Durham, New Hampshire — Pledging to guard the unity of his church, Rev. Gene Robinson was consecrated Sunday as the first openly gay bishop in the global Anglican community, in a ceremony that has bitterly divided the Christian community worldwide.
More than 4,000 faithful — called the biggest gathering of Episcopalians in the state's history — streamed through a knot of antigay protesters and through security screening to attend the three-hour service in a hockey arena on the University of New Hampshire's campus.
Bishop Robinson was elected by parishioners of his New Hampshire diocese last spring and was affirmed this past summer by a vote of bishops of the Episcopal Church, the U.S. branch of Anglicanism.
Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, the president of the worldwide Anglican Communion, on the weekend called on all Anglicans to show tolerance and maintain their communion with one another. Conservative bishops in North America and around the world have said they will not recognize Bishop Robinson's consecration and will distance themselves from any diocese that does acknowledge him.
The consecration of Bishop Robinson has sparked furious debate. Pope John Paul II, who heads the Roman Catholic Church, appealed to Anglicans not to proceed with it, saying that to do so would hurt the cause of Christianity around the world.
During the consecration ceremony, the candidate, a divorced father of two adult daughters, was praised as a devout, faithful and courageous leader of the church. His daughters, former wife, and male partner joined with local clergy in the ceremonial presentation of Bishop Robinson as a candidate for consecration.
The ceremony was attended by more than 60 North American bishops, including Bishop Bruce Stavert of Quebec.
But the voices of condemnation were heard both outside and inside the arena.
Early in the ceremony, Bishop Frank Griswold, the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, asked any in the congregation who opposed it to step forward and state their case why the consecration should not proceed.
Three people stepped forward, including Bishop David Bena of Albany, N.Y., who presented an objection signed by 36 Episcopal and Anglican bishops, including eight from Canada.
"It is impossible to affirm a candidate for bishop and a symbol of unity whose very conservation is dividing the whole Anglican Communion," Bishop Bena said.
He said Bishop Robinson's "chosen lifestyle" is "incompatible with Scriptures and the teachings of this church." His consecration, he said, will "tear the fabric of our communion at its deepest level."
Rev. Earl Fox of Pittsburgh went even further in his denunciation, launching into a graphic description of common sexual practices of gay men until he was interrupted by Bishop Griswold.
Noting the images of "a loving God" in the arena, he said, "persons made in that loving image could not likely engage in, bless or consecrate such behaviour."
The dissenters then left for an ecumenical prayer service at a nearby evangelical church for Episcopalians and their supporters who oppose the ordination of gays and lesbians and the acceptance of the homosexual lifestyle.
In his sermon, Bishop Douglas Theuner, whom Bishop Robinson is succeeding, argued that the consecration of a gay bishop is precisely in keeping with Christ's ministry to the "outcast and the marginalized."
He criticized those who rely on isolated passages from the Gospel to condemn homosexuals, comparing them to 19th-century Christians who once used the Bible to justify slavery.
"I'm not talking about quoting [Scripture]; I'm talking about comprehending [it]," he said. But he added that people comprehend the Biblical injunctions according to their own cultural and social conditions.
"There is no neutral interpretation of Scripture," he said. Bishop Theuner said Bishop Robinson's consecration will enhance the unity of the church by bringing into it people who have long been excluded because of their homosexuality.
Rev. Susan Russell, president of Integrity, an Episcopal support group for gays and lesbians, said the consecration of Bishop Robinson stands as a landmark in the history of the church.
She compared it to the 1989 consecration of Barbara Harris, the first woman bishop in the Anglican Communion. Bishop Harris, who participated in the service Sunday, is still not recognized by many Anglican leaders who refuse to accept women priests or bishops.
She played down the threats of schism, saying many of the same conservative voices warned that the church would not survive the ordination of women by some dioceses.
Bishop O'Kelley Whitaker, retired bishop from Rochester, N.Y., said the conservative critics are being selective in their citing of the Bible, which also outlaws divorce and remarriage, something that is widely practised among Anglicans and Episcopalians.
"Homophobia of any form is tantamount to racism," Bishop Whitaker said.
However, Canon Kendall Harmon, the canon theologian of South Carolina, said the consecration of a man living in a homosexual relationship is far more divisive.
"There will be a far more significant fracturing," Canon Harmon said outside the arena.
"The Anglican vision is: in essentials, unity, in non-essentials, liberty, and in all things, charity. This is absolutely fundamental; it's about the nature of the gospel itself."
