I will be careful not to be especially Christian in my prayer. This is a prayer for the whole nation.
–Gay Episcopal bishop Gene Robinson, explaining how he will approach the task of praying at one of next week’s presidential inaugural events
(Via MCJ.)
UPDATE: For whatever reason, AP has changed this article, and eliminated the quote above. Does any reader know how to find prior version of an Internet item?
UPDATE: Christopher Johnson of MCJ sends along a link to a New York Times item that makes clear what Robinson thinks of personal integrity in the act of public prayer:
In recent years, and especially during the inaugurations of President George W. Bush, ministers gave explicitly Christian prayers. Bishop Robinson said he had been rereading inaugural prayers through history and was “horrified” at how “specifically and aggressively Christian they were.”
Bishop Robinson said, “I am very clear that this will not be a Christian prayer, and I won’t be quoting Scripture or anything like that. The texts that I hold as sacred are not sacred texts for all Americans, and I want all people to feel that this is their prayer.”
He said he might address the prayer to “the God of our many understandings,” language he said he learned from the 12-step program he has attended for his alcohol addiction.
And this is from The Living Church:
The Rt. Rev. Gene Robinson, Bishop of New Hampshire, has accepted an invitation to offer a prayer at a Jan. 18 inaugural event to welcome the incoming administration of President-elect Barack Obama.Bishop Robinson said he has not yet composed the prayer he will offer, but said he will not use a Bible.“While that is a holy and sacred text to me,” he said, “it is not for many Americans. I will be careful not to be especially Christian in my prayer. This is a prayer for the whole nation. It won’t a happy clappy prayer.”
The Reformed Pastor 
January 12, 2009 at 3:28 pm
Wow… what else is there to say…!?!?
January 12, 2009 at 4:02 pm
Trust me, I could not imagine Mr. Robinson even being ABLE to say a Christian Prayer.
January 12, 2009 at 4:42 pm
This is why my name is Ex-Episcopalian.
January 12, 2009 at 4:56 pm
I would have found it more shocking had he he said he was going to careful to be very Christian in his prayer. {Back in another day we refered to the Episcopal Church as “Catholic-Lite” It has become “Christianity-Light.” Soon I expect to see a new motto. “It’s Less (ful)filling.”}
January 12, 2009 at 5:14 pm
“Mr (Ms?) Robinson”
Classy.
January 12, 2009 at 6:00 pm
Christin in his prayer? That is a funny one, as his worldview has more in common with pantheism. He would have to steal a Christian prayer to pray one.
January 12, 2009 at 6:06 pm
By the way, I followed the link to the articly, but could not find that quote. Am I missing something, or was it removed?
January 12, 2009 at 7:13 pm
Adel: You are not missing anything. AP has changed the article and eliminated both the quote above and a statement by Robinson that he wouldn’t think of using a Bible at the event. I’ll see if I can find the previous version of the story.
January 12, 2009 at 7:52 pm
According to the New York Times, there’s no doubt that those are Robbie’s sentiments:
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/12/openly-gay-episcopal-bishop-to-deliver-invocation-at-lincoln-memorial/
January 12, 2009 at 9:36 pm
http://www.edgenewengland.com/index.php?ch=news&sc=&sc2=&sc3=&id=85757
This should have the original article
January 12, 2009 at 10:17 pm
You folks have it all wrong!!! This “interesting” man is bringing true balance and equal representation to this historic event! Remember, while Pastor Warren may well represent much of mainstream American Christianity, America’s kooks and general nut-cases need representation too! Mr. Robinson is merely stepping into the breech – filling a void – meeting a need, so to speak.
January 12, 2009 at 10:38 pm
If we trademark the term Christian, can we then get control over who uses it? Ir can we just call ourselves Jesusian? Some thing has got to give here.
January 13, 2009 at 8:40 am
The clergyman down the road from where I proclaim the Gospel has clearly fallen victim to the “I’m spiritual” mentality of many of the 90% of the unchurched population here in NH. It is as a shame he does not see this as a mission opportunity— to share sensitively the faith he SHOULD claim to share with the President-Elect.
David, after the inauguration, please print a parallel version of the Warren and Robinson prayers. It would be a real hoot to see the two side by side.
BTW: The Episcopal Diocese of NH has had stunning results under the gay Bishop’s leadership.
Click to access ParishRPT_113200983825AM.pdf
January 13, 2009 at 9:00 am
“America’s kooks and general nut-cases…”
Also classy.
January 13, 2009 at 9:34 am
This link still has the quote from Robinson.
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D95LLG5G0&show_article=1
January 13, 2009 at 12:01 pm
willohroots:
I think that, by usurping a previously-Christian church, it is a way for gays to justify their behavior both to themselves and to others (i.e., “We are members of this church, so of course we are Christians and our lifestyle is legitimate.”). There is a lot of psychology at work here.
Pastor Bob:
Thanks for the statistics! It is actually hard to see real numbers, because I understand that many Episcopal churches never take ex-members (like me) off of their rolls, so it looks like they have more members than they really do. My former church kept sending me stuff for years after I left, even though I sent a letter formally asking to be removed from their membership list.
All:
What finally did it for me when Vicky Gene was elected in August 2003 was an interview that Bill O’Reilly did with a priest at the convention. Bill asked the clearly-gay priest how he could square this action with Scripture, and the priest replied (not an exact quote): “We were led by the Spirit to do this, and it doesn’t matter what it says in a book.” I was in an Evangelical Presbyterian Church the following Sunday.
January 13, 2009 at 12:34 pm
Regarding the Diocese of NH stats, Robinson is only part of the problem. I think to be fair, the state of anemia and the general trend toward extinction predated him and was something he inherited. Clearly his leadership hasn’t helped, and may be slightly accelerating the diocese’s demise (4,000 active worshippers and dropping in a state of over 1.3M people certainly seems to qualify for inclusion on the Critically Endangered Spiritual Species List). But while it’s tempting to argue a hard cause-and-effect case b/w Robinson and the present state of the diocese, I think it’s more accurate to say that Robinson is part of a larger and longer stream that the diocese has floated down to get to this point. This stream predates Robinson, and will theoretically outlive him, assuming the diocese survives for some amount of time.
January 14, 2009 at 8:19 am
[…] LATER? Gay Bishop May Pray to the “God of Our Many Understandings” at Inaugural Event. Garrison Keillor: “Why can’t Episcopalians play chess? Because they can’t tell a bishop from a […]
January 14, 2009 at 10:02 pm
Pastor Bob: Will do!
January 15, 2009 at 8:41 am
For what ever reason, the link I provided above, no longer works. Maybe V. Gene had it changed? Try this one instead. You will need to plug in the information for which diocese you want to research. But it is a work around.
http://www.episcopalchurch.org/growth_60791_ENG_HTM.htm?menupage=50929
Here’s the link to the NH page:
Click to access ParishRPT_115200984014AM.pdf
January 15, 2009 at 11:21 am
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2009/01/14/rick_warren_reaches_out_to_gen.html?wprss=the-trail
“Warren issued a statement praising Obama for selecting Robinson, saying the president-elect ‘has again demonstrated his genuine commitment to bringing all Americans of goodwill together in search of common ground. I applaud his desire to be the president of every citizen.'”
Definitely looks like Warren is classier than some of his fans.
January 15, 2009 at 2:04 pm
Alan,
You’re right.
Although I also have to say that Warren has also been more gracious about Robinson’s participation than vice versa.
John
January 15, 2009 at 3:37 pm
I wouldn’t disagree, John. Robinson was on Rachel Maddow last night and was more conciliatory, though. However, I thought his initial reaction was a bit much.
But then, frankly, I thought nearly everyone’s initial reaction to the Warren announcement was a bit much. 🙂
January 15, 2009 at 4:54 pm
Something that totally slipped by me and many others is the fact that the President-elect has invited everyone except a Roman Catholic prelate to give a prayer at various inaugural functions:
http://www.ncregister.com/daily/obama_shuns_catholic_prayers/
But in fairness, I don’t think Bush invited a Catholic either.