PORTLAND — The nation's first openly gay Episcopal bishop got a warm welcome Thursday night from a crowd that came to hear him say why religion matters in the debate about Maine's Nov. 3 referendum on same-sex marriage.
More than 300 people came to the Cathedral Church of St. Luke on State Street to hear the Rt. Rev. Gene Robinson, the Episcopal bishop of New Hampshire, deliver a speech aimed at getting out the vote.
Robinson, who has been in a relationship for more than 20 years, held back nothing when talking about rights for gays and lesbians, and about people who oppose same-sex marriage based on their interpretation of the Bible.
"We need to rescue the Bible from the religious right, which has held us hostage for a very long time," said Robinson, whose remarks drew a long ovation.
The Religious Coalition for the Freedom to Marry in Maine sponsored Robinson's appearance in Portland. The coalition represents 18 denominations and more than 200 Maine clergy members.
Although the Episcopal Church doesn't sanction same-sex marriage, it is an issue that is being debated, said the Rev. Benjamin A. Shambaugh, dean of St. Luke's.
Robinson has been at the center of that debate. He has been written about by newspapers and magazines across the nation and the world.
Robinson said religion is an important component in the debate over same-sex marriage because "95 percent of the pain we feel comes at the hands of religious people" who believe the Bible sanctions only marriage between a man and a woman.
Robinson said he and his partner lived in fear that if his partner died, his father would come and take the body for burial. Such common legal rights and privileges elude people in same-sex relationships, he said.
He compared the debate in Maine to the struggles that African-Americans and women faced as they fought for equal rights. "I think the sin we are dealing with here is not homophobia, it's heterosexism. It's a way of letting us know we don't measure up," he said.
Robinson said the Catholic Church in Maine is mistakenly trying to inject its values into the same-sex marriage debate.
Kathy Tosney, a former Catholic nun who lives in Portland, attended the presentation. "I was very upset that the Catholic Church took such a strong political stand on this issue," she said. "I feel as though the church has become exclusive in who can love each other."
Robinson directed several of his remarks at Stand for Marriage Maine, the group that is campaigning to repeal Maine's new law legalizing same-sex marriage.
Marc Mutty, spokesman for Stand for Marriage Maine, could not be reached Thursday night.
"I have a message for them," the 62-year-old bishop said. "Religious people and religious institutions need not fear marriage equality, because if this passes, nothing will change for them."
"Speak up, don't whine, and for God's sake don't be afraid to come out as a religious person," he told his audience.
Staff Writer Dennis Hoey can be contacted at 791-6365 or at dhoey@pressherald.com
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