptable to both western and African Churches.

Thoughts?

[FlyingJesus]

Christian teachings on the subject are that Mosaic law has no place in the lives of Jesus' followers

[Inseriousity.]

lol seperate bedrooms. Well if they shared the same one they wouldn't be practicing what they preach

[-:Undertaker:-]

Christian teachings on the subject are that Mosaic law has no place in the lives of Jesus' followers

that's how you interpret it, i've seen the matthew vines theory on it aswell as the debunking videos and he's taken apart well tbh

[FlyingJesus]

It's not an interpretation it's the literal wording as well as the whole basis of the religion - the fulfilment of prophecies bringing a saviour of mankind to make a new covenant with God. If to you the teachings of Jesus don't overrule Mosaic law then he's by definition not the son of God but just a prophet, making you a Jew or a Muslim