TANZANIA:Seven conservative Anglican leaders refused to take Communion with their more liberal counterparts yesterday in a sign that the two wings of the church are further apart than ever.
The leaders of the Anglican Communion, representing 77 million Christians around the world, are meeting in Tanzania to thrash out their differences over the issue of homosexuality.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, is trying to hold the Anglican family together against the threat of schism.
The seven conservatives, led by Archbishop Peter Akinola, head of the Anglican Church in Nigeria, said that they could not celebrate the Eucharist with the head of the American Episcopal Church because of its stance on gay clergy.
In a joint statement, the seven said: "This deliberate action is a poignant reminder of the brokenness of the Anglican Communion. It makes clear that the torn fabric of the church has been torn further. It is a consequence of the decision taken by our provinces to declare that our relationship with the Episcopal Church is either broken or severely impaired."
The crisis erupted in 2003 when the Episcopal Church consecrated an openly gay man as an archbishop.
Conservatives in the US, as well as in Africa and in the developing world, were horrified by the decision and have made repeated calls for an apology or for the American church to be expelled. However, a report delivered to the meeting on Thursday concluded that the Episcopal Church had made good progress towards conforming with orthodox teaching.
In particular, it pointed out that it had agreed to a moratorium on consecrating gay bishops and had apologised for its actions. However, the report noted that the church had failed to heed calls to end the blessing of same-sex unions, providing ammunition to conservatives.
Yesterday, the leaders debated a draft covenant designed to spell out the conditions and criteria which must be met by churches within the Anglican Communion. Supporters hope that this can provide a mechanism for preventing future splits, but critics say that it could turn the Archbishop of Canterbury into an Anglican pope and replace the fluid relationships between churches with a rigid set of rules.