Fridae

Reverend Canon Gene Robinson, an openly homosexual priest, was elected on Sunday night as bishop New Hampshire, of the US Episcopal Church. Robinson was elected by a two-to-one majority of both the clergy and the laity belonging to the House of Deputies, the lower house of the church's legislative body, officials said.

The 56-year-old divorced father of two, who has lived with another man for 13 years, must pass one more hurdle to be confirmed - a vote scheduled Monday among the church's senior bishops, the heads of its 109 US dioceses, at the church's 74th General Convention currently being held in Minneapolis.

One of his two daughters, Ella, 21, told the church committee Friday that she and her mother support Robinson's election, and called her father "a good man and a good father," reports Reuters.

If confirmed, Robinson would be the first openly gay bishop in the 77 million-member Anglican Communion, a loose federation of churches worldwide to which the Episcopal Church belongs. It could also spark a split in the worldwide Anglican Communion.

The Episcopal Church, like almost every other mainline Protestant denomination, has been torn over sexual issues for years. It voted in 1976 to accept gay men and lesbians as fully equal members of the church, but conservatives in the church still view homosexual activity as a sin, saying the Bible approves sex only in the context of heterosexual marriage.

Last month a gay priest in England was forced to reject the post of Bishop of Reading after religious leaders in Africa threatened to break away from the Church.

The controversy over Robinson's confirmation and same-sex unions has triggered fears of a split in church ranks, with conservative activists vocally opposing both measures.

A group of 24 conservative US bishops, backed by religious leaders in Africa, Asia and other parts of the developing world, have threatened a permanent break with the church if Robinson is confirmed and the church blesses same-sex unions.

Opponents of Robinson have said that the division could lead to a permanent division within the church.

In Britain, the Rev. Jeffrey John, who was named to be the next bishop of Reading, England, would have been the first openly gay Anglican bishop, but he withdrew his name in July after a six-hour conversation behind closed doors with Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, the titular head of the Anglican Communion. His decision to withdraw had been seen as a victory for the conservative quarters of the Church of England.

The Vatican last week urged Roman Catholics and non-Roman Catholics alike around the world to oppose legalisation of gay marriage and civil unions.