I also greet you as Moderator of the Anglican Communion Network – and it is chiefly because of this office that I am here. I must acknowledge the kindness and support of His grace, the Chairman of CAPA, the Archbishop of All Nigeria, the Most Revd Peter Jasper Akinola, in his generous invitation which brings me to this First African Anglican Bishops’ Conference.

The conference, held in Lagos, Nigeria, is the first meeting of the African bishops. CAPA was founded 25 years ago, but until this week, the African Anglican Bishops never met except every ten years at the Lambeth Conference in England.

With more than 5 percent annual growth, the Anglican Church is Africa's fastest-growing denomination. According to Operation World, 4 percent of Africans are Anglican, while 48 percent of the continent is Christian.

Fears of a split

Mr Obasanjo told the bishops he had followed "with keen interest your principled stand against the totally unacceptable tendency towards same-sex marriages and homosexual practice."

"Such a tendency is clearly un-Biblical, unnatural and definitely un-African," Mr Obasanjo, a born-again Christian, added in his speech to the conference in the commercial capital Lagos.

Placing both hands on the fabric covering the table, one of the women says,

"We thank you, Mother, for the hands that wove this cloth. May her life be rich and full. We thank you for the colors, the textures, and the patterns that cover our sacred time and places. We thank you for the wisdom of the weaver’s art, the glory of the interplay of thread and cord. May we be woven together with cords of love and trust as we weave the vision of our lives."