Primates defend leaked letter
Date: Nov 25, 2005

Seventeen Archbishops have released a letter they had written to the Archbishop of Canterbury challenging his address to last month’s Global South Meeting, but after a storm of controversy greeted the letter one Primate withdrew his name, while another criticised its public release.

The 17 Primates from the southern hemisphere rejected Dr Williams’ theological analysis of the crisis within the Anglican Communion, and questioned the wisdom of the establishment of the Church of England.

The letter expressed agreement with much of Dr Williams’ message, but expressed disappointment with what he had left ‘unsaid’. They claimed that his interpretation of church discipline bypassed rather than expounded the specificity of scripture. They also questioned the propriety of the establishment of the Church of England, following the recent Civil Partnership legislation. They said that the “willingness of the Government to override clear Christian teaching” on marriage “raises a serious question whether the church-state relationship is obsolete and a hindrance to the Gospel.” The rest