Lesbian priest among nominees for Episcopal bishop*

    * Story Highlights
    * Episcopal Diocese of Chicago nominates lesbian as bishop
    * Rev. Tracey Lind has female partner
    * U.S. Episcopal bishops face September 30 deadline from Anglicans
    * Anglicans demand that the church bar gay bishops

CHICAGO, Illinois (AP) -- The Episcopal Diocese of Chicago included an
openly lesbian priest among five nominees for bishop Tuesday, as fellow
Anglicans demand that the church bar gay bishops.

The Rev. Tracey Lind, dean of Trinity Cathedral in Cleveland, who has a
female partner, will be on the November 10 ballot.

If she wins, she would be the second bishop living with a same-sex
partner in the Episcopal Church. New Hampshire Bishop V. Gene Robinson,
who has a male partner, was consecrated in 2003, pushing the world
Anglican Communion to the brink of schism.

The Episcopal Church is the Anglican body in the U.S.

Next month, U.S. Episcopal bishops will meet to decide whether they
should agree to Anglican demands that they unequivocally pledge by
September 30 not to consecrate another openly gay bishop. If the bishops
say no, the church could lose its full membership in the 77
million-member communion.

The other candidates for Chicago bishop are the Rev. Jane Gould, rector
of St. Stephen's Memorial Episcopal Church in Lynn, Massachusetts; the
Rev. Jeffrey Lee, rector of St. Thomas Church in Medina, Washington; the
Rev. Margaret Rose, director of national Episcopal women's ministries;
and the Rev. Timothy Safford, rector of Christ Church, Philadelphia.