Rick Warren Supports Ugandan Bishops' Lambeth Boycott
Popular American pastor Rick Warren said recently that he supports the decision made by Ugandan bishops to boycott the landmark Anglican conference to be held later this year in England.
Warren, who was in Uganda last week to launch the country's first national Purpose Driven Living program, expressed his support last Thursday shortly after arriving in the country.
The influential pastor praised the Ugandan bishops who came across to him as "godly men who believe in the authority of Scripture, love Christ with all their hearts, and have a passion for taking the Good News to the entire world," according to an email sent to The Christian post confirming Warren's support.
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Archbishop Henry Luke Orombi, the archbishop of the Anglican Church of Uganda and bishop of Kampala, announced Uganda's boycott of the Lambeth Conference in February.
The Lambeth Conference is a major worldwide gathering of bishops in the Anglican Communion from all 38 provinces and occurs once every ten years.
Orombi explained that Uganda's action is in response to the invitation of the openly gay U.S. bishop V. Gene Robinson to participate in the conference. In 2003, Robison became the first openly gay bishop to be consecrated by the Episcopal Church.
Robinson's ordination caused a deep rift in the Anglican Communion between churches that believe homosexuality is a sin and those that support the consecration of gay clerics.
Several U.S. Episcopal churches have since broken away from the national Episcopal body including several historic and large churches in the denomination. Many Anglican leaders worldwide have also strongly vocalized their opposition to The Episcopal Church's stance on homosexuality.
Top Anglican leaders have tried to negotiate with both sides to keep the worldwide communion together but many fear that it will officially break apart with the differences growing deeper and more serious.
