A PYRRHIC VICTORY?

The only place where convergence and agreement broke down, not unexpectedly, was in the debate on homosexuality. Lambeth is a mosaic of cultures, languages, histories and anxieties, and they all surfaced in this subject. It was clear that there is a passionate and intractable conviction among the majority of bishops that homosexuality is not to be tolerated.

Some bishops claimed it was unheard of in their country and they had never met a homosexual person. Nevertheless, they felt free to denounce them, and to prevent gay and lesbian Christians from addressing the sub-section dealing with them. The plenary debate never reached the level of sophistication or charity - by either side - we experienced in our own Synod in May. The vote was clear and overwhelming. At the end, the Suffragan Bishop of New York called it "a pyrrhic victory." This, of course, remains to be seen.

Even our more conservative Canadian bishops were shaken by the debate. Personally I was saddened, not surprised. But what emerged in the conference, both before and during this issue, was something far more worrying to me. There was a clear tendency toward biblical fundamentalism, a use of Scripture in uncritical and even uncharitable ways that was evident in sermons at the daily Eucharist and in discussions at the daily Bible Studies. It was as if the last hundred and fifty years of biblical theology and academic research had never happened for many participants.

An article in the London Times toward the end of the conference observed that some bishops had "surrendered their minds to a book." Two senior African primates warned the conference of the dangers of "biblical tyranny" and "ostrich theology." These comments would have been disregarded if they had come from a Western bishop.

There is an obvious gap not only between cultures in our Communion, but also in education. Lamin Sanneh, an African historian teaching at Yale, observed in my section that Christianity is strongest in Africa where education is lowest. Even some of our church leaders have received little theological training. Anglican tradition has been careful to avoid literalism as well as liberalism in its use of the Bible. Clearly, more work needs to be done here. I am pleased we shall be holding a conference next year on this in the Diocese of New Westminster.

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