LA Lesbian Bishop Rattles Anglicans

The decision by the US Episcopal Church in Los Angeles to elect the first openly lesbian Anglican bishop in the world has sparked a sharp new controversy over gay church leaders. "I feel deeply ashamed that this is happening," says a leader of a conservative branch of the Church of England. "A schism is absolutely inevitable." The bishop of Canterbury, who has called for a moratorium on gay ordinations, said the church faces "serious questions" over the decision.

Mary Glasspool, 55, is the second homosexual to be elected bishop, following the hotly contested selection of Gene Robinson six years ago in New Hampshire. The move is "another nail in the coffin of Christian homophobia," said a liberal cleric of London's St. Paul's Cathedral. LA also elected another woman bishop last week, who with Glasspool will become the 114-year-old diocese's first female bishops if confirmed.
(More Church of England stories.)