Holding it together: the new gay Episcopal bishop predicts the Anglican Communion will not divide over homosexuality.

The Anglican Communion and religion in general have been steeped in controversy and division for centuries. But according to V. Gene Robinson, whose November 2 consecration as the Episcopal Church's first openly gay bishop has church leaders talking of a potential split, those days are over. Such controversy, he told The Advocate, is no longer likely to lead to a church schism.

"This is not unlike the controversy over the ordination of women 30 years ago. There were great threats of schism back then, and it really never materialized," Robinson said, noting that the church survived through compromise as some churches now ordain women and some do not. Despite Robinson's optimism, the 77 million-member Anglican Communion, which includes the 2.3 million-member Episcopal Church USA, is in considerable turmoil. Several prominent Anglican leaders in Africa have already distanced themselves from the U.S. church in response, and conservative church leaders in the United States are talking about forming a separate Anglican institution here.

Throughout history, numerous churches have split up over contentious issues. The Anglican Church itself separated from the Roman Catholic Church; it was created by England's King Henry VIII in the 16th century after Pope Clement VII wouldn't grant him a divorce from Catherine of Aragon. The U.S.-bred Methodist Church split apart in 1844 because of disagreements over slavery. The church's major elements reunited in 1939, but some say history could repeat itself as Methodists become increasingly divided over homosexuality. The United Methodist Judicial Council on October 27 ruled that charges should be brought against the Reverend Karen Dammann of Ellensburg, Wash., who has revealed she is in a committed relationship with another woman, a violation of church law. That and similar cases have led pro-gay members to threaten to break from the more conservative mother church.

But it's unlikely that such scenarios will lead to actual schisms these days, Robinson said: "With every day that passes and people see that life within their congregation hasn't changed because New Hampshire has a gay bishop, there will be less and less people interested in doing something about it."