Binghamton church vows fight over property takeover
Good Shepherd contests Episcopal Church stance
Church of the Good Shepherd on Conklin Avenue in Binghamton.
Press & Sun-Bulletin
In a lawsuit filed this week, the diocese asked the State Superior Court to force Church of the Good Shepherd, on Conklin Avenue, to leave the facility as well as account for all money -- including an endowment fund -- because the congregation withdrew from the Episcopal Church and joined the Anglican Church of Kenya.
"It's a David-versus-Goliath situation; the Episcopal Church has deep pockets. This is a powerful and wealthy institution that is trying to crush a local church, only to put it on the auction block and sell it for cash," attorney Raymond J. Dague said Thursday from his Syracuse office. "It's a sad thing that a bishop who's supposed to protect sheep is trying to crush them."
Dague, who represents Good Shepherd, said the diocese is trying to "seize" the church's property because the congregation and regional Bishop Gladstone A. Adams are "on the opposite sides of a controversy over homosexual bishops and the authority of Scripture."
The attorney for the diocese, Jonathan B. Fellows of Bond, Schoeneck and King in Syracuse, did not return a telephone call seeking comment.
BINGHAMTON -- The Diocese of Central New York is attempting to order a former Episcopal Church in Binghamton to vacate its buildings and turn over legal title of the property to its regional office.In November, Good Shepherd withdrew from the Episcopal Church and joined another Anglican community, according to the court document filed with the Broome County Clerk's Office.
By withdrawing from the Episcopal Church, the lawsuit claims Good Shepherd broke canon law, which states a congregation's property is held in trust for the church and the diocese -- a relationship which is a characteristic of Episcopalian hierarchy, according to the complaint.
Dague said Good Shepherd is "weighing all its options," including challenging the diocese in court, during the 20-day time period to reply to the complaint.
Good Shepherd's pastor, the Rev. Matthew Kennedy, said he did not believe "the diocese's claims to this congregation's property and assets are legitimate." Kennedy also withdrew from the Episcopal Church and affiliated himself with the Anglican Church of Kenya.
Since the denomination consecrated Gene Robinson, a practicing homosexual, as bishop of New Hampshire in 2003, Good Shepherd has been a vocal critic of the national church's stance on homosexuality and the authority of Scripture.
Like other former Episcopalians, Good Shepherd aligned itself with an Anglican communion which claims orthodox or traditional theology opposing homosexuality.
In a news release, the church noted: "Good Shepherd adheres to the traditional teaching of the church that sex outside of marriage is prohibited by the Bible, while the bishop and leaders of the diocese have been outspoken supporters of the homosexual bishop of New Hampshire."
Good Shepherd is one of two congregations in Broome County to withdraw from the Episcopal Church and its central New York jurisdiction, which is headquartered in Syracuse, over homosexuality and authority of Scripture.
In June, St. Andrew's in Vestal voted to withdraw and align itself with the Convocation of Anglicans in North America.
Six months later, St. Andrew's gave the keys of its buildings to the diocese, rather than face a lawsuit, and moved to Memorial Park Baptist Church on Front Street in Vestal.
The buildings, near Vestal High School, were still listed for sale Thursday.
St. Andrew's in Syracuse was the first diocesan congregation to withdraw from the Episcopal Church and wanted to stay in its facility on South Salina Street, but eventually opted to vacate rather than continue litigation with the diocese over ownership of the property.
Across the United States, as well as Canada, former Episcopal churches and their dioceses are increasingly going to court to settle property questions after parishes withdraw from the denomination over homosexuality and scriptural authority.
In March, St. James in Elmhurst, Queens County, lost a legal battle to keep its building when the State Supreme Court ruled for the Diocese of Long Island after the church broke away in 2003 and sued to keep title to its property.
Earlier this month, a judge in Fairfax County, Va., issued a favorable procedural ruling on behalf of 11 parishes -- including two of the denomination's largest and wealthiest congregations -- that want to leave the Episcopal Church. The case is working its way through Virginia courts and is far from being settled.
The 2.3-million member Episcopal Church is essentially the U.S. branch of the 77-million-member worldwide Anglican community.
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2 comments:
So the diocese would rather see the buildings stand empty than let them be used by the people who have worshiped there, donated, and maintained the buildings for many years. That's shameful.
Why not just rent it to the congregation for a small amount?
Why not indeed,or sell the buildings to the congregations? The diocese was unwilling in three cases (first, St. Andrew's in Syracuse, then St. Andrew's in Vestal, and most recently Good Shepherd) to come to any reasonable agreement. So, they have sold one rectory, have two buildings for sale in Vestal, and they are engaged in one lawsuit. Added to this is the lawsuit that was settled in Syracuse with St. Andrew's there.
So, they've paid some of the legal bills, are accumulating more legal bills and are paying for the upkeep of two buildings that have not sold in seven months. Given that these are church buildings it could be quite a while that the diocese will be paying for their upkeep. There are church buildings in our area that have been for sale for years.
What can I say except that they assure us that they are really smart people and they know what they're doing.
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