N.H. Episcopalians May Elect Second Gay Bishop
For the second time in a decade, New Hampshire Episcopalians may elect a gay man to become bishop of the state’s diocese. The senior associate rector at Boston’s Trinity Church, the Rev. William W. Rich, a gay married man, is one of three finalists the diocese’s search committee has nominated to replace the retiring Bishop Gene Robinson. In 2003, the election of Bishop Robinson, the Episcopal Church’s first openly gay bishop, sparked an ongoing rift in the Anglican Communion, with many conservative Episcopal congregations splitting from the American church and joining Anglican churches in Africa.