by Matthew Davies

After eighteen months of intense planning, the Halfway to Lambeth conference, organised by the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement (LGCM), began today (24 October) in Manchester, England.

The conference is host to overseas visitors and keynote speakers from many parts of the Anglican Communion including: the Rt Revd Michael Ingham, Bishop of New Westminster in Canada; the Revd Mario Ribas, a gay priest in the Episcopal Anglican Church of Brazil; and the Very Revd Rowan Smith, Dean of Cape Town Cathedral in South Africa. In addition, the Revd Canon V Gene Robinson - set to be the first openly gay bishop in the Anglican Communion when he is consecrated in New Hampshire on 2 November - will be taking part via a live satellite link.

The objective of the Halfway to Lambeth conference is to provide an opportunity for bishops, and others from the Anglican Communion, to listen to the experience of homosexual people - as laid out in Resolution I.10 from the 1998 Lambeth Conference - and to make preparations to ensure that the experience of lesbian and gay Anglicans is fully and accurately reflected at the next Lambeth Conference in 2008.

At a press conference this afternoon, Richard Kirker, conference manager and General Secretary of LGCM, said that he hoped the conference would make conditions for a more informed debate throughout the Anglican Communion.

Bishop Michael Ingham, who will address the conference on the topic of Reclaiming Orthodoxy tomorrow morning, emphasised that the unity of the Church cannot be built on injustice. "What we see in the Church is a desire not to confront the issue of prejudice of Lesbian and Gay people, something which I think will weaken the Church," he said. "I see orthodoxy as a broad river, not a narrow stream." Bishop Ingham also highlighted the need to distinguish between unity and uniformity. "Unity runs much deeper," he said. "Many denominations resolve their disputes by splitting up. Anglicans have tended to find ways to stay together and live in mutual respect."

Rowan Smith, who has played a leading part in putting the Anglican Church at the forefront of working for lesbian and gay equality in South Africa, said that the voice of the [Anglican] Church is wider than just the people from whom we have heard in the past few months.

Much of the recent airtime has been claimed by people voicing their concerns over Canon Gene Robinson's consecration. Vice President of Integrity, Uganda and Headmaster of a Primary School, Christopher Senteza, said today that if [the] consecration goes ahead "it will be a torch to us in Africa and will give us hope".

The Halfway to Lambeth conference will culminate on Sunday 26 October with a service at 12:30pm in St John Chrysostom, Manchester, during which Bishop Michael Ingham will be preaching.