A shocking story of mob violence has emerged which almost culminated in the death of one of the leaders of the Changing Attitude Nigeria (CAN) group in Port Harcourt. The violent attack occurred in the context of the funeral ceremony being held for the sister of Davis Mac-Iyalla, attended by six members of the Port Harcourt group on Thursday, 20 March 2008...In response to these new attacks, 20 Anglicans, including 14 Bishops, published An Open Letter to the Leadership Team of GAFCON. Here's part of that letter:
...Colin Coward, Director of Changing Attitude England, said: “The attack on one of the CAN leaders in Port Harcourt is a terrifying indictment of the attitude of the Church of Nigeria to LGBT people. Violence against LGBT people has been encouraged by Archbishop Peter Akinola and the leaders of the Church of Nigeria. They have attacked the presence of LGBTs in church and society, and supported a bill which would reinforce prejudice against LGBT people.
“Changing Attitude calls on the Church of Nigeria to denounce violence against LGBT people. We challenge the leaders of the global south coalition to repent of their un-Biblical views which fuel prejudice against LGBT people in our Communion”...
You may know that there were several instances of actual physical violence and threats of violence and death enacted against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) leaders of Changing Attitude in Nigeria over the Easter Weekend 2008. The leader of a Changing Attitude group was violently beaten. Subsequently, death threats have been issued against the Directors of Changing Attitude in Nigeria and England.Today, Episcopal Life informs us that the Archbishop of Canterbury has responded:
The discourse taking place in the Anglican Communion about the presence of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in our churches must be conducted in the context of Christian love and mutual respect. If it is not, then people will continue to perpetrate abuse and violence against LGBT people.
Some Anglican Christians act in this way because they believe that the language of criticism articulated against LGBT people in general and the Episcopal Church in particular gives them permission to perpetrate violence and abuse against Christians who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender. We know that is not your intention, but it is the reality as many experience it...
...The language we use has direct consequences on the lives of LGBT Christians. Language affects us emotionally, spiritually and physically. We ask that all of us within the Anglican Communion be mindful of the words we use and the opinions we express when talking about LGBT people. We ask that all of us actively discourage any form of threatening behaviour so that we may all engage in respectful listening and conform the pattern of our lives to the pattern of love embodied by our Lord Jesus Christ.
None of us wishes to encourage or condone violence and none of us wishes to be responsible, indirectly, for murder or violence perpetrated on another person, whatever their sexual identity...
Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams has described the recent violence and threats towards "Christians involved in the debate on human sexuality" as "disgraceful."The early responses from some conservative websites seem to fall into two categories: denial that any violence or death threats ever occurred, or a refusal to admit that Anglicans were involved in any way in these acts of violence.
Responding to a press release from Changing Attitude England announcing that gay leaders of the organization's Nigeria branch were seriously assaulted, Williams said: "The Anglican Communion has repeatedly, through the Lambeth Conference and the statements from its Primates' meetings, unequivocally condemned violence and the threat of violence against gay and lesbian people. I hope that this latest round of unchristian bullying will likewise be universally condemned"...
In other words, they have missed the point, and continue to refuse to take responsibility for the way in which the language they use has direct consequences on the lives of LGBT Christians.
Just so it is not missed by conservatives who might be visiting, here once again is the point being made by the Open Letter and the Archbishop of Canterbury:
Some Anglican Christians act in this way because they believe that the language of criticism articulated against LGBT people in general and the Episcopal Church in particular gives them permission to perpetrate violence and abuse against Christians who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender. We know that is not your intention, but it is the reality as many experience it...J.
...We ask that all of us actively discourage any form of threatening behaviour so that we may all engage in respectful listening and conform the pattern of our lives to the pattern of love embodied by our Lord Jesus Christ...
UPDATE: For the record, Kendall Harmon, who operates Titusonenine, has posted the following entry regarding this matter:
ACNS) In response to reports of violence and threats towards Christians involved in the debate on human sexuality, the Archbishop of Canterbury has given the following statement:Thank you, Kendall.
“The threats recently made against the leaders of Changing Attitudes are disgraceful. The Anglican Communion has repeatedly, through the Lambeth Conference and the statements from its Primates’ Meetings, unequivocally condemned violence and the threat of violence against gay and lesbian people. I hope that this latest round of unchristian bullying will likewise be universally condemned.”
This needs to be said repeatedly in the current environment--KSH.
Unfortunately, the folks at Stand Firm seem to continue to miss the point, as evidenced by this post and this one. They insist in spinning this into a debate as to the accuracy of the evidence of the attacks, rather than recognizing that the issue is a call to stop the violence, including the rhetorical violence that leads to physical attacks.
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