The Anglican Church of Kenya (ACK) has said a High Court ruling allowing the gay and lesbian community to register an association will undermine the family set-up.
Speaking in Nakuru while marking the end of a three-day mothers' induction exercise, ACK Archbishop Eliud Wabukala said the Church was opposed to the ruling, which he termed "naive and inconsiderate".
Mr Wabukala said the High Court went against Christian, Islamic and African traditional norms, which recognise the family unit as the most respected form of human organisation.
"I particularly state that the Anglican Church of Kenya is against the ruling. The decision by the court to grant gays the right to be registered is inconsiderate and negates religious and family norms on which Kenyan society is based," he said. "The Constitution of Kenya only recognises marriage between a man and a woman."
Separately, evangelical church leaders also strongly opposed the court decision and said they were planning to appeal the ruling.
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"We will talk with our lawyers to see how we can appeal the decision by the High Court, but we cannot give a timeline at the moment," said Evangelical Alliance of Kenya Chairman Bishop Mark Kariuki.
Rights group
The High Court, in a groundbreaking decision, ruled on Monday that members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender rights group could formally register their organisation.
The decision was issued in response to a petition filed by the National Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (NGLHRC), which sought to be registered under the Non-Governmental Organisations Co-ordination Board Act.
The Non-Governmental Organisations Co-ordination Board rejected the group's request to register in March 2013.
The Church leaders said they were still opposed to some clauses in the Constitution that they had objected to during the referendum.
"Former President Mwai Kibaki persuaded the Church to abandon the 'No' crusade, promising to address the contentious issues after the promulgation, but this has just become a political statement. The Church demands the contentious issues be addressed now and expunged from the Constitution," Mr Kariuki said.
Gay rights, he said, were among the contentious issues that the Church wanted addressed.
The Republican Liberty Party also voiced its opposition to the ruling, saying it did not support "same sex marriage and practices".
"The court acted in vain to award and please Western countries who are against African family values," said party leader Vincent Kidaha and his deputy Charles Mcolonde.
