Jan 10, 2009 5:16 pm US/Mountain
Colo. Episcopals End Moratorium On Gay Priests
DENVER (AP) ―
The Episcopal Diocese of Colorado is ending its moratorium on ordaining gay priests.
Bishop Robert O'Neill was to ordain Mary Catherine Volland to the priesthood at St. John's Cathedral on Saturday.
Volland, a longtime Colorado resident and partnered lesbian, had been a candidate for ordination in the Diocese of Minnesota. She will serve at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Denver.
The issue of gay priests has splintered the church nationwide. Beckett Stokes, spokeswoman for the 30,000 member Colorado diocese, said O'Neill had suspended gay ordination out of sensitivity for church factions strongly opposed to it. She says O'Neill is now deciding the matter on a case-by-case basis. Several Colorado congregations are served by gay priests.
(© 2010 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
Comments