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Episcopal diocese: Bishop Righter, accused of heresy after ordination of gay deacon, dies
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| Contributor | Homegrown Democrat |
| Last Edited | Homegrown Democrat Sep 19, 2011 03:37am |
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| Category | Obituary |
| News Date | Monday, September 12, 2011 07:30:00 PM UTC0:0 |
| Description | PITTSBURGH — Retired Episcopal Bishop Walter C. Righter, an early defender of gay rights in the church who was accused of heresy when he ordained a gay deacon in 1990, has died.
Righter died Sunday at his home in Export, a Pittsburgh suburb, after a long illness, his widow, Nancy, said Monday. He was 87.
The head of the Episcopal Church described Righter as "a faithful and prophetic servant."
"His ministry will be remembered for his pastoral heart and his steadfast willingness to help the church move beyond old prejudices into new possibilities," Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori said in a statement.
Righter was born in Philadelphia and served as a priest in Pennsylvania and New Hampshire before becoming a bishop in 1972. He served with the Diocese of Iowa and later became an assistant bishop with the Diocese of Newark, N.J., where he made the decision in 1990 to ordain the Rev. Barry Stopfel, a deacon he knew to be gay.
He was charged with heresy, or false teaching. In 1996, a church court ruled that church doctrine did not explicitly bar the ordination of practicing homosexuals. The ruling averted the first heresy trial of an Episcopal bishop since the 1920s. |
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