'We are really, truly talking to one another,’ says Toronto bishop
Canterbury, England
The world’s Anglican bishops today said they have not “reached a consensus” on what to do about the controversial issue of human sexuality that has bitterly divided them, but “a very significant step forward” has been made in terms of “listening” and “trying to understand” each other’s diverse opinions.
“Where we go from here remains to be seen… but there are good signs at this stage,”
said Archbishop Philip Aspinall, primate of the Anglican Church of Australia and official spokesperson of the Lambeth Conference. He noted that bishops have yet to discuss other issues related to human sexuality that are equally divisive, such as proposals for a common Anglican Covenant.
“You might be surprised to hear that we haven’t suddenly reached consensus. The problems haven’t been solved,” said Archbishop Aspinall. However, he said, there has been a different “tone of engagement” with the issue compared to the last conference in 1998. “Ten years ago, people were distressed at some of the reactions to some of the things that were said. There were occasions when bishops actually booed and hissed what other bishops said in the gathering; 2008 is dramatically different.” He said that in his own indaba group “bishops from both ends of the spectrum on this issues actually embraced each other and thanked each other for helping them understand better what was at stake in the issues.”
A conservative primate, who chairs the Council of the Provinces in Africa (CAPA), meanwhile, said that he has promised to be “a bridge” to bishops and primates who have boycotted this once-a-decade conference to dramatize their opposition to more liberal views on homosexuality.
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*Anglican Journal
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