Bishops of the Anglican Church in South Africa today released a statement expressing growing concern that its clergy could be forced to bless and marry same-sex couples, and to carry out other things that the church does not believe and permit.
The 5th May statement comes after a 30 November 2004 Supreme Court decision to treat same-sex unions equally to male-female marriages under the common law concept of marriage.
The bishops - who met from 2-5 May in Kempton Park, South Africa – reminded clergy and parishioners that the ruling did not interfere with the church’s beliefs and did not prohibit them from exercising their freedom of conscience.
"Our Church’s position is clear... the Church of the Province of southern Africa affirms that marriage by divine institution is a lifelong and exclusive union partnership between one man and one woman," said the bishops in a statement.
The court decision to accept same-sex unions under the common law concept of marriage came after a lesbian couple demanded that the Pretoria High court accept their application to marry. The court at first dismissed their application. The case was then appealed to the Supreme Court of Appeal, according to Afrol News.
The bishops said that the decision of the Appeals Court should not cause alarm among Anglicans there.
"The Church is not compelled to conduct same-sex marriages," they said. "The clergy are not being required to do anything which the Church does not believe or permit."
South Africa was the first country in the world to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation in its constitution, which led the nation to allow homosexual couples the right to adopt children.
A study last year revealed that the large majority of South Africans strongly rejected homosexuality, according to Afrol news.
Francis Helguero
Christian Today Correspondent
