Non-liberal Bishops Boycott Anglican Conference

“Even the Pope is elected by his peers. But what Anglicans have is a man appointed by a secular government. Over the past five years, we have come to see this as a remnant of British colonialism, and it is not serving us well.”

-- From "Rowan Williams betrayed churches over gay bishop, says African leader" by Ruth Gledhill, Religion Correspondent, The Times (London) 8/1/08

A leading conservative cleric has launched a devastating attack on the Archbishop of Canterbury, accusing him of “betrayal” and calling his office a “remnant of imperial colonialism”.

Writing in The Times, the Most Rev Henry Orombi, Archbishop of Uganda, says [Archbishop of Canterbury] Rowan Williams has betrayed churches that remain true to the Bible by inviting colleagues who consecrated the openly gay Bishop of New Hampshire to the Lambeth Conference.

Archbishop Orombi, a leader of the conservative Global South bishops and one of 230 to boycott the conference, indicates that to ensure long-term unity, future Anglican leaders will need to be more representative of the wider Church.

His comments came as Dr Williams survived the most difficult day of the Lambeth Conference with the communion intact. In closed discussions about homosexuality, bishops agreed to differ peacefully for the sake of unity. Early indications are that his strategy of running a conference without votes or resolutions and based around the African-style indaba process of conflict resolution groups has paid off, at least for the time being.

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Archbishop of Canterbury Calls for Alliance with Islam

-- From "Archbishop of Canterbury: 'Christian doctrine is offensive to Muslims'" by Steve Doughty at The Daily Mail 7/15/08

Christian doctrine is offensive to Muslims, the Archbishop of Canterbury said yesterday.

Dr Rowan Williams also criticised Christianity's history for its violence, its use of harsh punishments and its betrayal of its peaceful principles.

His comments came in a highly conciliatory letter to Islamic leaders calling for an alliance between the two faiths for 'the common good'.

But it risked fresh controversy for the Archbishop in the wake of his pronouncement earlier this year that a place should be found for Islamic sharia law in the British legal system.

He also said the Christian belief in the Trinity - that God is Father, Son and Holy Ghost at the same time - 'is difficult, sometimes offensive, to Muslims'.

Dr Williams added: 'It is all the more important for the sake of open and careful dialogue that we try to clarify what we do and do not mean by it, and so I trust that what follows will be read in this spirit.'

[Williams called for 'religious plurality' saying,] 'We can together speak for those who have no voice or leverage in society - for the poorest, the most despised, the least powerful, for women and children, for migrants and minorities; and even to speak together for the great encompassing reality that has no voice of its own, our injured and abused material environment.'

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UK: Anglican Archbishop Endorses Sharia Law for British Muslims

Multiculturalism gone mad...

From "The Archbishop and Sharia" by Chuck Colson, posted 2/25/08 at Townhall.com

There are an estimated 1.6 million Muslims in Great Britain. By some estimates, more people attend mosque than go to Anglican churches every week. Judging by recent comments by the Archbishop of Canterbury, it is easy to see why.

As most of you by now know, Archbishop Rowan William said in a recent interview that the “UK has to ‘face up to the fact’ that some of its citizens do not relate to the British legal system.” He left no doubt who those “citizens” are: British Muslims.

So according to Williams, British Muslims should not have to choose between “the stark alternatives of cultural loyalty or state loyalty.” Instead, in the tradition of having your cake and eating it too, he proposes finding “a constructive accommodation with some aspects of Muslim law”—in other words, sharia.

British Muslims could choose to have “marital” or “financial” disputes resolved in sharia courts. Sharia courts in Britain? At first I thought the Archbishop misspoke.

But it turns out, no. He calls this “supplementary jurisdiction” unavoidable. He compared it to accommodating Christians in areas like abortion or gay adoption.

With all due respect to the Archbishop, there is no such parallel. The only thing that is unavoidable here is his failure to see sharia as it is practiced in the real world, as opposed to in seminars. As the Asia Times columnist “Spengler” put it, Williams is conceding “a permanent role to extralegal violence in the political life of England.”

In real-world Muslim communities throughout Europe, coercion is so commonplace “that duly-constituted governments there” no longer wield justice among its citizens. The imams do. And where would the Archbishop draw the line? At husbands beating their wives for wearing Western clothes or maybe stoning a woman accused of adultery?

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