Legal battles are raging in various parts of the country between break away Episcopal parishes that are attempting to take with them church properties owned by dioceses of the national Episcopal Church. Unlike lower court rulings in Fairfax, Virginia that have relied on a Civil War era statute - that in true pro-discrimination Virginia tradition was enacted to allow pro-slavery Baptist churches to take church properties from the anti-slavery national denomination - to find for renegade parishes, the California Supreme Court has correctly ruled (as have courts in other states) against break away parishes. Candidly, I hope the Virginia appellate courts will reverse the lower court rulings and find the bigoted Civil War statute is not a proper basis for allowing the break away parishes to effectively steal millions of dollars of real estate. It is ironic that Virginia, which was a leader in the fight for liberty in the birth of the USA now more often than not supports discrimination rather than equality and liberty. Here are some highlights from the Los Angeles Times:*
Rebellious congregations that part ways with their denominations may lose their church buildings and property as a result, the California Supreme Court said Monday in a unanimous ruling. The state high court decision came in a case involving the Episcopal Church, but lawyers said it would apply to other denominations as well.
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Several Protestant denominations, including United Methodists and Presbyterians, have faced upheaval over gay rights issues. Monday's ruling, along with similar victories that the church leadership has won in other states, is expected to dampen enthusiasm for such separations.
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In a decision written by Justice Ming W. Chin, the court said the property of St. James Anglican Church in Newport Beach was owned by the national church, not the congregation. The congregation split away after the national church consecrated a gay man, V. Gene Robinson, as bishop of New Hampshire in 2003."When it disaffiliated from the general church, the local church did not have the right to take the church property with it," Chin wrote for the court.
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The bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles applauded the ruling even as he held out an olive branch to St. James and other parishes sued by his office The Rt. Rev. J. Jon Bruno said the diocese was "overjoyed" and predicted that the ruling would encourage disgruntled congregations to remain united with their mother churches.
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Because the ruling could affect other denominations as well, several churches joined the Episcopal hierarchy in arguing against the Newport Beach congregation. They included United Methodists, Presbyterians and Seventh-day Adventists."The other denominations who were with us were very pleased," Bruno said.
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Eric Sohlgren, an Irvine attorney who represented All Saints and St. James, said the ruling might deter congregations from joining national denominations in the first place. . . . Asked if the loss of a church and its property might make parishioners reluctant to break from a denomination, Sohlgren said, "I think people of faith make decisions about which church to attend based on theology and doctrine of that church." But he added, "It will certainly create an issue for them to think about."
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St. James was one of about 100 Episcopal parishes that broke off relations with the national church after Robinson's ordination. Disputes over the real estate landed in courts across the country, and most ruled for the church hierarchy.
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Even though Monday's ruling only affects California, the court is influential nationally.The issue is playing out in several states, including Virginia, where a judge last month backed the property claims of 11 breakaway parishes. That ruling is under appeal.
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The Rev. Ian T. Douglas, a professor of mission and world Christianity at Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge, Mass., said the decision probably would have a chilling effect on parishes elsewhere in the country that have left the Episcopal Church in recent years amid doctrinal disputes."The fact that the highest level of court ruled in favor of the Episcopal Church sends a message that it's going to be an uphill battle to try to withdraw properties from the church," Douglas said.
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