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Zimbabwe Anglican church to sever ties with gays
08 Sept 2007- Harare-The Anglican church in
Zimbabwe Saturday said it will not "stand with homosexuals" at a synod
of four southern African Anglican churches in Malawi which is set to
revive the issue of gay clerics.
Refering to a diocesan act, a cleric at Harare diocese
told AFP that three of the four dioceses in Zimbabwe had "unanimously
agreed" to sever ties with dioceses in the Central African province
which were in favour of homosexuals.
The Anglican province of Central Africa comprises
Botswana, Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The cleric, speaking on condition of anonymity, said
according to the diocesan act, which came into effect on August 4, the
Zimbabwe church will "dissociate and sever relationship with any
individual, group of people, organisation, institution, diocese,
province or people who indulge in or sympathise or compromises with
homosexuality".
He said Zimbabwe, along with Zambia and some dioceses
of Malawi, will lead the anti-gay lobby at the synod which opens
Saturday in Malawi's southern resort district of Mangochi.
There are fears that the Central Africa province would
break into three national provinces of Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malawi.
Botswana does not qualify to be a province because it
has only one dioecese instead of the required four.
The chasm in the African Anglican church has partly
been sparked by the church's refusal to consecrate a liberal British
vicar as bishop-elect of the diocese of Lake Malawi following
allegations that he was gay.
Malawian Archbishop Bernard Malango, head of the
Anglican Church in Central Africa stopped to confirm Nicholas Henderson
amid allegations that the Briton supports gay rights or could be gay
himself.
Malango was among the African Anglican primates who
vehemently opposed the appointment of an American gay cleric, Gene
Robinson, as Bishop of New Hampshire and the Canadian communion's
decision to bless same-sex marriages.
Henderson is said to be an active member of a group
calling itself Modern Churchpeople Union (MCU) which advocates interests
of gay people among other revolutionary ideas.
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