MORE than 300 senior Anglican church leaders worldwide, including a number of Church of England bishops, are backing a call for a debate into the ordination of practising homosexuals as priests.
The call comes in advertisements in religious newspapers later this week to mark the twentieth anniversary of the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement (LGCM). The signatories are believed to include Archbishop Desmond Tutu and leaders of the Anglican churches in Scotland, Canada and the US.
The Rev Richard Kirker of the LGCM declined to reveal which bishops had signed the advertisement, saying he did not wish to reduce its impact. A spokesman for the Archbishop of Canterbury at Lambeth Palace declined to comment.
Later this week, the LGCM will announce plans to celebrate its 20 years with a service in Southwark Cathedral later this year.