One of the comments I've heard over the last four years or so is how other denominations have been watching and noting how pecusa has been handling and mishandling the controversies that were touched off by the consecration of Gene Robinson. Presbyterians, Methodists and Lutherans are all studying human sexuality and thus far no denomination has acted as poorly or as vindictively as the leadership of pecusa.
This week and in the last month we have seen two Pennsylvania presbyteries handle conservative congregations that desired to leave the PCUSA with dignity (remember that word from the Baptismal Covenant of the '79 BCP) and common sense. The Presbyterians have had defections in the past, one became the Presbyterian Church in America and a second is the Evangelical Presbyterian Church. The sexuality debate has caused conservative congregations to want to get out of the more liberal PCUSA and join either the PCA, the EPC or another group. At least two presbyteries have found that there are ways to accommodate congregations and not resort to suing them.
On the other hand we have pecusa. It was reported this week that the national leadership has spent $2.6 million to this point on lawsuits against conservative parishes desiring to leave pecusa. In addition to this extraordinary amount are the legal costs borne by dioceses. We have seen the Diocese of Virginia take out a multi-million dollar line of credit to fund lawsuits as well as pledge to sell property to raise cash for lawsuits. This has to appear as absolutely insane to the proverbial objective bystander. This is the way of pecusa under the current leadership.
In our previous diocese, the Diocese of Central NY, legal costs have soared under Bishop Skip Adams. First, there was the failed prosecution of Fr. David Bollinger that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. Second, there was the lawsuit against St. Andrew's, Syracuse. Third, is this week's lawsuit against Good Shepherd, Binghamton. I wonder what it will take for someone from the highly intelligent (as we are told) members of pecusa to say enough is enough. You would think that a parishioner or two or three might find it a bit objectionable to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on lawsuits, particularly in a diocese that couldn't afford a camp and conference center that annually cost the diocese far less than the lawsuits of the last four years.
Bishop Adams has repeatedly said that a church (or diocesan) budget is a theological document. What do the current and recent legal expenses say about the Diocese of Central NY or pecusa?
I wrote to a friend a few years ago and said that we failed to turn around pecusa, but maybe we could bring the denomination down through legal fees. I've been told that the deep pockets of pecusa could never be emptied, but the millions going for lawsuits have at least dried up funds that could otherwise have gone for supporting pro-abortion groups and the other causes that conservative Christians find unbiblical. In addition to this, even a biased bystander has to see that pecusa suing individual congregations is at least unseemly, if not downright disgraceful.
Which is why other denominations have noted the pecusa experience and are not duplicating it in their environs.
No comments:
Post a Comment