The media may be milking Anglican opposition to gay American bishop Gene Robinson for all its worth, but the message from the top is clearly one of tolerance and pragmatism. A new guide prepared by the House of Bishops of the Church of England says LGBT Christians should be treated with “compassion” and as equal Christians and calls for a full “open and honest” debate regarding all aspects of LGBT relationships. "It is clear that there is a real need for more study of the issues raised by human sexuality," said the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, leader of the worldwide church. "We have done a great deal of work as a church on this matter and we know that there is much still to be learned." Some commentators are lamenting the decline in this type of religious intellectualism, noting the worldwide swing in popularity to the mystical charms of evangelical “churches”. “Americans may be more pious, but the growth of evangelical churches is a worldwide phenomenon, including in the Pacific, where American-style churches, with their conservative views on the role of women and gays, have increased dramatically, helped along by religious programming on radio and TV,” said columnist Tapu Misa in yesterday's New Zealand Herald. Evangelical pastor Brian Tamaki in Destiny Television's recent Broadcasting Code-breaching series “Homosexuality, Religion and God”, broadcast on TV2, attacked traditional religious institutions, saying they had succumbed to weakness and some were being ruled over by a spirit of homosexuality. “All around the globe you can see this thing moving, and its always been an agenda,” said Tamaki in reference to the ordination of openly gay men and woman to religious ministry.
Credit: GayNZ.com News Staff
First published: Thursday, 6th November 2003 - 12:00pm