The rift in the Anglican communion over homosexuality was reopened today after its first openly gay bishop, Gene Robinson, said he was retiring early because seven years of controversy had "taken their toll" on him, his family and followers.
-- From "Episcopalians react with sadness to the retirement of Bishop Gene Robinson" by Kathy McCabe and Eric Moskowitz, Boston Globe Staff 11/7/10
Robinson, 63, [the heretic] whose consecration seven years ago as the first openly gay bishop in the Episcopal Church divided the Anglican Communion worldwide, yesterday announced at the annual convention of the New Hampshire diocese that he plans to retire in January 2013, short of the mandatory 72-year-old retirement age for Episcopal bishops. He cited death threats and the considerable strain that the worldwide rift has placed on him, his family, and the church.
Robinson's state-level election and national ratification by the Episcopal Church in 2003 exposed a growing division in the Anglican Communion, or worldwide Church of England, among religious liberals and conservatives. It also made Robinson an international figure. In January 2009, then-president-elect Barack Obama selected Robinson to deliver a pre-inauguration prayer at an event at the Lincoln Memorial.
But in New Hampshire, where Robinson has lived and worked for 35 years, there was less fallout to his selection.
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From "Gene Robinson goes but rift remains: strain proves too much for gay bishop" by Riazat Butt, religious affairs correspondent, The Guardian 11/7/10
Robinson's consecration in the diocese of New Hampshire in 2003 had brought conservatives and liberals in the Anglican communion to the brink of schism.
Last year, North American traditionalists broke away from the US Episcopal church to set up their own network. This year, Episcopalians consecrated a non-celibate lesbian to the post of assistant bishop in Los Angeles.
He also revealed he had no intention to retire from public life, saying he would continue his work on college campuses and public forums.
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