Why Bishop Spong is wrong about the next Lambeth conference
The African bishops have spoken, and they will be back
There are three things John Spong, the ultra-liberal Episcopalian bishop of Newark, New Jersey, either forgot about or minimized when he boasted that by the next Lambeth conference, in 2008, the worldwide Anglican communion will be ready to bless same-sex unions and ordain practising homosexuals.
One is the sheer numbers of the African church; the second is their tremendous resilience, even in the face of persecution; the third is their unwavering commitment to biblical standards.
Spong, who was already out of favor with African and other orthodox bishops around the world, further enflamed the matter during the gathering in England of close to 800 Anglican bishops when he characterized African views on the Bible as "superstitious." A lame apology–"I’ve been heard to insult Africans, for which I am really sorry"–did little to convince conservative believers that he understood or identified with the strength of the African church.
After intense and emotional debate, the bishops voted 526 to 70 in favor of a resolution that declared homosexual relations as "incompatible with Scripture." Another 45 abstained.
Bishop Wilson Mutebi of Uganda said that Anglicans in his region are aware of what science and philosophy have to say on homosexuality, but for them the final truth resides in Scripture. "For us, the Bible and the apostolic tradition have authority through all our church."
The decision shows that despite their vocal stand and ability to manipulate the media into thinking the gay-rights issue was the most important one discussed at Lambeth, the handful of liberal bishops are no match for their African brothers. It was the African bishops, they might be reminded, who called, at the 1988 Lambeth conference, for a decade of evangelism.
Making disciples
And they are the ones who took that call most seriously. While many western dioceses spent much of the decade trying to define what, exactly, evangelism is, the African bishops were actually out there making disciples. The result is the African church has grown by leaps and bounds. In one country alone–Nigeria–there are more Anglicans at worship on a Sunday morning than there are in Britain and North America combined. ("At worship" is the key phrase here; although there might be more Anglicans on membership rosters in the western church, only a small proportion of them attend church.)
The African church is growing despite tremendous opposition, even persecution, in many countries. Take Sudan, for example. Bishops there are more concerned about whether their church members are going to be alive next Sunday than they are about blessing same-sex unions. As Bishop Michael Lugor, quoted on television news, said, "In Sudan, we know nothing about this, what do you call it, homosexuality. We only know the gospel, and proclaim it."
Though his statement may have come across somewhat naively, the bishop’s concentration on other matters is understandable. Just this summer, according to a report from Voice of the Martyrs, close to 50 Christian believers in one Sudanese county were murdered by members of the National Islamic Front, and another 44 were taken as slaves. Fifteen out of 38 Episcopal churches were burned down in May. In another area, an Episcopalian deacon was shot dead and two Episcopalian women, as well as the children of one of them, were enslaved. Raiders also burned 600 Bibles that had just been delivered. Those things happened because, as Bishop Lugor said, "we only know the gospel."
Worthy of emulation
The resilience of the African church in such circumstances is something few western Christians can even fathom. To call African Christians superstitious or out of touch with modern life is racist, ignorant and arrogant. To stand up for what you believe, for what you know to be true according to the Scriptures, realizing you could be shot, tortured, enslaved or even crucified, takes a faith that is incomprehensible to comfortable Christians in North America. And yet it is a faith worthy of emulation.
Bishop Spong and his ilk have set themselves up as more academically qualified, and perhaps more spiritual, than leaders of the African church. They are very wrong. Though it is true that sizeable segments of the African church lack theological education, because they simply haven’t had the same opportunities as westerners, there are many educated and deeply spiritual Christian leaders–among them the African bishops at Lambeth–who are doing all they can to keep up with the needs of a swiftly growing and spiritually hungry church.
The same is true at the parish level. Writing in The Church of England Newspaper, Sophie Mwangi pays tribute to her father-in-law, Rev. Charles Mugo Ngatia of Kenya, whom she describes as "a typical African clergyman" who "loved the Lord his God with all his heart and mind and soul." Just a month earlier, Rev. Ngatia had died suddenly, hours after delivering his last sermon.
Mwangi entreats readers to ignore the "racist rantings" of Bishop Spong, "who has no idea of the deep, committed Christian faith experienced by the vast growing Anglican community in Africa." His words, she says, "are an insult to my father-in-law’s memory and all that he stood for."
Rev. Ngatia’s life and ministry were difficult. He often went for months, even years, without a salary. But he did it because "he was driven by his God-given calling to see lives changed." And he was encouraged, his daughter-in-law writes, when he saw a congregation grow "not only in numbers but in faith."
The legacy of Rev. Ngatia is better heeded by the western church than the heresy of a bishop who no longer finds it necessary to believe in God, let alone subscribe to the basic tenets of the Christian faith. And there are many examples like Rev. Ngatia, of clergy and lay people whose lights so shine that others around them cannot help but be drawn to the Author and Finisher of the faith, Jesus.
As the Lambeth decision shows, the African bishops have a voice, and they have spoken. And, given the rate their churches are growing, they will be back in greater numbers in 2008.
Debra
Fieguth
Associate editor
