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From the Editor: The Word from Kampala’s Anglicans |
The Word from Kampala’s Anglicans [Anglicanism has been a major force in Ugandan society since the British made Uganda into a colonial protectorate in 1894. The church established the first elementary schools in the 1890s, and in 1913 founded a seminary that is now Uganda Christian University. The dominance of the Church Missionary Society established a low church—evangelical— tradition in which revivalism became an important feature of religious life. Under the leadership of Archbishop Henry Luke Orombi, the Church of Uganda (COU) has played a leading role in opposing those elements of the Anglican Communion, such as the Episcopal Church in the United States, that have normalized homosexuality. In 2007, the COU consecrated an American bishop to oversee many of the U.S. parishes it supports, and in 2009 declared itself in full communion with the Anglican Church in North America, which was formed by American Episcopalians and Canadian Anglicans disaffected by their national churches’ acceptance of homosexuality. In April, Kenyan journalist Jesse Masai interviewed Orombi’s communications director, Amanda Onapito, and Assistant Bishop of Uganda David Zac Niringiye.] On a humid evening at a downtown Kampala hotel, I began my conversation with Amanda Onapito only to be interrupted when three cockroaches swam onto our table, one sliding into my juice cocktail. A waitress, apologizing profusely, brought me another drink, but who can predict the path of a bug? “It’s a good time to be an Anglican,” Onapito smiled. She explained that MP David Bahati, the Anglican church member who sponsored the anti-homosexuality bill, sought to close gaps in existing Ugandan law by clarifying precisely what constitutes a breach of law—namely, recruitment of youngsters into the gay scene, protection of youth from sexual abuse, and advocacy of homosexuality designed to challenge and change the traditional family values of the people of Uganda. The much touted death sentence underlined by critics of the bill applies only to cases of aggravated sexual assault, protecting youth and disabled persons who theoretically could not easily resist. Certainly free access to sexual intelligence is troubling as well, Onapito said. Motivating the bill is a need to protect children who are “made vulnerable to sexual abuse and deviation as a result of cultural changes,” uncensored information technologies, parentless situations, and increasing overtures by same-sex couples to adopt or provide foster care. Onapito disputed the impression that the COU, in supporting the bill’s aims though not its specific provisions, is involved in knee-jerk politics-of-the-moment born of crisis and lacking deliberative judgment. “The church’s position on human sexuality is consistent with its basis of faith and doctrine and has been stated very clearly over the years as reflected in various documents,” she said. “From a careful and critical reading of Scripture, homosexual practice has no place in God’s design of creation, the continuation of the human race through procreation, or his plan of redemption. “The Church of Uganda believes that homosexual practice is incompatible with Scripture. At the same time, we are committed at all levels to counseling, healing, and prayer for people with homosexual orientation. The church is a safe place for individuals who are confused about their sexuality or struggling with sexual brokenness, to seek help and healing.” On the bill itself, she continued, the COU prefers that current law (Penal Code Cap. 120) be amended, clarifying gaps, protecting all parties from uneven enforcement and from the anti-homosexuality bill’s encroachment into family life and church counsel. Currently, the bill outlaws failure to inform authorities of homosexual activity, much as standard criminal law forbids failure to testify concerning wrongful acts observed. Ugandan law protects underage girls from sexual predators, Onapito explained, but not underage boys. The COU wants the law to protect, not criminalize, confidential relationships of medical, pastoral, and counseling professionals and their clients, she said. An amended Penal Code must, in fairness and for the protection of youth, specify lesbianism, bestiality, and “other sexual perversions” as targeted behaviors. The free marketplace of ideas must have legal boundaries prohibiting material that “promotes homosexuality as normal or as [merely] an alternative lifestyle.” Onapito added that while the church’s position may be contrary to Western notions of fair treatment for gays, it hardly poses the desperate risk to life and freedom that gay rights advocates fear. There should be no doubt, however, that the COU wants to ensure that “sexual orientation is excluded as a protected human right.” Later, I met with Bishop Niringiye, who insisted that the COU’s position on the bill was “a restatement of the values and culture of our society with regard to human nature and created order, not a reaction; and that this response is being made in a global context in which the West is seeking to promote homosexuality as a legitimate expression of human sexuality, on grounds that the natural and social sciences support it.” African society, he said, has always acknowledged the existence of homosexual practice, but it has always been clear that such practice is wrong. “Our various languages alluded to it, but always as something distorted, wrong,” he said. Niringiye had a bone to pick with international media. “Our ideas are being portrayed as radical,” he said. “We are not radical. We are dealing with sexualized Western societies. Our obligation is to value Scripture…You cannot make human wrongs human rights.” Niringiye pointed to the East Africa Revival, the reform movement that began in the 1930s, as foundational for the supremacy of Scripture in the life of the church and its people. Widely recognized as a turning point for the spirituality of East African Christians, the revival inspired the church to resist and reprimand Idi Amin under the leadership of Archbishop Janani Jakaliya Luwum, and resulted in Amin’s execution of Luwum. “When the East Africa Revival movement swept through our communities, it called for the equality of women and men, and began the process of restoring women to traditional roles as spiritual leaders in their communities,” Niringiye said. “In the 1950s and 1960s, when African Christians took over leadership in the church, a number of women sought theological training and ordination. This was happening before women’s ordination was approved in the West. We are insulted by the West’s comparison of ordaining women and blessing same-sex unions. In our African context, there has always been a place for women’s involvement. “God is calling the Church of Uganda to seek continual transformation from the Word of God written, in preaching repentance and faith in Christ, and to develop ministries of pastoral care that don’t ostracize, shun, or reject those tempted by homosexual desire. We acknowledge that God is calling us to come alongside those who give in to the temptation of homosexual desire and show them the power of the Word of God to bring joy, peace, and satisfaction to their lives through repentance and obedience to God’s Word.” |