Openly gay bishop to deliver prayer for inauguration

[Javaman]

http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Openly_gay_bishop_to_deliver_prayer_0112.html

The Episcopal Church's first openly gay bishop will deliver a prayer at the Lincoln Memorial for Sunday's opening day inaugural event.

The little-noted announcement, passed to Politico's Mike Allen, could be seen as an attempt to assuage gay rights advocates who were incensed by the selection of Pastor Rick Warren -- a vehement critic of gay rights -- to give the invocation on inauguration day.

Writes Allen, "BREAKING: The Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire, who became the Episcopal Church’s first openly gay bishop in 2003 and last year entered into a civil union with his gay partner, will deliver the invocation for Sunday’s kickoff inaugural event on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, with President-elect Obama in attendance. The event is free and open to the public. An Obama source: “Robinson was in the plans before the complaints about Rick Warren. Many skeptics will read this as a direct reaction to the Warren criticism – but it’s just not so.” Robinson has been referred to as “the most controversial Christian in the world.”"

[Bill McBlueState]

1. I wonder who calls Robinson that

"the most controversial Christian in the world"

If that's true, it's interesting that the most controversial issue for Christianity is the private life of a New Hampshire bishop, not, say, confronting world leaders about poverty and disease.

[Deep13]

3. If Christian leaders admit that they have no say over...

...private life, especially matters that touch on reproduction, then they will have put themselves out of business.

[xchrom]

4. he's controversial for being.

it's odd that people see some kind of equivalency between a man who has attacked a group of people and another who is hated for being.

[Deep13]

5. I agree.

Apparently, I'm intolerant because I object to having people be treated as evil simply for being who they are.

[Deep13]

2. Well, that's reassuring.

I still see having Warren speak at all as a move toward irrationality since he is a professional con artist. And he did campaign for Prop. 8.

[sui generis]

6. exactly - difference is Robinson never campaigned to take away anyone's rights.

nt