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Robinson Warned Not to Preside Over
Eucharist While on Book Tour in UK; Robinson Lashes out at Church
Leader, Opponents in National UK Radio Interview Robinson, the
first openly gay priest to be elected bishop in the
Anglican Communion, is visiting the U.K. to promote his new book, "In
the Eye of the Storm: Swept to the Center by God. The report
appeared on the denomination's official Website, also reported that
Robinson had lashed out at Williams in a national radio program for not
speaking out against homophobia. He also attacked the anti-gay rhetoric
of prominent Robinson-critic Archbishop Peter Akinola of Nigeria and
said it promotes violence against gays and lesbians. Akinola has
been prominent in opposing Robinson's 2003 election and has led the
widespread efforts in Africa against the liberal policies of the
American Episcopal Church, which is part of the Anglican Communion. NEW:
Robinson discusses his new book with The
Christian Century magazine. Scripture of the Week: Robinson
Opens Up About June Wedding to Partner In
an excerpt printed in the London
Times online, Robinson addresses one of his most controversial
statements of late: “I
always wanted to be a June bride.” As soon as the words were out of my
mouth, I knew there'd be trouble. I'd just delivered an hour-long
lecture on
the relationship between religion and public discourse, and why
religious
fervour over homosexuality plays such a large and negative role in the
securing of full civil rights for gay people. During
the question-and-answer period, someone asked me about the forthcoming
civil union between me and Mark, my partner of 20 years. The audience
had
been welcoming and sympathetic, full of laughter and understanding, and
for
one moment, I forgot that the C-SPAN cameras were rolling and that
every
word I said would be parsed by my critics. Within hours, those eight
words
had made it around the world, thanks to conservative bloggers and the
magic
of the internet. Robinson to Speak at Catholic Book Trade
Show The Religious
Booksellers Trade Exhibit (RBTE) is a major trade show
for Catholic bookstores that has been held for 17 years. It meets
in
St. Charles, Illinois and is open to other religious denominations,
including Episcopalians, who have invited Robinson to speak at a
luncheon after he was denied a spot on the schedule of the conference's
main luncheon, according to a report by the Catholic News
Agency. “We attempt to
balance the program to meet the needs of both our
Catholic and Episcopal attendees, as well as folks from other
denominations,” said show organizer Robert Byrns. State
Agency Set to Launch Probe of Church "We'll
be looking into it and referring the matter to the IRS," DRA
commissioner Phil Blatsos said Tuesday.The
Church of the Good Shepherd has been claiming to operate out of the
building once housing the now-defunct Arlington Sample Book Co. located
at 20 South Main St. in Newport. Blatsos said all proceedings are
confidential as are any investigations
undertaken by the administration. "Everything is confidential," Blatsos
said. The
DRA is responsible for collecting taxes in the state, including the
business profits tax, business enterprise tax, meals and rentals tax
and real estate transfer tax. Nonprofit organizations, such as
churches, are usually not required to pay taxes. According
to IRS records, the Arlington church has been in operation
since 2000 and claims assets in excess of $2.7 million.
Coverage of the Pope's
Visit to America: Former Church Bought By
Town of Brookline Shortly
after the property went up for sale in late January the town submitted
a purchase and sales agreement to the Archdiocese of Manchester. Consolidation Proposed for Central NH
Catholic Parishes Under the proposal, Laconia's three
parishes — St. Joseph, Sacred Heart, and Our Lady of the Lakes — would
be consolidated into one parish which would be served by two priests.
Masses and other services would continue to be held in all of the three
existing parish churches under the plan endorsed by the cluster of
local parishes which consists of St. Joseph in Belmont, St. Mary of the
Assumption in Tilton, St. Paul in Franklin, in addition to the three
Laconia parishes.
The Tilton and Franklin parishes would be consolidated under the proposal, while the Belmont parish would remain unchanged. UL Focuses on Manchester Ukrainian Catholic
Church St. Anne Church in Manchester Sold The company paid $250,000 for the 19th-century church and land, according to Arthur Sullivan, a company principal. Brady Sullivan plans to restore the building, doing work such as installing a new roof and heating system, and then donate it to a group that will occupy the structure. "Ultimately, our plan will be for the church to be preserved, and for a multi-cultural center to occupy the building," Sullivan said. "We're going to have a committee of people to work with us to identify who the ultimate user will be." The end goal for the company, Sullivan said, was not to make money on the property, but to do a good work for the community and preserve a valuable piece of the city's history. The Roman Catholic Bishop of Manchester, a corporation sole, was the building's owner prior to the sale. A corporation sole is a business entity that invests its power in one office-holder. The Rev. Joseph Gurdak, the pastor of St. Anne-St. Augustin Parish, said money from the sale of the church will go to the parish. Although decisions about what to do with the proceeds will be made later, Gurdak pointed to projects that need to be done at nearby St. Augustin Church, including renovating the parish rectory and the roof. Latest Abuse Report Praises,
Critiques Catholic Diocese NH News Coverage: Saga of Disinvited Bishop Continues: Gay NH
Episcopal Bishop to Attend International Gathering, But On His Own Terms instead be outside the meeting daily,
talking to anyone who will listen. He said he is working with gay
organizations internationally who hope to have gay people from
throughout the Anglican Communion in London to show the bishops that
the issue is global.
"One of the things I think I've learned in the last five years is that, as much as I wanted to be known as the good bishop, and not the gay bishop, there's no escaping," Robinson said in an interview last week at the diocesan headquarters here. "I would love just to be a simple country bishop, but that just doesn't seem to be in the cards." In addition, the UK's Guardian newspaper has profiled Robinson. Here is an excerpt: Two weeks ago Robinson was
told he would not be allowed to take part in the event - the only
bishop out of 880 to be excluded. He will still go to Canterbury, but
with no official status and the same access as a member of the public.
Yet he will, inevitably, be one of its star attractions. Robinson will
not go into detail, but says he has his own events planned, including
one with award-winning actor and gay rights campaigner Sir Ian
McKellen, who will perform a reading.
His official exclusion came as a blow to Robinson, who told a spring gathering of the US Episcopal church house of bishops that he felt abandoned by Williams. He wept during the address. "It was the hardest time I've had since my consecration," he said, driving along interstate 93. He suggested it was not his consecration or homosexuality that was tearing apart the Anglican communion, but a failure of the leadership. "I don't know if it was Rowan's intention to divide the US house of bishops but he's done the very thing he was trying to avoid through his action or lack of action. It mystifies me that he has never commented on statements Akinola [the Archbishop of Nigeria] has made about homosexuality," he said. Robinson has met Williams only once, although he has had three one-to-one encounters with the US Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama. For two years after he was elected, Robinson tried to meet the archbishop, who finally relented but would not receive Robinson at his official residence. "He wanted to meet in a secret location and I was not told where until after I got on the plane from the US." Both men agreed to keep the contents of the meeting private and Robinson would only describe the atmosphere as cordial. "I felt sad for him. He was caught in a difficult situation and didn't know how to lead the church through it. But I don't think we need an archbishop in a role of leadership. We need an archbishop to symbolise unity," he said. Before the summer, Robinson has scheduled a series of interviews to coincide with publication of his book, In the Eye of the Storm, and he will also appear in the US edition of GQ magazine. "I am probably the only bishop to feature in a 10,000-word article. I was expecting Armani and George Clooney but they wanted me to wear my robes." Episcopal Bishop "Dismayed and Sickened"
About Failure to be Included in Worldwide Anglican Meeting In a story in the
Christian Post, he is quoted as saying that restrictions that
organizers wanted to place on his involvement in the conference, to be
held in Kent, England, had caused him "considerable pain." New
Hampshire Bishop V. Gene Robinson had been told last year that he could
not fully participate in the once-a-decade gathering in England, called
the Lambeth Conference, as
the world Anglican Communion sat on the
brink of schism over his 2003 election.
Still, Episcopal leaders had been negotiating with the Anglican Communion Office to allow him to join the event in some capacity. The Episcopal Church is the Anglican body in the U.S. At
a Texas meeting Monday night of the Episcopal House of Bishops,
Robinson said that the final offer to include him was in effect a
"non-offer," and he had declined it.
The House of Bishops was informed that full invitation is "not possible" from the Archbishop of Canterbury to include Robinson. But Anglican leaders said Robinson could "be present" in the conference Marketplace, or convention hall, where exhibitors and church agencies set up stalls, and that he could participate in one "high profile" event, such as a news conference, at the 20-day summit. The exhibit hall is open to the public, while the Lambeth discussions are private. Robinson told the bishops in Texas that ever since he got word of the proposal late last Friday, "I have been in considerable pain." He said he had hoped to participate in Bible study and small group discussions with other bishops. "I am dismayed and sickhearted that we can't sit around a table, as brothers and sisters in Christ, and study Scripture together," he said. "It makes me wonder, if we can't sit around a table and study the Bible together, what kind of Communion do we have and what are we trying to save?" See also:
Washington
Post story NH United Church of Christ Settles Sexual
Abuse Lawsuit
The
gay American bishop whose ordination caused ructions in the Anglican
church has criticised the Archbishop of Canterbury for his failure to
unite the communion.
Gene Robinson, the Bishop of New Hampshire, made the remarks after declining to attend the Lambeth conference, the 10-yearly gathering of the world's bishops, because his invitation was a "non-offer". He told a spring gathering of the US Episcopal Church House of Bishops: "It has been a very difficult 48 hours sitting here and hearing your plans for Lambeth. "In my most difficult moments it feels as if, instead of leaving the 99 sheep in search of the one, my chief pastor and shepherd, the Archbishop of Canterbury, has cut me out of the herd." Conservatives and liberals have accused Dr Rowan Williams of being indecisive on the issue of homosexuality and the church. He has also been under fire, from both sides, about the extent of Robinson's participation at Lambeth. Robinson acknowledged the predicament, saying he had "respect and sympathy" for Williams. "I was trying to help him, and it just didn't work." No St. Patrick's Day Liturgies this Year;
Early Easter Takes Precedence, Says Bishop McCormack Church Roof Collapses in Campton It
was the latest collapse as
engineers and firefighters continue monitoring snow-laden roofs around
the state. Part of the roof over the New Life Church fell in
Wesnesday night. The building had been closed because of concerns about
the snow load. No one was there at the time. Pstor Shirley Marcroft
said the food pantry and thrift shop in the collapsed section of the
building served 300 to 400 people.
Former
Catholic Church May Become Home to Non-Profit Org. Protecting Abused
and Neglected Children Writes
Express reporter Dan Magazu: In December, the Catholic Diocese of Manchester entered into a purchase and sales agreement to sell the historic West
Side church properties to
John and Marion Alberico of
Windham. The purchase price
has not been disclosed. The
buyers need several zoning variances and planning board approvals to move
forward with plans to convert
the church, rectory and
school building into office space. The three buildings sit on 1.3 acres of
land. The city’s zoning board will review the plans during a meeting on
Thursday, March 6.
Ugandan
Anglicans Give
Ultimatum to US Church To Condemn Homosexuality; NH Bishop Cited in
Ongoing International Rift; Threatens Schism of World Anglican Body The paper notes:. The
Anglican church in Uganda yesterday threatened to leave the worldwide
communion unless the US Episcopal church condemned homosexuality.
The ultimatum came from the Rev Aaron Mwesigye, provincial secretary and spokesman for the Ugandan church, who warned that the attitude of some American clergy could trigger the disintegration of the world's third biggest Christian denomination. He said: "If they don't change and continue to support homosexual practices and same-sex marriage, our relationship with them will be completely broken. Anglicanism is just an identity and if they abuse it, we shall secede. Yes, we shall remain Christians, but not in the same communion." African provinces have been at loggerheads with American Anglicans following the 2003 ordination of a gay man, Gene Robinson, as bishop of New Hampshire. The tension increased in 2006 with the appointment of Katharine Jefferts Schori, a liberal, as presiding bishop of the Episcopal church. She defended her ministry in an interview with the BBC last month, claiming her church was paying the price for being honest about sexuality. "He [Robinson] is certainly not alone in being a gay bishop, he's certainly not alone in being a gay partnered bishop. He is alone in being the only gay partnered bishop who's open about that status." This openness has, however, alarmed conservatives who are unable to accept the liberal attitudes of the small but influential American wing of the communion and the latest twist makes the prospect of a schism increasingly likely as more African provinces reject the authority and leadership of the Archbishop of Canterbury. Last week the Archbishop of Uganda, Henry Orombi, was one of five primates to sign an open letter explaining their decision to snub the 10-yearly gathering of the world's Anglican bishops that will prove to be a crucial display of unity for Williams. The other signatories on the letter were the archbishops of Nigeria, Kenya, Rwanda and South America. Monks
Donate $100,000 To Save Goffstown Private School The
Manchester
Daily Express reported Wednesday that DeFelice said the money will
help parents buy the Catholic elementary school from the Religious of
Jesus and Mary, who founded the institution in Goffstown 90 years ago,
but can no longer operate it. International
Boycott
of Once-a-Decade World Anglican Meeting Sparked by NH
Gay Bishop The five leaders from Africa and South
America said they could not share communion with Episcopal bishops who
in 2003 consecrated V. Gene Robinson as bishop of New Hampshire. The Episcopal Church is the Anglican body
in the U.S.
Friday's announcement came from Archbishops Peter Akinola of Nigeria, Emmanuel Kolini of Rwanda, Benjamin Nzimbi of Kenya, Henry Orombi of Uganda and Gregory Venables of the Southern Cone, which is in South America. "There is no serious space for those of an orthodox persuasion ... to be themselves or to be taken seriously," the archbishops said in a statement. They lead some of the largest or fastest-growing Anglican provinces in the world. "The gathering will be diminished by their absence, and I imagine that they themselves will miss a gift they might have otherwise received" by attending, Episcopal Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori said. Anglicans are deeply divided over how they should interpret what the Bible says about truth, salvation, homosexuality and other issues. Robinson's elevation has pushed the 77 million-member Anglican Communion to the brink of schism. Attendance at the meeting, called the Lambeth Conference, has become a focus of the tension. NH Catholic Bishop
Ready for New Audit; Says Church is Now Protecting Children McCormack says he's confident this year's audit -- the fourth -- combined with the positive results from other reviews, will show that New Hampshire's parishes, schools and institutions are safe for all, particularly children and young people.
He says a great deal of personnel and resources have been dedicated to train thousand of employees and volunteers in child protection, and background checks are performed on them.
Under a 2002
agreement, the diocese agreed to annual checks in exchange for avoiding
criminal prosecution.
Praise
Concert Feb. 22 in Dover
Manchester Paper Highlights Catholic
Church's Web Presence Though local Catholics won’t
be able to get their ashes online today, the Diocese of Manchester is
offering Internet resource for the city’s worshippers to help them make
the most of Lent. Today marks the start of Lent, the 40-day reflection
of many Catholics to reflect on their spiritual lives, with Ash
Wednesday. The site, which the Diocese’s spokesman Patrick McGee said
is updated daily has prayers, parables, virtual stations of the cross,
and even meatless recipes on Fridays. The Diocese’s online calendar
also offers links to virtual tours of India, Guatemala and other
countries where donors can see the impact their charitable donations
have on locals there. It also covers some of the basics that Catholics
may have forgotten since last year.
The Website for New
Hampshire Catholics: www.catholicnh.com
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LONDON, ENGLAND
(4/29/08) - NH's Episcopal Bishop, V.
Gene Robinson, opens up about his often painful tenure as the world
Anglican Communion's first openly gay bishop in his upcoming book "In
the Eye of the Storm: Swept to the Center by God," which has just been
released by an imprint of