We are delighted that the Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson, Bishop of New Hampshire, will be with us at Holy Apostles as celebrant and preacher at a Festival Eucharist on June 26, Gay Pride Sunday, when we also celebrate the Feast off SS. Peter and Paul.  As all at Holy Apostles surely know by now, Bishop Robinson is the first openly gay bishop in the Episcopal Church, and his election and consecration have ignited a storm of controversy throughout the Episcopal Church and the broader Anglican Communion.  This visit will be the first opportunity for him to express the liturgical fullness of his ministry as a bishop here in the Diocese of New York, and it is a great honor and pleasure for us at Holy Apostles to welcome him in our midst.
 

The Right Reverend V. Gene Robinson Bishop of New Hampshire Bio

V. Gene Robinson was elected Bishop Coadjutor (a bishop who will succeed the current bishop upon his retirement) of the Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire on June 7, 2003, having served as Canon to the Ordinary (Assistant to the Bishop) for nearly 18 years. He was consecrated a Bishop on All Saints Sunday, November 2, 2003, and was invested as the Ninth Bishop of New Hampshire on March 7, 2004.

A 1969 graduate of the University of the South, Sewanee, Tennessee, he has a B.A. in American Studies/History. In 1973, he completed the M.Div. degree at the General Theological Seminary in New York, was ordained deacon, and then priest, serving as Curate at Christ Church, Ridgewood, New Jersey. Upon moving to New Hampshire in 1975, Gene co-owned and directed an ACA accredited horseback riding summer camp for girls. As founding Director of Sign of the Dove Retreat Center, in Temple, New Hampshire, he led retreat programs for vestries, diocesan committees, intergenerational groups, and all kinds of parish groups.

From 1978 to 1985, Gene was Youth Ministries Coordinator for the seven dioceses of New England, serving two years on the National Youth Ministries Development Team, where he helped originate the national Episcopal Youth Event. From 1983 until his election as bishop, Gene also served as Executive Secretary of Province I, coordinating all cooperative programs between the seven dioceses of New England.

Clergy wellness has long been a focus of Gene's ministry, and in the nineties he developed the "Being Well in Christ" conference model for The Cornerstone Project, and led clergy conferences in over 20 dioceses in the U.S. and Canada. He initiated "Fresh Start", a two-year mentoring program for all clergy in new positions in New Hampshire, and co-authored the Fresh Start curriculum, now in use in nearly half of the dioceses of the Episcopal Church. Much of his ministry has focused on helping congregations and clergy, especially in times of conflict, utilizing his skills in congregational dynamics, conflict resolution and mediation.

Co-author of three AIDS education curricula for youth and adults, Gene has done AIDS work in the United States and in Africa (Uganda and South Africa). He has been an advocate for anti-racism training in the diocese and wider Church. He helped build the Diocese of New Hampshire's close working partnership with the New Hampshire Community Loan Fund, advocated for debt relief for the world's most impoverished nations, and lobbied for socially-responsible investment within and beyond the Church. He is a past member of the Board of the New Hampshire Endowment for Health, which works for access to health care for the uninsured. Bishop Robinson currently serves as a Trustee of the Church Pension Fund.

Gene enjoys entertaining and cooking, gardening, music and running. He is the father of two grown daughters and the proud, grandfather of two granddaughters. He lives with his partner, Mark Andrew, who is employed by the State of New Hampshire's Department of Safety.