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"(The Lambeth Conference) will be one of the largest gatherings
of representatives of African Christians you could hope to find. There are
more Anglicans in the Province of Central Africa than in England. Nigeria
is said to have more Anglicans than England, Europe and the USA put together"
(Andrew Brown, The Sunday Telegraph, UK, July 12,
1998). "In parts of
Africa, the central missionary question is polygamy. The Bible is of course
quite clear on the subject. Polygamy is fine in the Old Testament; and even
in the New, it is only bishops who are required to be 'the husband of one
wife.' But this was not how the missionaries saw it. Now some of the African
bishops are restless because, they say, it is unfair to demand that converts
put away their surplus wives when they become Christians. In places where
the household is the basic economic unit, sending a wife back to her home
is a catastrophe for her" (Andrew Brown, The Sunday Telegraph, UK,
July 12, 1998). "The
Muslims have a catchy recruitment slogan: that they can have four wives
and only one God whereas the Christians must have only one wife but 'three
gods.' Kenyan bishops have therefore argued that they should be allowed
to convert polygamous men without demanding that they send their wives home.
This seems to them a reasonable quid pro quo for being expected to
accept homosexual clergy in the USA" (Andrew Brown, The Sunday Telegraph,
UK, July 12, 1998).
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