In a four-page statement issued Wednesday night, the 37 primates, as leaders of the autonomous "provinces" that make up the 70 million-member Anglican Communion are known, said they had "a firm desire" to remain united but acknowledged they had deep divisions over homosexuality.

They singled out a recent decision by their American branch to elect a gay man, the Rev. Canon V. Gene Robinson, as bishop of New Hampshire, and a Canadian church's blessing of a same-sex union for jeopardizing their unity. They predicted possibly grave consequences if Robinson's consecration, scheduled for Nov. 2, goes ahead.

"If his consecration proceeds, we recognize that we have reached a crucial and critical point in the life of the Anglican Communion and we have had to conclude that the future of the Communion itself will be put in jeopardy," the statement said.

"In this case, the ministry of this one bishop will not be recognized by most of the Anglican world, and many provinces are likely to consider themselves to be out of Communion with the Episcopal Church," the statement said.

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

"Canon Robinson was elected based on his nearly three decades of ministry in the diocese, his considerable pastoral skills, and his vision for ministry," the statement also said. "His sexuality was incidental to his call to serve as our bishop."

Louie Crew, a gay activist and member of the Episcopal Church's Executive Council from Newark, N.J., who was in London to lobby on Robinson's behalf, said that he doubted the cleric would back off or delay his consecration.

"Absolutely not," Crew said. "That would send the wrong signal."

The Episcopal Church's Presiding Bishop, the Most Rev. Frank T. Griswold, who participated in the two-day meeting at Lambeth Palace, defended the decisions of the Diocese of New Hampshire and the Episcopal Church's General Convention as proper. When asked during a news conference if he would pressure Robinson to step aside, he said that attending Robinson's consecration was on his calendar but coyly emphasized that events could change his plans.

"Any number of things can happen," Griswold said. "The second coming could occur, which would certainly cancel the whole thing."

The primates urged Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, who is the symbolic head of the Anglican Communion but lacks authority to intervene in the affairs of Anglican churches outside England, to establish a commission to consider extending his role under exceptional circumstances that threaten the wider body. They asked the commission to complete its work within 12 months, by which time Robinson may have already become a bishop.

Williams described the emergency meeting, which he called after African bishops and conservative Anglicans in the West strongly objected to Robinson's election, as "very remarkable" and characterized it as painful, honest and open.

"It has certainly not been easy," he said. "It's quite clear from our discussions that issues around homosexuality are difficult and divisive. These issues will continue to cause pain and anger, misunderstanding and resentment all around."

Conservatives who had hoped the primates would punish the Episcopal Church by severing links between it and other Anglican branches were disappointed that the statement did not go further.

"I wish it would have been stronger," said the Rev. Canon David Anderson, president of the conservative American Anglican Council, 3,000 of whose members protested Robinson's election at a meeting in Dallas last week. "I would have liked to see more teeth in it."