LONDON -- Leaders of the worldwide Anglican Communion yesterday warned the Episcopal Church USA that proceeding with the consecration of an openly gay bishop-elect next month "will tear the fabric of our Communion at its deepest level" and endanger the future of the 70-million-member church.

	The Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, right, and the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church of the United States Frank Griswold answer questions at a news conference yesterday. (Max Nash, Associated Press) Click photo for larger image.

In a strongly worded statement developed after two days of emergency meetings here, participants said they "deeply regret" the twin actions this summer by the Episcopal Church that have roiled the denomination: the confirmation of V. Gene Robinson as bishop and the blessing of same-sex unions in a Canadian diocese.

Those steps, the statement said, "do not express the mind of our Communion as a whole ... and jeopardize our sacramental fellowship with each other."

The statement had the curious effect of preserving -- at least temporarily -- Anglican unity while threatening a future schism in which provinces would have to decide "whether they can remain in communion with [other] provinces that choose not to break communion with the Episcopal Church."

The 36 primates who attended the meeting also asked their spiritual leader -- Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams -- to establish a commission to identify within a year the theological and legal implications of what they characterized as "the dangers" leading to this week's unprecedented meeting.

At a press conference last night, Williams, Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Frank T. Griswold and two other primates characterized the discussions as difficult, honest and open -- "a remarkable couple of days in the life of the Anglican Communion," Williams said.

If Robinson is consecrated on Nov. 2, it may be just the start of such days.

Left unknown is whether Griswold will change his mind about presiding at Robinson's consecration or whether Robinson himself might step down to avoid precipitating a rupture. The latter option appears less likely, as Robinson already has hired a rector to be his top assistant.

Robinson declined to be interviewed yesterday but indicated last week, through a spokesman, that he had no plans to bow out. A statement issued by the Diocese of New Hampshire last night said it regretted that other Anglicans were grieving over its election of Robinson but it "looked forward" to his consecration on Nov. 2, Knight Ridder News Service reported.

Griswold was evasive at the press conference, saying that he would attend the consecration unless the Second Coming occurred, and that he stood behind the processes that led to Robinson's election in June and subsequent confirmation at the denomination's General Convention in Minneapolis this summer.

The results of the London meeting showcased the power of African, Asian and South American provinces, whose leaders have openly called for disciplinary action against the Episcopal Church. It reaffirmed a seminal 1998 resolution from the once-a-decade Lambeth Conference of bishops that declared homosexual practice "incompatible with Scripture" while affirming that sexual relations should be limited to heterosexual marriage.

Griswold abstained from voting on that 1998 resolution and voted for Robinson's confirmation this summer.

Spokesmen on both sides of the issue claimed validation.

"It's a beautiful statement because [the primates] have not exceeded the bounds of their authority," said Louis Crew, founder of Integrity, a gay Episcopalian advocacy group, and a member of the Episcopal Church's executive council.

"The only appeals they make are to the conscience and feelings of those who caused the hurt. They emphasize especially [for leaders] to listen to the needs of homosexual persons, which they have not done [in the past]."

Bishop Robert W. Duncan Jr., head of the Diocese of Pittsburgh and a leader of the church's conservative wing, hailed the primates' conclusions as "a very substantial intervention" in the Episcopal Church.

One of the key points, he said, was the primates' agreement that provinces should make provisions for bishops to extend their episcopal oversight and pastoral care across current diocesan borders to help "dissenting minorities" whose dioceses don't reflect their conservative -- or liberal -- views.

The primates' declaration that Robinson's consecration could split the communion was "an extraordinary warning," Duncan said.

"The primates have done about as well as they could have done," he said.

Still, Williams was clear that the Communion faces future obstacles over human sexuality issues.

"They will continue to cause pain, anger and resentment all around," he said, directing the church's focus away from its mission of being "an instrument of God's love to the world."

"We pray that God will equip our Communion to be equal to the task and challenges which lie before it."