Nigerian Bishops Fear They Will be "Potential Targets" at Lambeth

Mark Harris points us to the latest letter from the House of Bishops of the Church of Nigeria to the Archbishop of Canterbury. Apparently, they want him to postpone Lambeth because they fear for their safety:

...We are also concerned about the abuse directed towards those who hold to traditional views on matters of Human Sexuality. The spate of hostility in the UK is alarming.

We are all witnesses to:

The presence of placard carrying and leaflets distributing campaigners at the last Lambeth Conference distracting Bishops who travelled thousands of miles for fellowship. These protesters effectively shifted the focus of the conference to human sexuality - as if that was all that mattered.

The physical assaults against clergymen with opposing view, such as your predecessor attacked in his own Cathedral pulpit, and a Kenyan bishop assaulted by two people dressed as clergymen.

The occasion when your own General Synod was disrupted by protestors angry over the handling of the Canon Jeffery John issue.

Recent attempts to mandate unbiblical views in the UK through force of law and the protests and attacks by activists determined to disrupt and intimidate any group that seeks to uphold biblical teaching.

In truth anyone who does not embrace revisionist views is a potential target. We know it is possible to provide some security to minimize such occurrences but is the additional cost justifiable? Would the resultant atmosphere of fear and uncertainty be conducive to the goals of such a large gathering of bishops?

You can't make this stuff up.

Last I heard, Abp. Akinola was telling us that no bishops would go to Lambeth unless Minns was invited. Now we are told his bishops might go, if it is postponed to "allow the current tensions to subside."

Come on, Abp. Akinola. Don't let a few protesters frighten you. Play the man. Go to Lambeth.

J.