Bishops attending the Lambeth Conference have heard how the row over gay clergy has left the Anglican church a "wounded community".
About 210 bishops - a quarter of those invited - have boycotted the event, following the consecration of the gay bishop of New Hampshire, Gene Robinson.
In a pre-conference sermon, Bishop Duleep de Chickera said the boycott was an indication that "all was not well."
Critics say the conference, starting on Monday, will be unable to end the row.
Undermining unity
In his sermon, held the day before the conference formally opens on Monday, Bishop de Chickera, of Colombo, Sri Lanka, said: "The crisis is complex - it is not a crisis that can be resolved instantly.
"Why have people decided that they want to change the faith that has been delivered to the saints?"
"The journey ahead is a long and complex one, a journey that will demonstrate our prayer, our faithfulness, our mutual trust in each other and of course our trust in God who realises it is possible."
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, has also acknowledged that the Communion's problems are unlikely to be solved during the conference.
But he criticised those bishops who have stayed away for undermining unity.
Those who will not attend include the Anglican leaders of Nigeria, Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda and a group of countries in southern South America.
'Defensive'
The most senior Church of England figure to stay away is the Bishop of Rochester, Michael Nazir-Ali.
Keith Ackerman, Bishop of Quincy, Illinois, said he sympathised with conservative views but wanted to attend the conference so his point of view could be heard.
He told BBC News: "Why have people decided that they want to change the faith that has been delivered to the saints?
"So often those who are maintaining what Anglicanism has always taught are seen as the ones that have to be defensive.
"My question is why do you want to change that which you have vowed to uphold by virtue of the promises you made at your ordination?"
The issue of homosexuality will not be formally discussed until the end of the conference, and no resolution will be held - a move criticised by traditionalists.
The Church's mission and evangelisation, human sexuality, social justice, the environment and violence against women will also be discussed.
The debate about homosexuality in the Anglican Church has followed the consecration in the US of the openly gay Bishop of New Hampshire, Gene Robinson.
Bishop Robinson will be present on the fringes of the conference, which is being held at the University of Kent.
The controversy over his appointment led Dr Williams not to invite him to attend.
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