‘By Name United, by Sex Divided: A Brief Analysis of the Current Crisis Facing the Anglican Communion’

The current controversies in relation to homosexuality - which emanated from thewestern quarters but quickly engulfed the entire Anglican Communion - highlighttwo significant issues. In our view, the first issue, regarding the ‘religiouscitizenship’ of lesbian and gay Christians, is generally a western concern. Thesecond issue pertaining to the prospect of the disintegration of the AnglicanCommunion, however, needs to be examined within a global context. On the firstissue, we argue that, since the contemporary western religious landscape (andsociety in general) prioritizes the authority of the self rather than that ofreligious institution/tradition, the traditional religious discourse thatmarginalizes lesbian and gay Christians is undermined by an increasinglysophisticated reverse discourse. This reverse discourse, equipped with lesbianand gay affirming theology and documentation of lived experiences, alsoconverges with contemporary cultural (secular) discourse of human rights andpersonal liberty, which values social diversity, including sexual difference. Webelieve that the social and political currency of the reverse discourse willproliferate, thus eclipsing the traditional discourse that appears increasinglyout of step with contemporary western socio-cultural reality. On the secondissue, we welcome the heightened significance and relevance of (local) cultureand Christianity in the debate. We argue that the decentralization (i.e.de-westernization) of the Anglican Communion should be welcomed, for there arevarious versions of Christianity, the conception and practice of which areclosely informed by local cultures. Thus, to force the production of a unifiedAnglican response to moral or social issues that are differently defined acrosscultures may prove counter-productive.