"We recall that the Primates Meeting in Dromantine, Ireland, 2005 condemned all pwersecution and violence towards homosexual persons. Clearly, the proposed Ugandan Anti-Homosexuality Bill fails to meet these standards. We therefore call upon our colleaguse in the House of Bishops of the Province of Uganda to oppose this Private Member's Bill"
- Statement from the Canadian Anglican H.o.B. -

Here again we have to thank the Canadian Anglican Church and it's House of Bishops, which together with the Canadian Evanglican Lutheran Church have issued this unequivocal challenge to the Ugandan House of Bishops; to live up to their promise made, at Dromantine in 2005, to 'condemn all persecution and violence against homosexual persons'.

Thank God for the Gospel integrity of our fellow Christians in Canada! Would that the more timid Church Leaders of the USA and the UK, and other Provinces of the Anglican Communion, would follow suit - to demand the support of the Church in Uganda towards suppression of this Bill. If this does not happen, then the unity of the Communion is in further jeopardy from within its own ranks.

No dignity...

in pretending it has nothing to do with your pension pot, either

I would like to call your attention to Rachel Maddow's coverage (last night on MSNBC) of this story, also: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QffRJaxKX4 [Includes another interview of Jeff Sharlett, author of "The Family" (the Fundagelical cult in Washington DC, w/ tentacles extending to Uganda)]

Apparently Canterbury's newly punitive and exclusionary turn represents an attempt to keep up with an even more punitive turn on the part of the Roman Catholic Church under Benedict, while Uganda's is pushed and promoted by the evangelicals who support the extreme right wing political groups in the US. Andrew Sullivan's meditation on these developments is well worth reading: http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2009/12/cardinal-gays-will-never-enter-the-kingdom-of-god.html

A long, detailed interview with report author KKaoma is available on Religion Dispatches.

at: http://www.religiondispatches.org/archive/religiousright/2046/the_anti-gay_highway%3A_new_report_details_mutually_beneficial_relationship_between_us_evangelicals_and_african_antigay_clergy_

KK has connected many of the dots, including the USA IRD influences and plans.

Alas. Rick Warren, Ssempe, Akinola, Rowan Williams ... all pastors of a certain mean sort. All wish to be considered holy, godly, and caring. All, antigay.

The main differences are mainly tone and style. RW aspires to a more educated, well-read, cerebral rhetoric, especially dedicated to making what superficially sounds like universal-catholic Anglican narratives. Rick Warren is more typically middle class managerial USA, somewhat folksy, somewhat business-purpose driven. Ssempe and Akinola are much freer to come right out and enjoy the blood bath that Africa now directs towards queer folks, with USA conservative religious believers/leaders sideline and cheering them along.

Testing these fruits, weighing these spirits, one is not all that impressed. Discerning them a few layers more deeply and accurately beyond their own television talk show appearances and publicities is even just a tad scary, frankly? Power corrupts; self-claimed special holiness power apparently corrupts very deeply. One very reliable Test Instrument so far is simply our dear old laboratory friend, the Scapegoat Targeting Meter. It reads these leader out, marks glaring high, as they dissemble about antigay targeting while still doing it and connoting it as sacred to faith, to faith communities of high spiritual value, and of course, to God.

Clearly, nobody in this religious leader group is caring when it comes to queer folks, let alone decent-minded and fair. Repeating lies to target queer neighbors has been honed to a sharp art in conservative global religious circles. Just as Bishop Jackson campaigning in D.C.

Alas. Lord have mercy. Praise the Good Lord as we gingerly make our everyday ways through this vexed Anglican and global time, and oh, could you pass me that Meter? My guess is, Keep it handy.

Added Rachel Maddow to my Blog!

"Added Rachel Maddow to my Blog!"

Entirely appropriate, Goran. While your typical LGBT (and hence, NON-practicing) Roman Catholic, NO ONE understands (or explains) politics, "foreign or domestic" (i.e. international or intra-USA), better than Dr. Maddow. *

[* Doctorate in Political Science from that minor little "foreign" university known as "Oxford"! ;-p]

You do wonder whether The Church of Uganda will be a 'Track One' Communion partner upon ratification of the Anglican Covenent because of its rigid adherence to Lambeth 1:10, or a 'Track Two' partner if it finds itself thrown out of the Commonwealth.

A study group at the parish I'm assigned to is, much to my distress, looking a "The Purpose Driven Life." In some ways I'm glad they are doing this, because I would never have purchased or read this book myself.

Having now read it I can safely say that Warren is a Pelagian. There is even an explicit statement in one of the chapters that claims that God's love is dependent on one's obedience.