Peter Jasper Akinola (b. 1944) is the current Anglican Archbishop of Nigeria. His strong fundamentalist message has made him a hero to many conservatives throughout the Anglican communion. Liberals see him as a divisive force. A "low church" evangelical, Akinola emphasizes the Bible over tradition, and has taken a strong stand against those promoting values he considers to be incompatible with the Bible, such as homosexuality.
At the 1998 Lambeth Conference, an international gathering of Anglican bishops in London, he physically laid hold of James Spong, Bishop of Newark in New Jersey and tried to exorcise demons of homosexuality from him. Spong, a liberal who often expressed his support for the ordination of homosexuals, accused Akinola of assault and "spiritual blackmail."
In August 2003 he stated that if Canon Jeffrey John was consecreated as Bishop of Reading or Gene Robinson is consecrated as Bishop of New Hampshire, the Church of Nigeria will leave the Anglican Communion. A number of dioceses throughout the world, including the Diocese of Sydney, Australia have been making similar hints, and Akinola has been mentioned as a possible international leader of an "alternative" to the See of Canterbury.
