Gene Robinson: Gay Bishop Giving Obama Inauguration Prayer

New Hampshire Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson, a vocal gay rights leader, will open President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration with a prayer on Sunday's kick-off event at the Lincoln Memorial.

"I am writing to tell you that President-Elect Obama and the Inaugural Committee have invited me to give the invocation at the opening event of the Inaugural Week activities, We are One, to be held at the Lincoln Memorial," Robinson wrote in an email to friends.

The announcement comes after weeks of outcry from the gay community over Obama's choice of evangelical, anti-gay pastor Rick Warren to deliver the inaugural invocation.

"It's important for any minority to see themselves represented in some way," Robinson said in an interview with the Concord Monitor. "Whether it be a racial minority, an ethnic minority or, in our case, a sexual minority. Just seeing someone like you up front matters."

Robinson is the first openly gay diocesan bishop in the Anglican Communion. "God never gets it wrong. The church often takes a long time to get it right. It is a human institution, but one capable of self-correction," Robinson told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. "I believe in my heart that the church got it wrong about homosexuality. There is great excitement in my heart to be living in a time when the church is starting to get it right."

Robinson said he would love to sit down with Rick Warren but believed that the California pastor has "perpetrated lies about the gay, lesbian and bisexual community."

Comments

[KarenGeorgetown]

This seems like a last minute Miss Congeniality award for Bishop Robinson. I know it's rude, but I hope Rick Warren gets hissed and whistled at while he's speaking. I think Jesus would be disappointed at out-an-out booing but a good cat call would amuse Him.

[oldbrit]

I'd like to see everyone stand and turn their back on Warren. No noise, just stand and turn their backs. Of course, in my more militant moments, I think it would be great if everyone pulled their pants down or their skirts up and mooned him.

[lizr]

ROFL!

[lizr]

Love this!

[LiteSleeper]

I agree. It seems like they scrambled to find some way of tossing a bone to gays without apologizing for the insult in the first place. To me, this is irrelevant. It's like answering a question with another question. Question 1: "Why did you insult me like this (Warren pick)?" Answer or Question 2: "Would you like a gay guy at the Innauguration?" The furor wasn't about having a gay presence at the Innauguration, it was about being intentionally or, more disturbingly, unknowingly disrespected. This ameliorates some bad feeling, but it still troubles me that Obama still couldn't apologize for the insult however unintentional it may have been. Discussions about gay marriage are irrelevant to what this furor was really about.

[M1]

The Robinson pick may be exactly what you say it is....but life is not perfect. We stood up and are continuing to stand up and there has been a positive result from refusing to be silenced. Enjoy your power and the willingness of the Obama team to give a little.

We have a long road ahead...we must be willing to stay out of the closet as a people and demand policy changes, inclusion and equality. Obama made a big mistake with the Gay community, in time we will see if he keeps his campaign promises to us and that is what really matters. The rest we will have to do for ourselves.

[lizr]

I'm betting it happens.

[Riker]

Robinson - and most other older closeted gay men in this country - have been forced to marry to live up to some societal expectation of fulfilling a family duty to marry, have their own family, and prove themselves "worthy". The whole time they know they are living a lie, but the high stakes of living truthfully as a gay person makes it almost unthinkable to do so. When it gets to the point where the only other options are running away or suicide, coming out is the only healthy choice. Society has created this nightmare by forcing men (and women) who are gay to get married ("it's just a phase, you'll get over it with the love of a good woman/man"); when it doesn't work out, they're blamed for "lying" to their spouse! The idea that gay people "become" straight is ludicrous. It's just internalized (and external) homophobia rearing its ugly head once more, telling gay people only heterosexual relationships are valid. Of course, there are bisexuals, but that isn't the issue here.

[lizr]

Thanks for this thoughtful post.

[LMPE]

Rick Warren and Gene Robinson. This is the REAL fair and balanced (suck it, Fox News!).

[MuchMadness]

I would prefer that there not be any clergy invocations at all at political events or governmental ceremonies. I think Pastor Warren clearly has the more scriptural viewpoint, and why compromise that viewpoint by participating in a politically charged event, especially since Obama has been too comfortable with civil unions and other innovations that are not good for the nation?

[JayJonson]

I bet you also thought that Lyndon Johnson was too cozy with Martin Luther King, Jr. and his "innovations."

[MuchMadness]

I don't see how this is an equal rights issue any more than banning smoking is an equal rights issue.

[AnotherTry]

You don't see? Pray harder.

[lizr]

hmm you are confused.

been living in a bubble for the last 25 yrs?

[omo]

So what I don't get is, Gene Robinson was married, had kids, had an affair with a guy while still married, then 'found the light at the end of the tunnel' and came out, got divorced and is now happily gay. And that is so totally okay with the GLBT community. BUT if someone is gay and ends up going straight they get so totally dissed it is uttterly unbelievable. Why the complete double standard ? It's okay to go from straight to gay but not the other way ? And the argument "Oh, he was always gay, but was just doing what society demanded" is pretty self serving, the same argument could be reversed to say "Oh, he was actually straight but was seduced as a young man into thinking he was gay . . . "

What is so very threatening to the GLBT community about people leaving that lifestyle ? Afraid they might say something negative about their experiences ? Something like, "It may be an orientation, but it can become an addiction . . . " (There is definitely an addictive vibe to the down-low aspect which
Gene Robinson participated in, a vibe I would find it very difficult to justify were I in his position).

[SonofLiberty1]

Oh my, I didn't have any idea about this guy:(

[proggirl]

yeah, he lied to himself and everyone else about who he was and it caused them problems. He told the truth and things got better.
Honesty heals. Who knew?

[SonofLiberty1]

Now, there are Episcopal Priests who decide to become Catholic and become Catholic Priests with families..there are a few.

But, if you are a regular priest, you take a vow of celibacy, now some guys do get interested in a woman (not common but it happens) and they leave the priesthood and get married.

This stuff about Robinson doesn't sound too terribly good.

[kaukerc]

OK. I will take the bait and assume you really want an answer to your question. You are confusing the "act" with the "label." A gay man having sex with a woman does not make him straight ...it just means he has the ability to have an erection. Being gay is who you are attracted to; it's as simple as that. Gene Robinson, apparently, was able to suppress his desires for only a portion of his life. As he matured, he realized that he could no longer live the lie and came out of the closet. And as far as your other question concerning going in the opposite direction, from gay to straight, there have been absolutely 0 cases of this actually happening. You are just shoving a gay person back into the closet to live a life in quiet desperation.

Anything else you want to know?

[proggirl]

First, it's not a lifestyle, it's a life. I know it's common parlance, but that word just grates on me as a trivialization of the way people live.
Second, People are gay, straight, bi, or nesting in their own spot on the Kinsey scale. Wherever you are on that scale, denying it won't work.
So do people make mistakes when they're trying to figure this out? Probably quite a few, going in all directions. Those mistakes can include mislabeling yourself, engaging in risky practices, and hurting other people emotionally. But if the Christian God is about forgiveness, shouldn't that God's followers forgive as well?

[SonofLiberty1]

I believe in God's forgiveness and I believe that he wants to give us a lot of grace, however, we must ask for it.

A lot of Christians, Preachers included, talk about sin and fire and brimstone.

What I say is this...

Just Google "The Chaplet of Divine Mercy" It's a prayer, given by Jesus to St. Faustina.
Said just once, it will give you all the grace you need. If you say it in the prescence of a dieing person, that person will get all the grace he or she needs.

That's what I believe.

[SonofLiberty1]

Do some gay folks end up going straight? I mean, I know about the reverse..gay folks marrying straight and splitting up like the ex Governor of NJ.

I always assumed this could happen but are there statistics?

[kaukerc]

Only those that are brainwashed by their family. It never works-- the attraction to the same sex is always there----for those who don't commit suicide out of despair, it is a rather bleak life.

[oldbrit]

You are a few degrees off on this.

The reason that gays are upset with gays going straight is that some churches claim you can pray away the gay, which makes gays defective, and if you can pray away the gay then, according to them, you do not deserve civil and human rights unless you pray away the gay.

Also, the societal pressure is for gays to hide in the closet and pretend to be straight. There's no pressure for straights to pretend to be gay.

So, it isn't about whether a person can have sexual relations with opposite gender partners or same gender partners. It's about the way some want to politicize and use it as a weapon against equal rights for gays.

[suec03]

What do we do with Alfred Kinsey's research that American sexual orientations are on a continuum--some are exclusively gay or straight, while others may be only predominantly gay or straight and some may be bisexual?

[AbbieXHoffman]

people are born gay.--deal with it.

[jillsond]

I guess this balances Richards.

[proggirl]

Quick thoughts:
1. If an anti-gay minister can speak, then certainly a gay minister can as well.
2. It's Obama's inauguration. If he wants Barney the Dinosaur and Cloris Leachman on the stand with him, that's what he should have.
3. Marriage is a legal term, carrying legal benefits. Denying gay people those benefits is discrimination, pure and simple.
4. Using the Bible as a bully pulpit to continue to quash gay marriage is a canard. We live by a Constitution that was written as a viable, living document 232 years ago. The Bible has some great stuff in it, but it was written 2,000- 8,000 years ago (depending on which part you're reading) by people who beleived the Earth was flat.

[kaukerc]

You go girl!!!

[SonofLiberty1]

Yes, we live by a Constitution that says that some rights are federal some are states rights.
Under our Constitution, Marriage is something that states regulate. It is both a legal and religious term though. You can not be married in a Church without a permit from the state.

And, you can't really take religion out of this or just decide that the Bible doesn't mean anything as most Americans are either Christian, Jewish or Islamic or believe in God with a sprinkling of other religions.

Of course, there are some Americans that don't believe in God period.

[siney]

yes, you can take religion out of the issue insofar as we are talking about a gov't sanctioned relationship, i.e. civil marriage...the religious sacrament of marriage is not what gays are seeking when they wish to go before the justice of the peace and get married....people go before their church for the religious sacrament....

moreover, the US supreme court has held that marriage, i.e. civil marriage, is a fundamental right....thus, all states must recognize civil marriage accordingly....carried to its logical conclusion, to deny gays the right to civil marriage is to deny them a fundamental right --- the very reason the californial supreme court recognized the right of gay marriage which was later challenged with the passage of prop 8...

nice post, proggirl...

[AbbieXHoffman]

"And, you can't really take religion out of this"

Yes you can take religion out of this--it's separate of church and state. Reglion has no place in our laws.

[MJinCanada]

Actually the idea that people used to believe the world was flat was made up by Washington Irving. Certainly, anyone who lived on a broad flat plain or near the sea knew better.

But I quite agree with you that the Bible has its limitations. It has been used to justify genocide, racism, witch hunts, slavery, child and spouse abuse, destroying the environment and so on.

[rogerze]

Obama supports civil unions and not gay marriage, just like every normal person.

So what exactly have gays been fighting for this whole time, nothings changed.

[LiteSleeper]

I don't care what you or Obama has to say. It's the Constitution that matters and Separate but Equal is unconstitutional. You can try to wriggle your way out of that one, but it's still the law.

[SiberianRat]

If the rights/responsibilities are 100% equal, and only the label is different, why the fuss?

[rogerze]

I see.

Well it's going to be a long 8 years for you isn't it.

[suec03]

It is not helpful to speak for "every normal person." Public opinion polls show that support for gay marriage is quite dependent on age, religious affiliation and part of the country. The majority of young adults in the US support equal access to civil marriage, regardless of sexual orientation or gender. The majority of young adults in the US is heterosexual, not gay, but supports gay civil rights.

[aweissnet]

And evolved older people.

[rogerze]

Ok....and your point is what, Obama and his opinion isn't normal?.

[AbbieXHoffman]

Stick to the facts. BO keeps wondering why people don't listen to him and i do too,

1. Obama supports civil unions
2. He never says he doesn't support gays right to marry He only says he BELIEVES marriage is between a man and a woman. he knows that he is just giving an opinion and he KNOWS DARN WELL the Constitution trumps anyone's opinion, even the POTUS. he is cleaver with how he says this. He gets the votes for those closed minded people like you who don't want to support gays right to marry but still leaves room for the law to decide. He would never stand in the way. thus why he said h was against Prop 8 and says that states should ultimately decide about gay marriage.

[rogerze]

Oh he "believes" marriage is between a man and a woman, and you "believe" it isn't.Gee who am I going to believe.

[abbeyroad]

SMAG:

Jesus stopped by last night. We had quite a chat.

He asked me to tell you that God hates your guts.

[SiberianRat]

What's SMAG?

[Claudiajoy]

that's childish ineffective bridge building.

[Rawkcuf]

'bridge to nowhere"

[diogenes1967]

ooooh, snark! LOL

[Karl Jonas]

why not a gay rabbi?

[oldbrit]

Interesting, there are gay Rabbis. The two largest Jewish denominations both ordain gay rabbis, but also marry same sex couples.

[Claudiajoy]

hmm...no wonder the Palestinians are suffering apartheid, anything goes in that society. I'm just guessing...

[Sioen]

Why are all the hateful intolerant people religious?

[rogerze]

Ask Obama.

[pilgrim7]

Tolerance works both ways.

[aweissnet]

You have that entirely backwards.

It's the religious that are intolerant and hateful. We've just gotten tired of the hypocrisy and insanity that surrounds us and has brought us to this horrific mess, including the war and coming depression.

[suec03]

No. There are religious people who support marriage equality and even filed amicus briefs in the California Supreme Court to urge extension of civil marriage to gay couples. The vocal supporters of Prop 8 are only a very vocal subset of church members. The media then overstate their numbers and don't cover the churches that perform gay weddings and unions.

[aweissnet]

Actually you had it right. I read your statement backwards!

[RoveRoveRoveYourBoat]

...he's not gay,...that's how all clergy dress.

[AverageWhiteMan]

I lol'd

[MuchMadness]

This is a very bad move by President-Elect Obama. The consecration of this bishop has led to a schism in the Anglican Communion. I used to be an Episcopalian, but after the bishop of my diocese supported the consecration, I began to rethink the whole idea of a church structure that gives so much power to a handful of bishops. I decided to leave the denomination. The consecration was contrary to scripture. There was no justification for it other than a pure power play by the clergy.

[SonofLiberty1]

While I can't say that I agree with it, I am sure that this is an inclusive move.

Why not just go to another Episcopal Church?

[MuchMadness]

In the Episcopal Church, churches are organized into dioceses, which may cover an entire state. If the bishop is heterodox or apostate, he can exert tremendous pressure on the parish priests (presbyters) within his diocese. He can even take actions that cause orthodox priests to lose their livelihood, pension benefits, and health care benefits.

[MyFatCat]

The conssecration of Gene Robinson did not cause a schism in the Anglican Communion. The "conservatives" of the church left it because they thought biology is destiny.

[AlienNationRefugee]

There is little doubt that those on the right (as well as some within the Democratic Party) who dismiss the concerns of the LGBT community regarding the bitter divisiveness nurtured by self-serving, hate mongers like Rick Warren ignore history at our national peril. This is the same bunch who under the thin veil of Christ, conservatism and patriotism have advocated for the denial of equal civil rights for women, blacks, Jews, Catholics and anyone else who did not look like them and share all of their views. It is ironic how Islamic extremists treat all these groups with the same level of disdain. Being "inclusive" of such radical elements outside of a serious attempt to bring opposing parties to some table of collective interest and discussion is naive at best. After working very hard for the Obama campaign at this point I can only wait and see what civil rights policies he actually advocates relative to our community before making my final judgment. Choosing the symbolism of Rick Warren does not portend a bright future for us however--Dubya treated Rick Warren with similar reverence.

[Sioen]

Yay!!!!

Even gays can be stupid enough to believe in magical space grandpas!

Can I give an invocation about leprechauns and unicorns?

And what does superstitious nonsense have to do with democratic government?

[BlackYowe]

Space Grandpas? LOL

[AverageWhiteMan]

Do you denounce obama, jimmy carter, hilary, etc for their religious beliefs?

[oldbrit]

There religious beliefs are not my concern. I am only concerned with their activities to ensure equal rights for all.

[suec03]

Read some books by retired Episcopal Bishop John Shelby Spong (such as Why Christianity must Change or Die) criticizing the theistic view of the nature of God, in favor of God as the ground of being. Spong does not believe in a space grandpa.