MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson said he led a confidential retreat a few years ago for gay Roman Catholic priests. Robinson, the first openly gay bishop in the Episcopal Church and world Anglican Communion, said the Catholic priest group that organized the meeting had invited him to attend.
About 75 Catholic clergy from around the U.S. participated without notifying their bishops or provincial leaders, Robinson said. In 2005, the Vatican issued a document affirming the church’s stance that men with “deep-seated” attraction to other men should not be ordained. The retreat was held outside of New England, but Robinson would not say where.
The Laconia Daily Sun reports that Robinson briefly discussed the retreat during a question-and-answer session after a viewing Oct. 25 of “For The Bible Tells Me So,” a documentary featuring his life story. The film makes a link between sexism and anti-gay prejudice, contending that “at its root, the hatred of gays is driven by a hatred and second-class status of women,” Robinson said. Robinson said he made a similar point in the priests’ retreat. “I had said to them, ‘It’s too dangerous for you to come out as gay to your superiors, but I believe that if you work for the ordination of women in your church, you will go a long way toward opening the door for the acceptance of gay priests,” Robinson said.
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