The Anglican Church of Southern Africa (ACSA) blasted South African President Jacob Zuma on Thursday for his "sexual misconduct" in fathering a child out of wedlock last October.

"Recent revelations of the sexual misconduct of the President of [South Africa] do not bode well for the future and are cause for serious concern," the ACSA Synod said in a statement.

"The people in our pews look at what is happening there and elsewhere within our Province, and ask who they can respect and look up to as role models in the political leadership of our nations."

The statement continued: "the sexual indiscretions mentioned highlight the way women more widely face exploitation and abuse, and, in the case of Swaziland, are reduced to the status of the possession of a male through the denial of basic human, political and economic rights."

"In response to the overarching call of God on all our lives, we therefore call upon the leaders of all the nations within our Province to covenant with us in a process of moral, spiritual and economic regeneration, in which we seek to model our lives and our societies more closely on God's principles and purposes for humanity, as they are held in common by the great majority of faith groupings."

"Through doing so, may we be servants of his blessing upon all his people."

The 67-year-old Zuma, who is an open polygamist, issued an apology for his infidelity last week, saying that the scandal put "a lot of pressure" on his family, which includes three wives and 20 children. The president is also engaged to be married to a fourth wife.

Polygamy is legal under South African law, although it is mostly practiced by members of the Zulu tribe, which Zuma is a part of.

The scandal has also been detrimental to Zuma's political campaign, lessening the president's credibility on issues such as combating HIV/AIDS.

South Africa has the highest number of people living with HIV/AIDS than any other country, with an estimated 5.2 million people infected with the disease.

It is estimated that over 250,000 South Africans died of the disease in 2008.