The Papacy Stands for Freedom?

Usually, the Papacy is a symbol of unfettered authoritarianism. But in the topsy turvey world of the conflict within the worldwide Anglican Communion, things have taken an interesting political turn.

A leading conservative cleric has launched a devastating attack on the Archbishop of Canterbury, accusing him of “betrayal” and calling his office a “remnant of imperial colonialism”.
Writing in The Times, the Most Rev Henry Orombi, Archbishop of Uganda, says Rowan Williams has betrayed churches that remain true to the Bible by inviting colleagues who consecrated the openly gay Bishop of New Hampshire to the Lambeth Conference. ...
The Archbishop of Uganda stands by the biblical texts that rule against homosexuality but says that he and his peers do not want to cause schism by leaving the Anglican Communion.

So far, this is a pretty typical statement of the conflict between the conservative African south and the liberal European North. But here is the statement that got my attention:

He writes: “Even the Pope is elected by his peers. But what Anglicans have is a man appointed by a secular government. Over the past five years, we have come to see this as a remnant of British colonialism, and it is not serving us well.

“The spiritual leadership of a global communion of independent and autonomous provinces should not be reduced to one man appointed by a secular government.”

Wholesale conversions to Catholicism, as a protest against remnants of colonialism? Stranger things have happened.