Jan 20, 2006   | COMMENTS     

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) —The bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut on Jan. 14 removed a priest from his duties in a clash over the elevation of a gay bishop in New Hampshire. Connecticut Bishop Andrew D. Smith stripped Mark H. Hansen, formerly of St. John’s Church in Bristol, “of the right to exercise the office of priest in the Episcopal church.” Smith had “inhibited,” or suspended Hansen six months earlier. “It’s a very sad day,” Smith said. Hansen, who could not be reached for comment, was among six priests and their respective parishes who had asked to be supervised by a different bishop because they disagreed with Smith’s support for Rev. V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire, the church’s first openly gay bishop. Robinson’s consecration in 2003 has divided the U.S. Episcopal Church. Hansen resigned his priesthood in September, after refusing to meet with Smith, the bishop said. Diocesan officials said last year that Hansen was suspended because he took an unauthorized sabbatical and St. John’s had stopped making payments on a loan for its building. Hansen maintained he notified Smith of his plans. Smith said it was his duty to remove Hansen because the priest failed to meet conditions including recanting his behavior or statements that led to the inhibition. Hansen also could have denied the basis on which the inhibition was imposed and the bishop would have decided if the denial was in good faith, Smith said.

Gays rally at Vatican in favor of marriage rights

ROME (AP) — Gays rallied Jan. 14 in Rome to push for legal recognition for gay couples, a day after some 40 gay rights activists gathered outside St. Peter’s Square to protest Pope Benedict XVI’s latest condemnation of gay marriage, Reuters reported. The topic has become an issue in Italy’s election campaign, and the Roman Catholic Church and ministers in Premier Silvio Berlusconi’s conservative government were scathing in denouncing the rally, which drew an estimated 1,000 people. The Vatican newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano, denounced as “provocations” efforts to give legal recognition to unmarried couples “independent of whether the partners are of different or the same sex.” A program on Vatican Radio described the gay rally in Piazza Farnese as “ideological sexuality.” In a Jan. 13 rally near St. Peter’s, activists criticized the Catholic Church and said it should stay out of Italian affairs, Reuters reported.

Clergy group rallies in Ariz. to support gay civil rights

PHOENIX — In a march to the state capitol last week, a group of clergy demonstrated its support for gay rights and its opposition to the “Protect Marriage Arizona” effort, the Arizona Republic reported. The organization, called “No Longer Silent: Clergy for Justice,” opposes the Protect Marriage Arizona movement that includes a constitutional ban on gay marriage and the refusal of public benefits to unmarried domestic partners. In time for the governor’s State of the State address, more than 100 people joined the march to the Capitol, the Republic reported. “I think it’s important that people who are involved with churches speak up for equality and justice,” Frank Loulan of Lutherans Concerned told the newspaper.

NBC’s ‘Book of Daniel’ draws little advertising

NEW YORK — A new television show that mixes religion with a dysfunctional family, including a gay son, already has drawn controversy, but is drawing few willing advertisers, the New York Times reported. The series focuses on an Episcopal priest, Daniel Webster, played by Aidan Quinn, who lives in suburban New York and whose dysfunctional family includes a daughter who sells marijuana and a son who is gay. The conservative American Family Association condemned the show as anti-Christian even before its debut. One advertiser, Combe Inc., already will not be back now that the show has premiered. The Just For Men hair coloring spot by the company was one of only about two dozen national ads purchased for the launch of the series. Combe said its buys were “a one-time event” when asked if consumer reaction to the company’s sponsorship of “The Book of Daniel” affected its future ad purchases.

From staff and wire reports