INTEGRITY STATEMENT ON THE ELECTION OF THE TENTH BISHOP OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

"Integrity USA celebrates today with the people of the Diocese of New Hampshire on their election of the Rev. A. Robert Hirschfield to serve as their tenth bishop," said Integrity's Vice President of National Affairs, The Rev. Jon M. Richardson. 

Integrity President  The Rev. Dr. Caroline Hall added: "We are confident that the people of New Hampshire have listened to the voice of the Holy Spirit and have elected the person best able to lead them in fulfilling God's mission in the coming years.

The Rev. Jon M. Richardson continued, " "The Diocese of New Hampshire - as well as the wider church - have been richly blessed by the ministry of Bishop Gene Robinson.  Bishop-elect Hirschfield will have big shoes to fill as he moves into his new call.  The bishop-elect was chosen from an outstanding field of three candidates, and it is a credit to the people  of New Hampshire, as well as a testament to the progress of the Episcopal Church as a whole, that the three candidate's sexual orientations served as little more than an historical footnote through this process.

"Bishop-elect Hirschfield was chosen on the basis of his strong credentials as a pastor, priest, and teacher and through the guidance of the Holy Spirit in the context of prayerful discernment on the part of the Diocese of New Hampshire.  The bishop-elect has a strong record of support for marriage equality and is a trusted friend of the  LGBT movement, and we are eager to work with him in the years ahead as we continue to move the church from "Resolution to reality: making all mean ALL