Retiring Malawi archbishop leaves divided church

Anglican Archbishop Bernard Malango of the Province of Central Africa is due to retire in September, but some church members say he has failed to end a bitter rift in the Diocese of Lake Malawi over the 2005 election of a bishop who supports gay clergy.

An extraordinary synod of the Lake Malawi diocese did send a message to Malango, who became Archbishop of Central Africa in 2000, wishing him well and thanking him for his leadership.

The diocese, however, continues to be roiled by bitter divisions over the 2005 decision of the Ecclesiastical Court of Central Africa to block the consecration of Nicholas Henderson, a British theologian said to be in favor of allowing homosexuals to be ordained priests. He was to replace the late Bishop of Malawi, Peter Nyanja.

In July 2005, electors in the Malawi diocese voted overwhelmingly for London-based Henderson, who had worked closely with the diocese for 18 years, and had visited regularly and raised funds for religious and humanitarian projects.

Henderson was preparing to leave his west London parish for Malawi when he learned the Court of Confirmation had vetoed his appointment. At the time, Malango, a leading evangelical who is opposed to gay priests, said Henderson, "has actively demonstrated that he was not of good faith." Malango put the retired Bishop of Zambia, Leonard Mwenda, in temporary charge of the Malawi diocese.

The decision led to violent clashes between supporters and opponents of Henderson. In April 2007, British missionary Canon Rodney Hunter, 73, an opponent of Henderson's appointment, died of poisoning. Police arrested Hunter's cook and charged him with murder, and were reported to be investigating allegations that supporters of Henderson had arranged the murder. As Malango leaves office, pro- and anti-Henderson factions remain deeply divided, using the same church buildings but praying separately.