Civil union
By Duke Helfand and Steve Padilla, Los Angeles Times Staff Writers
June 7, 2008
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-beliefs7-2008jun07,0,1697007.storyAn Episcopal priest from Pasadena will be on hand this weekend when one of the nation's most visible gay clergymen will be formally joined with his partner in a civil union ceremony in New Hampshire.
After the civil union for the Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson and Mark Andrew, the Rev. Susan Russell of All Saints Church will preach at religious commitment ceremony.
"I'm very honored to have been asked to do that," Russell said this week.
Robinson is the nation's first openly gay Episcopal bishop, and his election as bishop of New Hampshire in 2003 has roiled some dioceses in the Episcopal Church and strained relations between the U.S. church and parts of the worldwide Anglican communion. The Episcopal Church is the U.S. branch of the Anglican Church.
