Bishop Gene Robinson: "God called me out of the closet"

I had wondered whatever happened to Bp. Gene - CBS Sunday Morning ran an update on his life and faith yesterday:

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Marriage News Watch, 5/5/14

Matt Baume of the American Foundation for Equal Rights reports:




More about the Alaska Supreme Court decision here.


A video of retired Army colonel Ed Cuyler and wife Robbie speaking out in support of their lesbian daughter and daughter-in-law who are raising a family in Oklahoma:




And sadly, recently retired Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson of New Hampshire, whose consecration in 2003 rocked and split the Anglican Communion, has announced that he and his huband, Mark Andrew, are divorcing. The couple have been together for over 25 years.  Read Bishop Robinson's announcement in the Daily Beast here.

Bishop Gene Robinson and Mark Andrew, 2003

Love Free or Die

Love Free or Die (a play on the state motto of New Hampshire) is a new documentary about Gene Robinson, Episcopal Bishop of New Hampshire, whose consecration in 2003 has effectively, if not formally, split the Anglican Communion into schism.  Gene attended his consecration wearing a bullet-proof vest and has lived with death threats every day since.  Even if you're not religious, you should admire his courage and his integrity in the face of overwhelming condemnation and vituperation from religious conservatives, both in and out of the Episcopal Church.

Filmmaker Macky Alston discusses his motivation for the documentary:




Gene gives a sermon during Gay Pride in New York City, entitled "Act of Commitment":




A heckler disrupts Gene's sermon during the Lambeth Conference in England, 2008 (Gene was pointedly disinvited from this gathering of all the Anglican bishops in the world, but went to England anyway to meet with supportive clergy and laity):

Bishop Gene Robinson Announces Retirement

Bishop Robinson and his husband, Mark Andrew


From the Concord [New Hampshire] Monitor:

Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson announced yesterday he will retire in 2013, in part because of the death threats and strain he's endured as the first openly gay bishop in the worldwide Anglican Church.

Robinson's election seven years ago has divided the 77-million-member Anglican Communion here and overseas. Robinson wore a bulletproof vest at his consecration in Durham in 2003 because of the threats. The controversy has grown more intense as traditionalists formed rival churches.

"The last seven years have taken their toll on me, my family and you," Robinson, 63, told delegates gathered in Concord yesterday for the New Hampshire diocese's annual convention. He was accompanied by his husband, Mark Andrew, whom he married in New Hampshire in 2008. . . .

When Robinson's candidacy was presented to the national church for a ratification vote, several conservative bishops left the room, denouncing the election of a gay man as bishop.

The American church was clearly divided:  62 bishops voted for him, 43 against him, while two abstained. Since then, Episcopal and Anglican traditionalists overseas formed alliances and created the Anglican Church in North America as a conservative rival to the Episcopal church.

And in 2008, Robinson was not invited to the Lambeth Conference, a once-a-decade meeting of the world's Anglican bishops because of pressure from conservative bishops. Instead, Robinson flew privately to England and spoke at local churches while the other Anglican bishops convened.

Upon his election as bishop, Robinson said he wanted to be "the good bishop, not the gay bishop." But in the last seven years, he has worked to be both, tending to his job's duties in the state but also seeking a bigger stage for gay-rights awareness.

He spoke of that yesterday."I will continue my work of evangelizing the unchurched and the 'de-churched,' " he said. He cited news reports of three gay teenagers who committed suicide "because religion tells them they are an abomination before God. I get to tell them a different story," he said, prompting applause.

You can read Bishop Robinson's entire speech here.

Bishop Robinson: Religion Kills Young People

Gene Robinson, Episcopal Bishop of New Hampshire - the gay bishop whose 2003 election has caused the Anglican Communion to splinter into pro- and anti-gay fragments - writes in the Huffington Post:

An increasingly popular bumper sticker reads, "Guns Don't Kill People -- RELIGION Kills People!" In light of recent events I would add religion kills young people: gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender young people.

Perhaps not directly, though. And religion is certainly not the only source of anti-gay sentiment in the culture. But it's hard to deny that religious voices denouncing LGBT people contribute to the atmosphere in which violence against LGBT people and bullying of LGBT youth can flourish. . . .

With the exception of [Asher] Brown in Texas these suicides are not happening in Bible Belt regions of the country, where we might predict a greater-than-usual regard for religious thought. Instead, they are occurring in states perceived to be more liberal on LGBT issues: California, Minnesota, New Jersey, and Rhode Island.

The case of Tyler Clementi is especially instructive about how far we have to go in accepting our gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender children. Clementi was an 18-year-old freshman at Rutgers University whose roommate secretly filmed a sexual encounter he had with another male student and then posted it on the internet.

Think about it. If Tyler had been heterosexual and instead filmed having sex with his girlfriend, it would still be an inappropriate invasion of his privacy and tasteless to post the video online. And it certainly would have been embarrassing for Tyler and the girl. But chances are he would have been the recipient of some congratulatory remarks from friends about what a stud he was. And if he was straight he likely wouldn't have contemplated -- not to mention successfully accomplished -- his own suicide by jumping off the George Washington Bridge.

No, Tyler was a victim -- not of an inner disturbance of depression or mental illness--but of an external and in part religiously inspired disdain and hatred of gay people.

Despite the progress we're making on achieving equality under the law and acceptance in society for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people, why this rash of bullying, paired with self-loathing, ending in suicide? With humility and heartfelt repentance I assert that religion -- and its general rejection of homosexuality -- plays a crucial role in this crisis.

On the one hand, Religious Right hatemongers and crazies are spewing all sorts of venom and condemnation, all in the name of a loving God. The second-highest-ranking Mormon leader, Boyd K. Packer, recently called same-sex attraction "impure and unnatural" in an act of unspeakable insensitivity at the height of this rash of teen suicides. He declared that it can be cured, and that same-sex unions are morally repugnant and "against God's law and nature."

Just as many gay kids grow up in these conservative denominations as any other. They are told day in and day out that they are an abomination before God. Just consider the sheer numbers of LGBT kids growing up right now in Roman Catholic, Mormon, and other conservative religious households. The pain and self-loathing caused by such a distortion of God's will is undeniable and tragic, causing scars and indescribable self-alienation in these young victims.

You don't have to grow up in a religious household, though, to absorb these religious messages. Not long ago I had a conversation with six gay teens, not one of whom had ever had any formal religious training or influence. Every one of them knew the word "abomination," and every one of them thought that was what God thought of them. They couldn't have located the Book of Leviticus in the Bible if their lives depended on it yet they had absorbed this message from the antigay air they breathe every day.

Add to that the Minnesota Family Council's Tom Prichard recently saying that the real cause of the suicides is "homosexual indoctrination," not antigay bullying, and that the students died because they adopted an "unhealthy lifestyle." . . .

Continued after the jump . . .

Joel Burns: It Gets Better, Even in Texas

Openly gay member of the Fort Worth City Council Joel Burns shared his moving story with tears in his eyes but got a standing ovation from his fellow councilors and the audience last night. Well worth watching the whole speech.

This has got give some of our Texas kids the hope and courage to hold on through the hard times. My hat's off to Joel, big time.


Ya know fellas, it's almost like we're all coming out of the closet all over again, all over the country. Never before have we been able to share our stories - our pain, our grief, our hope, our dreams - with everyone, everywhere. A monumental event in gay/queer history, maybe a turning point that should rank up there with Stonewall and other events.

Now, no one in the straight community can say, "I didn't know, I didn't realize what it was all about." All they have to do is listen - and learn. In the long run, this helps not only the hurting kids, but all of us.


A couple more excellent videos today from the It Gets Better Project:

Gene Robinson, Bishop of New Hampshire:


And Broadway says it gets better too:

Second Gay Episcopal Bishop Ordained

From Episcopal News Service:

Two historic ministries were welcomed in a huge and joyous celebration May 15 as thousands witnessed Diane Jardine Bruce and Mary Douglas Glasspool being consecrated bishops suffragan of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles.

During the three-hour service at the Long Beach Arena, themed 'Rejoice!' Bruce and Glasspool were ordained and consecrated the 16th and 17th women bishops in the Episcopal Church. Bruce is the first woman to be elected a bishop in the Los Angeles diocese. Glasspool, elected Dec. 5, a day after Bruce, is the diocese's first—and the Episcopal Church's second—gay, partnered bishop.

About 30 bishops, including the Rt. Rev. Martin DeJesus Barahona of El Salvador and retired Ugandan bishop Christopher Senyonjo, attended the service.  Retired Massachusetts suffragan bishop Barbara Harris, who in 1988 became the first woman bishop in the Episcopal Church and worldwide Anglican Communion, served as one of seven co-consecrating bishops. She received sustained applause and a standing ovation when Bruno paid tribute to her in his sermon. 

"It's a joy to participate in her consecration," Harris later said of Glasspool, who in 1988 nominated Harris for bishop. "We're great friends. Little did either of us know that both of us would be sitting in the House of Bishops."

"She is going to make a very good bishop," Harris added. "She's a wonderful, caring, loving, pastoral person."  New Hampshire Bishop Gene Robinson, who in 2003 became the first openly gay, partnered bishop in the Episcopal Church, was among the bishops attending the service.

Video: Robinson's Prayer

Somebody caught most of Robinson's invocation yesterday on video, so here you go.

Suck it, HBO.

(Big ol' honk to Joe.My.God. for finding this)

Update: Joe and others are reporting that HBO is blaming Obama's transition team for the "scheduling problem" with Robinson's prayer, saying it was their idea. Do you believe that?

Update 2: Pam Spaulding has gotten a statement from the inaugural committee, pointing the finger back at HBO:

"We had always intended and planned for Rt. Rev. Robinson's invocation to be included in the televised portion of yesterday's program. We regret the error in executing this plan - but are gratified that hundreds of thousands of people who gathered on the mall heard his eloquent prayer for our nation that was a fitting start to our event," said PIC communications director Josh Earnest.

Update 3: Michael Jensen of After Elton got this communication from HBO:

"It was not an HBO omission. We merely televised the show beginning at 2:30pm. Had the PIC told us upfront that this was to be part of the telecast, it would have been."

HBO has also given PIC permission to post Rev. Robinson's prayer on their website, but we're waiting for word when that will happen.

As for the people helming Obama's PIC, their claim that this was simply a miscommunication and that Robinson's prayer was meant to be included is impossible to verify. The only thing for certain is that they have stepped in it again and made many in the gay community (and some in the straight community) ever more skeptical of this administration's attitude toward gay people.

For what it's worth, I still don't think Obama is trying hide his gay constituency from the rest of America or to throw us under the bus. He included the GLBT community in his acceptance speech for the Democratic nomination and again when he addressed crowds yesterday in D.C.

Do I disagree with his selection of Rick Warren to deliver tomorrow's invocation? Absolutely. Do I think somebody in the PIC blew the coverage of Robinson's invocation? Again, absolutely. But for me the jury is still out as to whether Obama will come through on the issues that really matter to our community.

Update 4: Rachel Maddow covers the story:

CENSORED: Robinson's Prayer

Big honk to Joe.My.God for finding the link to the text of Bp. Robinson's prayer that he gave today and which was NOT televised by HBO - Go here to file a complaint with HBO. I already fired one off.

Update: Apparently Robinson's invocation could not be heard by the crowd at the event, either; the sound system mysteriously failed at that point, according to another report I just saw. Blue Truck reader Lloyd confirms it, saying

I was at the national mall for the concert, about 1/2 a mile from the Lincoln Memorial, and the moment Gene Robinson took to the stage, the speakers went out. We couldn’t hear a word of the entire invocation. Of course minutes before when Elmo was on the jumbotrons speaking about unity, everything was fine. The moment the gay bishop takes to the stage suddenly there is technical issues. Of course when I get home I find out that HBO cut Gene Robinson from the footage. It’s really horrible and sad. I really don’t think it was a “day of unity” for everyone.

A Prayer for the Nation and

Our Next President, Barack Obama

By The Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson, Episcopal Bishop of New Hampshire

Opening Inaugural Event
Lincoln Memorial, Washington, DC
January 18, 2009

Welcome to Washington! The fun is about to begin, but first, please join me in pausing for a moment, to ask God’s blessing upon our nation and our next president.


O God of our many understandings, we pray that you will…

Bless us with tears – for a world in which over a billion people exist on less than a dollar a day, where young women from many lands are beaten and raped for wanting an education, and thousands die daily from malnutrition, malaria, and AIDS.

Bless us with anger – at discrimination, at home and abroad, against refugees and immigrants, women, people of color, gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people.

Bless us with discomfort – at the easy, simplistic “answers” we’ve preferred to hear from our politicians, instead of the truth, about ourselves and the world, which we need to face if we are going to rise to the challenges of the future.

Bless us with patience – and the knowledge that none of what ails us will be “fixed” anytime soon, and the understanding that our new president is a human being, not a messiah.

Bless us with humility – open to understanding that our own needs must always be balanced with those of the world.

Bless us with freedom from mere tolerance – replacing it with a genuine respect and warm embrace of our differences, and an understanding that in our diversity, we are stronger.

Bless us with compassion and generosity – remembering that every religion’s God judges us by the way we care for the most vulnerable in the human community, whether across town or across the world.


And God, we give you thanks for your child Barack, as he assumes the office of President of the United States.

Give him wisdom beyond his years, and inspire him with Lincoln’s reconciling leadership style, President Kennedy’s ability to enlist our best efforts, and Dr. King’s dream of a nation for ALL the people.

Give him a quiet heart, for our Ship of State needs a steady, calm captain in these times.

Give him stirring words, for we will need to be inspired and motivated to make the personal and common sacrifices necessary to facing the challenges ahead.

Make him color-blind, reminding him of his own words that under his leadership, there will be neither red nor blue states, but the United States.

Help him remember his own oppression as a minority, drawing on that experience of discrimination, that he might seek to change the lives of those who are still its victims.

Give him the strength to find family time and privacy, and help him remember that even though he is president, a father only gets one shot at his daughters’ childhoods.

And please, God, keep him safe. We know we ask too much of our presidents, and we’re asking FAR too much of this one. We know the risk he and his wife are taking for all of us, and we implore you, O good and great God, to keep him safe. Hold him in the palm of your hand – that he might do the work we have called him to do, that he might find joy in this impossible calling, and that in the end, he might lead us as a nation to a place of integrity, prosperity and peace.

AMEN.

A Lesson in Values

Been looking to find the text of Bp. Robinson's remarks at today's concert, but so far no luck, even on Google. But I did find this comment by Evan Wolfson, director of Freedom to Marry. I'll keep looking for Robinson's words and post them here when they turn up.

President-elect Obama's invitation to Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson to kick off the Inauguration events with an invocation at the Lincoln Memorial is a powerful statement in support of gay people's common humanity and the need to end their exclusion from American law and life. While most likely intending the invitation as a way of addressing the pain and disappointment caused by his selection of Rick Warren, an anti-gay crusader, to pray at the Inaugural, President-elect Obama could have chosen another, less distinctive member of the clergy committed to the values of equality and inclusion he favors and Rick Warren rejects. But instead, President-elect Obama chose Bishop Robinson.

An openly gay man joined in civil union with his life-partner, a strong advocate of the freedom to marry, and a beloved moral hero to millions, including those who know him best, Bishop Robinson is also a world-historical figure. His ministry is at the center of the Episcopal Church's embrace of gay people and stand for inclusion against division in the U.S. and throughout the world. President-elect Obama has sent a strong signal that will resonate around the world: America's inauguration of its new president is commenced and blessed by a welcomed and courageous gay man.

At the same time, signals and statements, invitations and Inaugurations are not as important as actual changes in law and society. The true test of President-elect Obama's leadership and administration will come as he moves to fulfill the promises he has made, including his commitment to secure equality under law for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Americans alongside our non-gay brothers and sisters. The President-elect -- and all of us -- would do well to heed not just Bishop Robinson's invocation on January 18, but his moral witness in his life, to those he inspires, and to his partner and family. Central to this incandescent example is Bishop Robinson's pastoral and personal support for the freedom to marry, true equality under law and in love.

When he stands before Abraham Lincoln's statue to mark a new presidency, Bishop Robinson will provide President-elect Obama, and the nation and world, a lesson in values to light the way forward. Prayer must then be matched by policy.

"The tree is known by his fruit."

Obama Evens It Up

Bishop Robinson and husband Mark Andrew

Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson of New Hampshire has been invited to give the invocation at the opening ceremony of the presidential inauguration next Sunday, January 18, The Advocate reports.

Robinson has been partnered since 1988 with hubby Mark Andrew, and the couple were joined in a civil union ceremony last June. Robinson's 2003 ordination as Bishop of New Hampshire sent shockwaves through the worldwide Anglican Communion, helping precipitate the ongoing schism in that religious body.

Robinson's coming-out story is one of the subjects of the excellent 2007 documentary For the Bible Tells Me So, which I've recommended to Blue Truck readers before.

Although Robinson will not be part of the Inauguration proper - the swearing-in ceremony on the steps of the Capitol on Tuesday, January 20 - still, this is a major recognition of the gay community and I commend the President-elect for inviting Robinson to take part. Not only is it a shrewd political move, it's also the right thing to do.

So I feel much better about the Warren thing now. Ten years down the road, it won't even be remembered, except as a footnote in history books. We're going to make great progress towards full equality in this next decade, and all that homophobic thinking is going straight into the dustbin of history. God willing.