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Anglican Bishop sees hope of breakthrough on Gays and Zimbabwe
13 Sept 2007-Zimbabwe-The recently appointed Dean of Central
Africa, the Rt Rev Trevor Musonda Mwamba, believes Anglican churches
will soon return to their grassroots mission to alleviate poverty,
disease and injustice and abandon their current "fixation" on
homosexuality.
His words of optimism come against a background of growing concern that
the on-going "rights for gays" debate in the 75 million-strong worldwide
Anglican community could wreck unity in that church throughout Africa
before next year's Lambeth Conference in Canterbury, England.
A report from AFP reported recently that an Anglican cleric in Harare -
speaking anonymously - said that the church in Zimbabwe would
"disassociate and sever relationship with any individual, group or
people, organisation, institution, diocese, province or people who
indulge in or sympathise or compromise with homosexuality."
Talking to The Zimbabwean shortly before that " bombshell" statement
from the church in Zimbabwe, which is increasingly under the control of
Bishop Nolbert Kunonga and his political mentor Robert Mugabe, Bishop
Trevor said: "I believe there will be a forward movement, even a
breakthrough, on this issue when leaders of the Council of Anglican
Provinces of Africa (CAPA) meet in Mauritius next month.
"Most African Anglicans want to get back to basics and concentrate on
poverty, disease, injustice and the need for transparency in
governments," he said in a telephone interview from his office in
Gaborone.
On the issue of human rights and the need for Christian pressure on the
Mugabe regime he said: "The church is waking up. This issue goes back
before Mugabe.
The church, to a great degree, has tried not to focus on political and
economic issues. There has been a clear line between the spiritual and
the secular. So, in the case of Zimbabwe, the church to be true to its
ministry, its prophetic ministry, should have stood up and said - 'No,
it is not right.' and sought to bring about changes in the situation of
Zimbabwean society."
He admitted that some leaders of the Anglican community worldwide had
been "fixated " on the issue of full Christian rights -or otherwise -for
gay men and lesbian women.
"Very few of us take the homosexual debate as top priority because there
are more pressing issues facing the African churches. We must be careful
in being dragged in proxy wars. I believe that the he meeting of CAPA
will give us an opportunity to get back to the basics," he said.
One of the key players in the dispute about Christian rights for gays
has been the Most Rev Bernard Malango, Archbishop of Central Africa. He
steps down from office next month. Elections will determine who succeeds
him.
The AFP report said that the chasm in the African Anglican church has
partly been caused 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 and if not gay, a supporter of full
Christian rights for gay people.
Malawian Archbishop Malango refused to confirm Nicholas Henderson amid
speculation that the English vicar was involved with a "progressive"
movement called Modern Churchpeople Union (MCU) which advocates full
rights for gay men and Lesbian women.- African Forum News Services (AFNS)
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