Primate of Nigeria vows to rescue Anglican church from crisis over sexuality

By Martin Beckford, Religious Affairs Correspondent
22/06/2008

One of the most powerful figures in Anglicanism, the Primate of Nigeria, has vowed to rescue the worldwide church from its crisis over sexuality.

In a rallying cry to the hundreds of traditionalists who have gathered in Jerusalem for a critical summit, the Primate of Nigeria, Archbishop Peter Akinola, said many in the Communion were "apostates" who were going against their religion by tolerating homosexuality.

He poured scorn on the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, for his "misleading" comments on Islamic law and claimed he was not interested in what he and other African leaders had to say.

But Archbishop Akinola pledged that he would help Anglican worshippers break free from the spiritual "slavery" they had been placed in by the liberal West, and said the Gafcon conference would answer important questions about what should happen next in the church. the rest