Legal struggles don't smother the gospel

From the Convocation of Anglicans in North America:

The leader of a conservative group of Anglican churches in the United States says years of legal battles with the Episcopal Church have not hampered the spread of the gospel.

In 2003, the Episcopal Church USA -- amidst much controversy -- ordained Vicky Gene Robinson, an open homosexual, as a bishop of New Hampshire. Shortly after that, many congregations began leaving the denomination and partnering with conservative African bishops. Recently, the conservative congregations formed the Convocation of Anglicans in North America (CANA).

This past weekend Martyn Minns, missionary bishop of CANA, spoke to chaplains in Orlando. He says although many Anglican congregations in the U.S. have had to fight lawsuits by ECUSA to take their property and assets, conservative leaders are staying focused.

"In fact, I think it's actually given them an opportunity to really show to the world that the church is finally about people called by Christ to get on with the work of ministry," Minns responds. "It's not about building or institutions. I think it gives [those churches] a chance to make that point really clear."

So far, more than 75 congregations and 150 clergy have joined CANA.

pecusa shrinks some more

From David Virtue at VirtueOnline:

In the Episcopal Church, size apparently doesn't matter. As the church shrinks, its cries for inclusivity and diversity grow louder and louder.

The latest figures for Episcopal Church attendance do not augur well. The 77th annual edition of the Yearbook of American & Canadian Churches, long a highly regarded chronicler of growth and financial trends of religious institutions, records a slight but startling decline in membership of the nation's largest Christian communions. In 2007, The Episcopal Church said it had 2,116,749 baptized members down 1.76 percent. A more accurate reading of TEC, based on Fast Facts from a church source, showed that Average Sunday Attendance, had gone from 765,326 to 727,822 in 2007. While 2008 is not known at this time, nor are the first two months of 2009, it is hard to imagine that the church can still claim 700,000 active members.

A survey in mid 2008, before the economy tanked, revealed that the proportion of parishes in some or serious financial difficulty almost doubled from 2000 to 2005, increasing from 13% to 25% and then remained unchanged for 2008. 26.4% of congregations have average Sunday attendance of less than 35. A majority (62%) of Episcopal parishes and missions report that more than half of their members are age 50 and above. 90% of Episcopal congregations reported having conflicts or disagreements in the last five years. 47% of Episcopal congregations report serious conflict over the ordination of gay priests/bishops. Overall, 63% of Episcopal parishes have at least one full-time paid clergy. Another 25% are served by part-time clergy, priests, or by seminary students. The remainder report having no clergy at all or that they are served by supply or interim priests. 11% of Episcopal congregations report that they have no youth in the church and 58% have 10 or fewer youth among their active members or regular participants. Only 20% of Episcopal congregations have 20 or more youth actively involved.

The overall picture is not comforting. Only one diocese, South Carolina showed any sign of growth. The aggressive Anglican Mission in the Americas (AMIA), headquartered in Pawleys Island, just miles down the road from the Diocese of South Carolina's headquarters in Charleston is making inroads in that part of the country, no doubt to the chagrin of Bishop Mark Lawrence.

WHILE TEC slowly sinks, news comes that the yet to be inaugurated Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) is making great strides forward. A story in today's digest shows remarkable strength even before it makes its official debut in June, according to figures revealed by its leaders.

According to a report released by the Diocese of Pittsburgh, some 81,311 people worship at the 693 congregations of the Anglican Church in North America each Sunday. These parishioners and parishes are outside of The Episcopal Church and The Anglican Church in Canada. The vast majority are temporarily under the ecclesiastical oversight of six separate orthodox Anglican provinces.

While each jurisdiction is small, as a united body, the Anglican Church in North America, which includes both the U.S. and Canada, has significantly more members than 12 of the Anglican Communion's 38 provinces including Bangladesh, Brazil, Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui, Indian Ocean, Japan, Jerusalem & Middle East, Korea, Mexico, Myanmar, Scotland, Southern Cone, and Wales.

It is estimated that at least 100,000 plus Anglicans in North America attend church regularly. What will this picture look like in five years? Certainly in ten years, at the present rate of TEC decline and ACNA growth, ACNA could well rival TEC. Don't laugh. It could happen.

Just how bad are things in TEC? You can read Part III in my continuing series on "Episcopal Dioceses and Parishes Face Worst Financial Crisis since Depression". The story is depressing, but it's the truth. Financially, TEC is hurting and cutting back on many of its "sacred" programs including the much bally-hoed Millennium Development Goals. However, ASSIST News Services reports that, despite the economic downturn, most evangelical parachurch ministries exceeded, met or came very close to their 2008 fourth-quarter contributions goals. According to a recent survey of its members by the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA), 72 percent of responding organizations reported they exceeded, met or came within 10 percent of their goals. Twenty-eight percent reported they were more than 10 percent below their goals.

*****

NEW YORK: NCC's 2009 Yearbook of American & Canadian Churches reports decline in Catholic, Southern Baptist membership

Via VirtueOnline:

http://www.ncccusa.org/news/090130yearbook1.html
February 24, 2009

See: how church members are counted.

The 77th annual edition of the Yearbook of American & Canadian Churches, long a highly regarded chronicler of growth and financial trends of religious institutions, records a slight but startling decline in membership of the nation's largest Christian communions.

Membership in the Roman Catholic Church declined 0.59 percent and the Southern Baptist Convention declined 0.24 percent, according to the 2009 edition of the Yearbook, edited by the National Council of Churches and published by Abingdon.

The figures indicate that the Catholic church lost 398,000 members since the appearance of the 2008 Yearbook. Southern Baptists lost nearly 40,000 members.

Both membership figures were compiled by the churches in 2007 and reported to the Yearbook in 2008. The 2009 Yearbook also includes an essay by the editor, the Rev. Dr. Eileen W. Lindner, on the various ways churches count their members.

Neither figure is earth-shattering given the size of the churches. Roman Catholics comprise the nation's largest church with a membership of 67,117,016, and Southern Baptists rank second in the nation at 16,266,920.

But this year's reported decline raises eyebrows because Catholic and Southern Baptist membership has grown dependably over the years. Now they join virtually every mainline church in reporting a membership decline.

According to the 2009 Yearbook, among the 25 largest churches in the U.S., four are growing: the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (up 1.63 percent to 5,873,408; the Assemblies of God (up 0.96 percent to 2,863,265); Jehovah's Witnesses (up 2.12 percent to 1,092,169); and the Church of God of Cleveland, Tenn. (up 2.04 percent to 1,053,642).

There are no clear-cut theological or sociological reasons for church growth or decline, says Editor Lindner. "Many churches are feeling the impact of the lifestyles of younger generations of church-goers -- the 'Gen X'ers' or "Millenials' in their 20s and 30s who attend and support local congregations but resist joining them."

But former Southern Baptist President Frank Page told the Associated Press that the decline in his denomination was troubling because of the Southern Baptist emphasis on winning souls.

Page called on Southern Baptists to "recommit to a life of loving people and ministering to people without strings attached so people will be more open to hearing the Gospel message."

Lindner writes, "A slowing of the rate of growth of some churches and the decline of membership of others ought to be the focus of continued research and and thoughtful inquiry."

Churches listed in the Yearbook as experiencing the highest rate of membership loss are the United Church of Christ (down 6.01 percent), the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church (down 3.01 percent), the Presbyterian Church (USA) (down 2.79 percent), the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod (down 1.44 percent) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (down 1.35 percent),

American Baptist Churches USA, on the other hand, cut its previous decline rate of 1.82 percent in half, now reporting a decline of 0.94 percent.

Membership of the top 25 churches in the U.S. totals 146,663,972 -- down 0.49 percent from last year's total of 147,382,460.

The top 25 churches reported in the 2009 Yearbook are in order of size:

The Roman Catholic Church, 67,117,06 members, down 0.59 percent. (Ranked 1)

The Southern Baptist Convention, 16,266,920 members, down 0.24 percent. (Ranked 2)

The United Methodist Church, 7,931,733 members, down 0.80 percent. (Ranked 3)

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 5,873,408 members, up 1.63 percent .(Ranked 4)

The Church of God in Christ, 5,499,875 members, no change reported. (Ranked 5)

National Baptist Convention, U.S.A., Inc., 5,000,000 members, no change reported. (Ranked 6)

Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, 4,709,956 members, down 1.35 percent. (Ranked 7)

National Baptist Convention of America, Inc., 3,500,000 members, no change reported. (Ranked 8)

Presbyterian Church (USA), 2,941,412 members, down 2.79 percent (Ranked 9)

Assemblies of God, 2,863,265 members, up 0.96 percent. (Ranked 10)

African Methodist Episcopal Church, 2,500,000 members, no change reported. (Ranked 11)

National Missionary Baptist Convention of America, 2,500,000 members, no change reported. (Ranked 11)

Progressive National Baptist Convention, Inc., 2,500,000 members, no change reported. (Ranked 11)

The Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod (LCMS), 2,383,084 members, down 1.44 percent. (Ranked 14)

The Episcopal Church, 2,116,749 members, down 1.76 percent. (Ranked 15)

Churches of Christ, 1,639,495 members, no change reported. (Ranked 16)

Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, 1,500,000 members, no change reported. (Ranked 17)

Pentecostal Assemblies of the World, Inc., 1,500,000 members, no change reported. (Ranked 17)

The African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, 1,400,000 members, down 3.01 percent. (Ranked 19)

American Baptist Churches in the USA, 1,358,351, down 0.94 percent. (Ranked 20)

Baptist Bible Fellowship International, 1,200,000, no change reported. (Ranked 21)

United Church of Christ, 1,145,281 members, down 6.01 percent. (Ranked 22)

Jehovah's Witnesses, 1,092,169 members, up 2.12 percent (Ranked 23)

Christian Churches and Churches of Christ, 1,071,616 members, no change reported. (Ranked 24)

Church of God (Cleveland, Tenn.), 1,053,642 members, up 2.04 percent. (Ranked 25)

END

SOUTH DAKOTA: Deny Consent for the Would-be Bishop of Northern Michigan, say South Dakota Episcopal Leaders

Via VirtueOnline:

An Open Letter to the Bishop and Standing Cmte. of the Diocese of South Dakota:

Ash Wednesday, 2009

An Open Letter to the Bishop, Standing Committee and General Convention Deputies, Diocese of South Dakota

Dear Bishop, Committee Members and Deputies,

We write to request that you deny consent for the consecration of Kevin Thew Forrester as Bishop of Northern Michigan. Because this issue is of importance to the whole Episcopal Church, we send this as an open letter to open as many eyes as we can.

There are several significant reasons to deny consent for Thew Forrester's consecration:

1) Thew Forrester, in comments printed in Northern Michigan's diocesan newsletter, specifically denies that human beings need salvation. But if he is to be consecrated, he will be required to sign a public declaration declaring his belief that the Bible contains "all things necessary to salvation." The Presiding Bishop will pray that Thew Forrester's consecration serve "the plan of salvation." (Book of Common Prayer, "Ordination of a Bishop.") Thew Forrester cannot possibly participate in the consecration rite of this church with any kind of integrity. A review of sermons, liturgies and other statements by Thew Forrester reveal a complete disregard for The Book of Common Prayer and its basic, unifying expressions of our Christian faith.

2) The most recent General Convention of the Episcopal Church (2006) passed Resolution B033, which calls for restraint in consecrating bishops "whose manner of life presents a challenge to the wider church." Our South Dakota convention deputies reported that this resolution was a triumph of the middle way in the church. The consecration of a self-professed Zen Buddhist will violate any reasonable definition of a middle way and present a direct challenge to the wider church.

3) In contrast to the open nomination process we used here in South Dakota, the Northern Michigan process was tightly managed by a small group, of which Thew Forrester was part. He emerged as the only nominee - there was no true election.

4) This questionable "process" is being justified as "Mutual Ministry", which corrupts an important model that we use here in South Dakota (and which has been a big success here at Good Shepherd, Sioux Falls). While we completely respect and participate in Mutual Ministry, we see it as totally inappropriate for selecting a Bishop. By definition, bishops serve the wider church, not just one part of it. This is why you are called on for consent, which you should not grant in this bizarre case.

5) In his 2004 address to the Diocese of Northern Michigan, the late Bishop James Kelsey stated that Forrester had received "lay ordination" in Zen Buddhism. It is the policy of our current Presiding Bishop to declare that clergy who assume roles in religious bodies outside of the Episcopal Church have "abandoned the communion of the Church" and to discipline them. A serious disciplinary precedent exists in the Diocese of Rhode Island, where Bishop Geralyn Wolfe has inhibited Anne Holmes Redding for claiming to practice the Islamic religion while functioning as an Episcopal priest. In this time of turmoil in our church, the worst possible message will be sent by favoring one kind of "mixing and matching" while applying strict discipline to others.

We regret the sad recent history in our diocese, in which sincere letters from concerned church members are often ignored. We regret that our heated disagreements on some issues have caused a perceived break in the circle of the diocese, and we hope to repair that in coming days. But we hope and pray that in spite of our various wounds, you will take seriously the well being of the church and your leadership responsibility for it. What is being done in Northern Michigan is not good for the wider church. And a bishop is not just a "local matter" - s/he serves the wider Episcopal Church and even the Anglican Communion.

As we enter this holy season of Lent, all of us are challenged to hear "the message of pardon and absolution set forth in the Gospel of our Savior, and of the need which all Christians continually have to renew their repentance and faith" (Ash Wednesday liturgy). We plead with you to help the church repent of provocative actions and help us find unity in Jesus Christ. We are asking only for the basic unity provided in the Book of Common Prayer - what is going on in Northern Michigan violates both the letter and spirit of our common life in Christ.

Please deny consent for the consecration of Kevin Thew Forrester, an ordained Buddhist and unelected "candidate", as Bishop of Northern Michigan.

Faithfully,

The Reverend Timothy L. Fountain Rector, Church of the Good Shepherd Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Melissa Fountain
ood Shepherd, Sioux Falls

Mark Barker
Good Shepherd, Sioux Falls

Rose Barker
Good Shepherd, Sioux Falls

Father Warren Shoberg, SSC
Diocese of South Dakota (retired)

Ronald Briggs, Sr., DDS
Good Shepherd, Sioux Falls

Dorothy Briggs,
Good Shepherd, Sioux Falls

Ron Briggs, Jr.
Good Shepherd, Sioux Falls

Tammy Briggs Parish Administrator
Good Shepherd, Sioux Falls

Christopher Haberman V
estry Member Good Shepherd, Sioux Falls

Brad Olson

Good Shepherd, Sioux Falls

Amy Olson
Vestry Member Good Shepherd, Sioux Falls

James T. Simmons, PhD
Christ Church, Yankton

Wyatt Boutwell University of South Dakota Law School
Vermillion

Holli Burke Iowa Resident Baptized Confirmed Communicant,
Good Shepherd, Sioux Falls

Barb Miller Iowa Resident Baptized Confirmed Communicant,
Good Shepherd, Sioux Falls

Dale Dobrovolny
Good Shepherd, Sioux Falls

Ingrid Dobrovolny President,
American Anglican Council/South Dakota Chapter

END

Orthodox North American Church Swamps Smaller Liberal Anglican Provinces

News Analysis

By David W. Virtue
www.virtueonline.org
2/26/2009

A new North American Anglican province in waiting shows remarkable strength even before it makes its official debut in June, according to figures leaders revealed by its leaders.

According to a report released by the Diocese of Pittsburgh, some 81,311 people worship at the 693 congregations of the Anglican Church in North America each Sunday. These parishioners and parishes are outside of The Episcopal Church and The Anglican Church in Canada. The vast majority are temporarily under the ecclesiastical oversight of six separate orthodox Anglican provinces.

While each jurisdiction is small, as a united body, the Anglican Church in North America, which includes both the U.S. and Canada, has significantly more members than 12 of the Anglican Communion's 38 provinces including Bangladesh, Brazil, Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui, Indian Ocean, Japan, Jerusalem & Middle East, Korea, Mexico, Myanmar, Scotland, Southern Cone, and Wales.

The following jurisdictions make up The Anglican Church in North America (ACNA):

* The Anglican Mission in the Americas (AMIA) (Rwanda) reports an average Sunday attendance of 21,600 in 180 congregations (40 of which are churches in formation called "networks").

* The Convocation of Anglicans in North America (CANA) (Nigeria) has 69 congregations with an average Sunday attendance of 9,828.

* The Reformed Episcopal Church (REC) has 150 parishes and 13,000 communicant members.

* There are 51 parishes under the temporary oversight of Uganda with an average Sunday attendance of 7,000.

* There are 55 parishes in The United States under the temporary oversight of the provinces of Kenya and the Southern Cone with an average Sunday attendance of 10,000.

* Four entire dioceses have separated from The Episcopal Church, and have a combined 163 parishes with an average Sunday attendance of 16,483. (Those congregations and members who have decided to remain in The Episcopal Church congregations have not been included.) They are temporarily dioceses of the province of the Southern Cone.

* The Anglican Network in Canada (Southern Cone) is composed of 24 congregations with an average Sunday attendance of 3,400.

* One congregation is under the temporary oversight of West Africa.

Based on a firm Sunday attendance average of 81,311 people, it is conservatively projected that more than 100,000 Anglicans in North America are active members of a congregation of the proposed province. In many cases, total membership often runs at two to three times average Sunday attendance.

The Episcopal Church reported an average Sunday attendance of 768,476 in 2007 and an active baptized membership of 2,116,749. In 2008 the attendance figure was 727,000.

The following is a list of the relative membership of the Provinces of the Anglican Communion compared to the proposed Anglican Church in North America:

The Episcopal Church of Jerusalem and the Middle East - 10,000 (2005)
The Church of Bangladesh - 12,500 (2005)
Iglesia Anglicana de la Region Central de America - 13,409 (2005)
The Anglican Church of Korea- 14,558 (2005)
La Iglesia Anglicana de Mexico - 21,000 (2005)
Iglesia Anglicana del Cono Sur de America - 22,490 (2005)
Hong Kong Shen Rung Hui - 29,000 (2005)
Igreja Episcopal Anglican do Brasil - 40,000 (2005)
The Church of the Province of Myanmar - 49,257 (2005)
The Scottish Episcopal Church - 53,553 (2005)
The Nippon Sei Ko Kai - 57,273 (2005)
The Church in Wales - 70,353 (province website)
*The Anglican Church in North America -100,000 (Average Weekly Attendance 81,311)
The Episcopal Church in the Philippines - 118, 187
The Church of the Province of the Indian Ocean - 120,000
The Church of the Province of Melanesia - 163,884 (2005) The Anglican Church of Papua New Guinea - 166,046 Church of the Province of Southeast Asia - 168,079 (2005) The Church in the Province of Central Africa - 600,000 (AC website) Province de L'Eglise Anglicane Du Congo - 300,000 (2005) The Church of Ireland - 410,000 (2005)
The Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand & Polynesia - 584,793 (AC website)
The Anglican Church of Burundi - 625,000 (AC website)
The Anglican Church of Canada - 641,845 (AC website)
The Church in the Province of the West Indies - 770,000 (2005)
The Church of Pakistan (United) - 800,000 (2005)
L'Eglise Episcopal au Rwanda - 1,000,000 (2005)
The Church of North India (United) - 1,250,000 (2005)
The Anglican Church of Tanzania - 1,379,366 (AC website)
The Church of South India (United) - 2,000,000 (2005)
The Anglican Church of Southern Africa - 2,000,000 (2005)
The Episcopal Church of the Sudan - 2,000,000 (2005)
The Episcopal Church - 2,116,749 (province website)
The Anglican Church of Australia - 3,903,324 (AC website)
The Church of the Province of West Africa- 1,000,000 (2005)
The Anglican Church of Kenya - 2,500,000 (2005)
The Church of the Province of Uganda - 9,200,000 (2005)
Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) - 25,000,000 (2005)
The Church of England - 26,000,000 (2005) ASA 1,163,000)

END

The Future Before Your Eyes

From The Anglican Curmudgeon via TitusOneNine:

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Or: The Birds of 1979 Come Home to Roost

This will be a long post. It did not start out that way, but as I gathered more and more material, I came to see that what is going on, and what has gone on, in the Diocese of Northern Michigan encapsulates for me, at any rate, much of what I view as the false directions and innovations that were introduced with the revisions to the Book of Common Prayer in 1979. So much has been written directly on that topic that it is helpful to see the matter anew, in the fresh light presented by a real-life situation on the ground, in an Episcopal Diocese. So please bear with me, and be patient 'til the end, far below.

One of the largest threads ever at StandFirm (337 comments) had to do with the nomination of a single "candidate" for the post of "Bishop/Ministry Developer" of the Diocese of Northern Michigan. Now that the candidate has been declared officially "elected", and the process of gathering the required consents from the diocesan standing committees and the bishops with jurisdiction has begun, we have the blogworld generally taking notice---and the results are, to say the least, fascinating. I cannot think of another single event that has united, on the same side of the issue, StandFirm, the Mad Priest, Christopher Johnson and David Virtue. Joining them as well are Dean Kevin Martin at Covenant, Father George Conger at Religious Intelligence, and James Kushiner at Touchstone.

It is both sad, and an illustration of the liberal world view, to see that the usual suspects are backing this "election process": Episcopal Life Online, Adrian Worsfold, and Father Mark Harris (to say nothing of a certain ultraliberal chancellor, to whose blog I take a certain mischievous satisfaction in linking, because he would never link to this one). Why Episcopal Life? Well, it turns out that the Presiding Bishop herself has been following it very closely and lending her support. It might also have something to do with the fact that the winning candidate, the Rev. Kevin Thew Forrester of St. Paul's in Marquette, is an alumnus of her own alma mater, Church Divinity School of the Pacific. (The Presiding Bishop received an M.Div. from CDSP in 1994 and was ordained a deacon in Oregon by Bishop Ladehoff on May 1 of that same year. The Rev. Forrester graduated a little earlier from CDSP, was ordained a deacon in Michigan in June 1993, became assistant to the rector of St. Michael And All Angels in Portland, Oregon later that same year, and then was ordained a priest by Bishop Ladehoff on May 26, 1994. Thus they had to have known each other while both served in Portland.)

However, the ties appear to have continued after that. I have had only a short time to put some pieces together from searching the Web, and I hope that others more knowledgeable about the facts will be able to fill in the gaps.

Church Divinity School of the Pacific operates the Center for Anglican Learning and Leadership ("CALL"). This Center offers ongoing courses for people in the Church who need to fulfill Continuing Education Credits, or CEUs. Among the offerings for the Fall Semester 2008 was a course entitled "Baptism, Ministry and the Gospel: Including Everyone in Ministry and Mission." One of the required texts is a book written by none other than the successful bishop-elect, the Rev. Forrester: I Have Called You Friends: an Invitation to Ministry. The description of the course, from the CALL website, is as follows:

Throughout the Anglican Church, from New Zealand to North Dakota, congregations are transforming themselves into communities of mission and ministry without full-time ordained leadership. This phenomenon has intrigued many, offended some and mystified others. This course will introduce participants to new thoughts and actions based on the principles of the Baptismal Covenant, and to ways in which a congregation can take full responsibility for its own mission and ministry, including the gifts of all baptized persons, not just the ordained. Resources and tools for moving forward are included as part of the course.

All right, now stay with me a minute here. We have the bishop-elect of Northern Michigan, a CDSP graduate, who has written a book that is used in a continuing education course offered by his alma mater. Nothing wrong with that, certainly. But now follow me through a few years of the back issues of The Church in Hiawathaland, which is the newsletter for the Diocese of Northern Michigan. Let us begin with the aftermath, as we so often need to do, of the consecration of V. Gene Robinson in November 2003, and look at how that event played out in the Diocese of Northern Michigan. Here is an extract from the February 2004 issue of the newsletter:

The Diocesan Council and Leaders from around the diocese met November 14-15 in Marquette. They reviewed the year 2003 and began the process of developing a long-range strategic plan that would assist them in allocating time, talent and resources to support the gifts, needs and opportunities existing within their congregations. . . .
. . .
Some of the significant successes that the group named from the past year included the progress in creating LifeCycles; new Covenant Groups forming, and Ministry Support Team commissionings; . . . leadership nationally and internationally in mutual ministry and church reform; cohesiveness in the face of controversy at General Convention; and a good deal of outreach and justice work around the diocese; among many other things listed.

[The facilitator] then asked the participants to name the assumptions that we need to recognize as we plan our goals. They include aspects of our situation that we do not have control over, and some that we do. Those named included: the population decline in the Upper Peninsula; financial situation is under stress, within the church and in our communities; embracing strategic alliances to make better use of our gifts; general affirmation of mutual ministry across the diocese; effective leadership; aging congregations; and high visibility in the wider Episcopal Church as a result of the decisions of General Convention last summer. . . .

The participants then read through the current mission statement, felt it did not quite speak to what we are about, and came up with this Vision and Mission statement . . . :

We envision a world in which all people live together in peace and in harmony with all of creation, where all can contribute and the gifts of all are joyfully received, nurtured, and supported, where our diversity is celebrated in community, and every human being is recognized as having eternal significance. We commit ourselves to identify, nurture and support the baptismal ministry of every single member/person of this diocese. The baptismal covenant is our guide and inspiration.

These two statements guide the planning and living out of our goals and life together.

Next the participants listed our strengths, which included: diversity of gifts and experience; strong collaborative leadership; embracing the gifts of everyone; high level of communication; sharing our gifts beyond our borders; and appreciation of the geographical region and its environment; among other items listed. These strengths will support the goals that were chosen for the near future.

This Vision Statement appears centrally on the home Webpage of the Diocese of Northern Michigan. Long-time readers of the StandFirm site will recognize, in the words of the Vision Statement quoted above, the fine hand of the author of the Diocese's response to the Primates' Statement from Dar-es-Salaam in February 2007, which produced 124 comments all by itself. I want to make clear, however, that I am not judging or finding fault with the Vision Statement as a statement of values or principles; there is absolutely nothing wrong with setting a goal of living in peace and harmony with one's neighbors. The problem here is much larger than mere words, as we shall see.

I call your attention instead to the mention in the quote above of one of 2003's "significant successes", as identified by the Diocesan Council and leaders: "the progress in creating LifeCycles". Here is a fuller description of that program, taken from an earlier (May 2002) issue of the Diocesan newsletter:

LifeCycles, then, will be an ongoing, spiraling process of ministry formation. It is comprised of Units which flow from the foundational statement of LifeCycles:

We are a community,
gathered and sent forth by the Spirit
to encounter our story,
to be washed and renewed,
to be fed with thanksgiving,
and to celebrate and serve the reign of God.

Each Unit (such as, Encountering Our Story, or Gathered by the Spirit) is organized as Sessions spiraling about a major theme. The spine of the spiral is the Sessions themselves, which progressively consider the theme through the lenses of Experience, Creativity, Love, Liberty and Justice.

This also resonates with the Vision Statement, does it not? We learn from the same article of a further connection between the bishop-elect and the current Presiding Bishop:

This past summer the Curriculum Revision Group, after much discussion and reflection together, entered into a new partnership with the Dioceses of Wyoming and Nevada, along with Harvesters, a ministry development partnership of New England dioceses. The purpose of this partnership is a collaborative effort to thoroughly revise our curriculum. One of the first decisions we made, with Linda Grenz of LeaderResources working with us, was to describe our project as the creation of a “formation process” instead of a curriculum. The word formation is broader in scope than that of curriculum, and helps us to capture the vision we share of forming Christian communities of ministry – a formation process which is ongoing and inclusive of learning, prayer, spirituality, outreach, play, etc.

We are calling this ongoing process of Christian ministry formation “LifeCycles”. We hope to share LifeCycles with the wider Anglican Communion.

(Emphasis added.) Katharine Jefferts Schori, of course, had become the Bishop of Nevada in 2001. The article speaks of "this past summer" in May 2002, so it is clear that Father Forrester had been in contact with her after they both left Oregon. What I find most interesting, however, is that the partnership was between three of the most sparsely populated dioceses in the Church: Nevada, Wyoming, and Northern Michigan. There is more detail on the LifeCycles program here.

Father Forrester transferred to the Diocese of Northern Michigan in 2001, at the invitation of its Bishop, the Rt. Rev. James A. Kelsey, who had assumed the post after the retirement of Thomas K. Ray in 1999. Bishop Kelsey was known for his advocacy of "Total Ministry", or "Mutual Ministry", a form of sharing the gifts of ministry among "the priesthood of all believers", and which traces its origin to the epistles of St. Paul. Now go back and read the summary of the course offered by CALL quoted at the beginning of this post. Can you begin to see a circle closing here?

But the circle did not start with Bishop Kelsey, whose life was tragically cut short by an automobile accident on June 3, 2007. For his predecessor, Bishop Ray, was just as taken with the ideas of "Mutual Ministry". The Diocesan Website has a page that explains the concept, and the LifeCycles page linked to earlier says that it has been under development in the Diocese for the past twenty years. We learn from the December 2002 issue of The Church in Hiawathaland that Bishop Kelsey and Bishop Ray were both longtime personal friends of Louis Weil, the professor of liturgics at the Church Divinity School of the Pacific, who is described in the article as follows:

Weil is not only a scholar committed to the ministry of all baptized people, but also dedicated to inviting the laity to claim their own baptismal role and serve alongside the ordained, as ministers and celebrants of the liturgy. He has been very active ecumenically, and challenges us in a time of increasing multiculturalism to engage in new forms of culture, music, liturgical prayers and dance in our worship.

In yet another local newsletter we learn facts that allow us finally to close this circle. It tells us that Professor Weil

has a long-standing, important connection with Northern Michigan as a liturgical consultant, for Jim Kelsey's consecration and the new commissioning liturgy, to mention just a couple, and taught Kevin and Rise Thew Forrester [the latter is Father Forrester's wife, and since 2002 the editor of The Church in Hiawathaland] and Anita Wingert as students at CDSP, and Rayford Ray [Bishop Ray's son] at Nashotah House.

The next sentence, however, supplies the coup de grace:

Louis was a significant contributor to the 1979 Book of Common Prayer, particularly the sections on Baptism, and continues to be a major leader in liturgical development on a national and international level.

(Emphasis added.) I could rest my case at this point, but there is still much more to the full picture. For what we have occurring now in the Diocese of Northern Michigan is not just the 1979 revisions to the BCP (particularly to the much-cited baptismal vow) coming home to roost, but also the highly flammable mixture of the worldview behind those revisions with the worldview of Buddhism. (Please note that I have not mentioned one word of this before now, yet it is the main topic of controversy on all the blogs.) You see, Father Forrester came to Northern Michigan having already encountered the way of the Buddha, while he was in the Diocese of Eastern Oregon (read the article "Bridging the Gap" on Page C):

About six years ago, while living in Eastern Oregon, I realized the need to do some of my own soul-work. Perhaps having a child on the way had something to do with it. Perhaps turning 40 played a role. Perhaps having spent the last 20 years of my life struggling to change the church and recover baptismal ministry had left me a tad exhausted. The reasons are many, and they all led me to pay attention to my own heart and soul. Where was the Spirit? Where was life? Why did I tend to repeat the same mistakes in life and create the same hurts in those I loved?

My soul-work entered a new stage on Pentecost, at Fortune Lake Lutheran Camp, when I, as a Christian, received Buddhist “lay ordination” and a new name, to go along with my Christian name: Genpo (Japanese, for “way of universal wisdom”). I now walk the path of Christianity and Zen Buddhism. What on earth would possess me to do something like this?

Now my object here is not to criticize the man. All of us have been through crises of the sort that he describes, and many of us did no doubt much worse things than become lay Buddhists. What I am focusing on is the result for the Diocese of Northern Michigan. One could say that once given the truly unfortunate accident that took the life of Bishop Kelsey, the result we are seeing could not have been any other. For the goals of Mutual Ministry and Father Forrester's Zen Buddhism were first put to the test with the sudden vacancy created by that tragedy, and the result was a potent combination for a Diocese like Northern Michigan.

It is a sparsely populated and widely scattered Diocese, which in 2007 was (and now still is) served by just five ministers who had seminary training, including Father Forrester and his wife, who is also an ordained priest. A significant proportion of its parishioners are 60 or over. They lose their vibrant and much-loved leader. What to do? Obviously a new bishop has to be chosen, so there has to be an election.

But this will not be just another election, like those that other Dioceses conduct. No, a new thing is happening in Northern Michigan. The "election" will be one designed by a practicing Zen Buddhist. The first thing to do is to agree on the process; here is the timeline announced at the annual convention of 2007, as developed by the Standing Committee:

The timeline began with conversations at Convention and around the diocese, continues with a Discernment Committee forming in February 2008, and the Election Convention to be held January 10, 2009. [The President, Linda Piper] noted that while decisions have not been made about the makeup of the Discernment Committee, it will be representative of the diocese, with membership from all four regions, as well as key leadership groups.

Now please follow the ensuing process. The "Episcopal Ministry Discernment Team" (EMDT) did take shape in February 2008; its 21 members were announced in an article on page 2B of the April 2008 issue of The Church in Hiawathaland, drawn from the four regions of the Diocese, with additional members appointed both by the Standing Committee and by the "Core Team" (which included Father Forrester and other names we shall encounter, including the President of the Standing Committee).

It was given a "Companion", Jo Gantzer, described here as "the Canon for Lifelong Learning of the Diocese of Michigan, [where] her responsibilities include formation for all ages and for Mutual Ministry. She is Co-Chair of Living Stones, the international organization for dioceses and communities seeking to further collaborative baptismal ministry."

Did I forget to mention Living Stones? You may read about it here---notice who is on the "New Leadership Team" with Jo Gantzer. And her role as "Companion"? That is taken right out of LifeCycles, where such a person "is one who walks with the group, offering feedback and insight to the participants." As EMDT's Companion, Canon Gantzer was expected to:

• be the chaplain for the EMDT, helping with prayers when she is present;
• serve as another set of eyes and ears for the EMDT, asking the question, “what have you heard?”;
• work with the EMDT on group dynamics, using tools such as the Enneagram and Myers-Briggs;
• encourage all members of the EMDT to participate;
• help the EMDT identify what it is tending to avoid;
• invite the EMDT both to enlarge its vision and sharpen its focus;
• help the EMDT to see where members are getting stuck.

In addition to their "Companion", the EMDT also acquired three "Reflectors", persons off whom they could also bounce their ideas and candidates for ministry: these were Bishop Ely of Vermont, Bishop Caldwell of Wyoming, and Dr. Frederica Harris Thompsett, Mary Wolfe Professor of Historical Theology and former Academic Dean at Episcopal Divinity School. You may remember that Bishop Caldwell was one of the partners with Father Forrester in developing and trying out the LifeCycles program, as mentioned earlier. But he also works with Father Forrester as "an original member of the Ministry Developers Collaborative, an organization dedicated to working in support of persons working for baptismal ministry development." (More about the Ministry Developers Collaborative later.) And he has long-standing ties with the Diocese, having presided at the funeral service for Bishop Kelsey in June 2007.

As for Bishop Ely of Vermont, the Diocesan newsletter of March 2008 informs us that "he is committed to collaborative ministry, nurturing a shared episcopate, ministry in small churches, encouraging cooperation among regional groupings of churches and the development of local ministry support teams in congregations." Sounds like a very compatible member of the team. Oh, and I forgot to mention: the Diocese of Vermont was also a partner with Father Forrester in developing the LifeCycles program.

The third Reflector was Professor Thompsett of EDS, also well known to the Diocese. She was Chaplain for its convention in 2005, and was a speaker at its Baptismal Conference in January 2008, just before her appointment. Oh, yes, and EDS is "also a LifeCycles partner."

Together with Bishop Caldwell and Father Forrester, Professor Thompsett works with the Ministry Developers Collaborative, and serves on its Steering Committee. You may see a list of those members on this page of the group's website, where you may read a lot more about their objectives and methods. Notice that another member of the Steering Committee is---Jo Gantzer! Is it all coming clear now?

The EMDT was commissioned in March, and began meeting in April. For its first two meetings it was guided by a so-called "Process Team" of four people, which included the Rev. Kevin Thew Forrester. Its first status report to the Diocese described the process in this way:

The discernment process is moving along on schedule. Our first few sessions were led by Marcia Franz, Kevin Thew Forrester, Fran Gardner and Hazel Satterly. Formation and team building were on the agenda for the first few meetings. Kevin led us through a brief oversight of the Enneagram showing us how our personality traits impact group process, how we receive and give information and how we make decisions. Later, using Steven Charleston’s reflection on Episcopal Ministry and spending time in discussion centered around the Congregational responses to questions 1, 2 and 3 the group has begun to get a clear direction of the expectations and hopes of the people in this diocese. This information will be refined and provided to each community for review.

The EMDT then went through the process of distilling input from the parishes of the Diocese, and here is part of what it came up with:

Our vision of episcopal ministry
We have a vision of a shared episcopate modeled upon Mutual Ministry in which the Bishop’s primary focus is pastoral, relational and canonical in full partnership with an Episcopal Ministry Support Team.

To make our vision happen
• We will continue to build on the organizational structures that are in place to support the life and ministry of the diocese.
• We will identify an Episcopal Ministry Support Team that includes the Bishop.
• We will make greater use of technology to facilitate communication.
• We will strive to increase an understanding of Mutual Ministry throughout the diocese.
• We will be realistic and responsible about our finances.
• We will determine what an Episcopal Ministry Support Team may do.

The next report, dated June 8, 2008, is equally illuminating about how the process worked:

Today, Saturday June 7, we spent significant time with one of our EMDT "reflectors", Fredrica Thompsett, and our "Companion", Jo Gantzer. It was helpful to the group to hear their reflections, impressions, questions and suggestions.

We continue to work on what our vision of the shared episcopate looks like.

We continue to learn about and wrestle with the finances involved in our vision as it emerges.

There are no names that have been raised, let alone considered, at this point.

There will be a more detailed report in the form of a bulletin insert in late July or early August.

Our next meeting is scheduled for June 21.

Marion Luckey
for the EMDT

The mid-summer report begins with a recap of how they have proceeded to date:

The work of the Episcopal Ministry Discernment Team (EMDT) continues. Meeting-by-meeting we are reaching a greater clarity about our work and direction. As a result, we feel the time has come for another update to you, the people of the Diocese of Northern Michigan.

From the beginning we’ve been modeling this process on the discovery (discernment) process used in most congregations throughout the diocese to form a covenant group. We now have twenty-plus years of experience in this process and think it has served us well. Making this adaptation has been our charge from the Standing Committee. We’ve discovered a great number of parallels but also some differences (for example, in a local discernment process there is no limit to the number discerned for a particular ministry role, but we are only calling one bishop).

Since one of the key discernment principles used in our congregations requires that we know the people we discern “well to very well,” we’ve tried to use our creativity and imaginations to bring a similar knowledge to this process. We have decided to draw upon the knowledge and insights of some trusted “contacts” around the Episcopal/Anglican Church who have a grasp of what we are about. We will rely on their input for names rather than on a general invitation to “submit nominations.” We also realize that the required background checks must precede the announcement of any candidate, putting our projected calendar under stress.

But they have made some decisions:

• We have embraced the concept of an Episcopal Ministry Support Team (EMST) which was widely supported by the congregational conversations. This will provide the setting for a broadly collaborative approach to supporting apostolic ministry in the diocese.

• As we envision it, the support team will replace the Core Team and will be made-up of ten to twelve people, including the ministry developers (and bishop), the diocesan operations coordinator, regional representatives and at large members. There will be an attempt to balance the number of compensated and non-compensated members. We also see an ongoing evaluation of the team leading to a “second generation” in three to five years.

• The Bishop will also serve as a ministry developer (missioner), a decision driven by financial realities as well as the emerging vision we’ve been exploring.

• While the Bishop will carry out the roles designated by the Constitution and Canons such as ordination, confirmation, and attendance at the House of Bishops, other “episcopal/ apostolic/ oversight” roles will be fulfilled by members of the Episcopal Ministry Support Team (EMST).

• We will present a single name for bishop to the Special Diocesan Convention based on the results of our discernment process.

• We will present names for the Episcopal Ministry Support Team (EMST) to the Special Diocesan Convention based on the results of our discernment process.

• As we seek to discern the team (including the Bishop), we will rely on the following “generally desirable characteristics”:

• Works well with others
• Has good written and oral communication skills
• Has expertise in their area(s)
• Is flexible and willing to work as a team player
• Seriously accepts responsibilities
• Has a clear understanding of Mutual Ministry as it is lived out in this diocese
• Takes time for self-care
• Is comfortable with and willing to share leadership responsibilities
• Is willing to be a reflector for the team
• Is able to recognize the need for confidentiality and to honor those
situations were confidentiality is of utmost importance
• Effectively and respectfully deals with conflict

That was the last "report to the Diocese" published on the EMDT website. From here, we can take up the process as described by people who were on the ground and experiencing it firsthand. As you noticed from the previous reports, the slate of "candidates" reviewed was kept confidential, while only numbers were announced as the winnowing went on:

No applications for the position were accepted, select individuals in the greater church gave the team names to consider - the final choice of names was never revealed to the diocese at large - only numbers - we have 36 names, we have it down to 10 names…

The same commenter gives more background about the process in this post:

The leadership of the diocese in the absence of a bishop after Jim Kelsey’s tragic death formed (with Kevin Forrester’s leadership) an alternative to the traditional manner in which bishops are elected in this church. With lots of fancy language they explained how we would form a discernment team to look at the process rather than a selection committee - this team would have to meet in Marquette twice a month for almost a year and they asked each congregation to send representatives. This diocese is almost 400 miles from east to west and ASA is less than 700 - many if not most of the congregations have regular members of less than 2 dozen. The result being that members of the team were often self appointed because of the taxing amount of time necessary to drive as much as 200 miles one way twice a month to attend an all day meeting. So the “volunteers” gathered. Also understand that as a diocese run by mutual ministry - there are only a handful of seminary trained missioners (less than 5) present in the diocese so there is a gaping hole in the knowledge of liturgy, church history, canon law etc. So these volunteers are not familiar and easily swayed by a good presentation. Once the team was assembled - congregations were asked to hold meetings to discern “who we were” as a diocese - at my church this discussion essentially lead the people by the nose to come up with the “right responses” - very leading questions etc. and surprise surprise - the diocese said exactly what Kevin Forrester wanted them to say. Then the next big surprise leaked out last summer - there would be no election. The discernment team (not a true representative group where the politics are all on the table out in the open) would choose the bishop themselves and name the other members of the episcopal ministry support team - all that would occur at the special convention would be a thumbs up or thumbs down vote for the whole team.

The EMDT gave a report to the annual Diocesan Convention in October 2008. It still refused to disclose any of the names that were under consideration. In response to a question, it described what it was following, Zen-like, as "an open process":

6. Is it a “closed” process? In other words, have we seriously considered input from outside of this diocese?
This has been an open process. We have asked for and received names from our contacts within the diocese, from outside of the diocese, and outside of the Continental United States. In addition to asking for recommendations from established contacts, we have also invited members of each congregation within the diocese to submit names of persons who they have discerned to meet the requirements, in accordance with the published guidelines.

They also announced that they had decided on an unusual compensation package to go along with the unusual team structure of the future diocesan ministry:

8. How did you arrive at the figure for the compensation package?
We truly want our ministry to reflect the equality and the vision of shared mutual ministry. Therefore, all of our Ministry Developers (including the Bishop/Ministry Developer) will be compensated equally rather then in a traditional hierarchical model.

The most interesting answer they gave to a question, though, was this:

12. How was it decided to present one name for Bishop/Ministry Developer?
In the traditional search process anyone can throw his or her hat into the ring. Someone decides that they want to be a bishop. It is self-selection. We chose to use the discernment process that has served us well in the local congregations for the past twenty plus years. At the congregational level there is often more than one person discerned for the same ministry. The team after much discussion and struggle came to the conclusion that we would try to focus or stay true to what the congregational conversations had revealed. Because there is only one bishop/ministry developer we would try and discern one person that best fit the criteria outlined by the people of this diocese, the person who would most fully encompass these gifts. This person would be able to function as part of a team and truly be able to share the Episcopal leadership in this diocese.

In a traditional election model three or four names are presented for the vote. Usually one person will stand out as a better fit and the others would be “ok.” People don’t know the candidates well when they come to convention. Our intention is to present one name based on prayerful consideration that is the very best fit for the ministry in this unique diocese. It is our hope that because of the careful, prayerful discernment of the team, one person will become the obvious choice. This one person will be presented to the diocese as the team’s best recommendation.


It is in this one answer that we see all of the "new age" elements of the process beginning to coalesce. It begins with a small circle of those "in the know", who bring in trusted colleagues from the "outside" to lend a sheen of objectivity, and to help bring others into the middle of the circle. By meeting together in confidence twice a month for six months, the circle gains both unanimity and a conviction that it is on the right path. What the circle loses, however, is any sense of accountability to those outside of it. This attitude may be seen in the next paragraph of its answer to Question #12 above:

It is our plan that the person who is discerned to be Bishop/Ministry developer will be revealed to the diocese as soon as the discernment process is completed. The people of this diocese will then have the opportunity to meet and/or get to know this person and the rest of the Episcopal Ministry Support Team prior to the Special Convention. It is the team’s hope that the people of this diocese will also discern and agree that this person is truly the best fit to share the ministry here in this diocese. At the election a yes vote would affirm the election of the new Bishop/ Ministry developer and ministry support team. A no vote would stop that process and we would have to go back to discerning once again. Because of this “yes/no” possibility the team goes forward with some apprehension trusting that God is working in and through us on behalf of the diocese.

Here we have the flaw in the Zen process. By the time the inner circle has done its work, it will have come so far along the path of consensus that it will be miles ahead of the rest of the parishioners in the Diocese. Yet it will give them just a few short weeks to catch up. (The selections were announced on January 17, just one month prior to the "Special Convention" called to ratify them.)

Doubtless most of the parishioners were already familiar with the candidate eventually named, the Rev. Kevin Thew Forrester. After all, he had been a part of the life of the Diocese for the past eight years, so he was not an unknown quantity. Nevertheless, as the local parishioners who commented at StandFirm and Titus 1:9 have stated, they felt left out of the process, and so could hardly be happy about being presented with just one choice.

This is a recipe for tension and strife, not peace and harmony. And the key question (from my point of view, at least) was buried. The diocesan chancellor, Patricia Micklow, was asked:

5. Is the process we are using in accordance with the Canons?
Canon III.11.1 provides:

“Discernment of vocation to be a Bishop occurs through a process of election in accordance with the rules prescribed by the Convention of the Diocese and pursuant to the provisions of the Constitution and Canons of this church.”

After review, I find no other specific requirements as to the election of a Bishop by the diocese (regarding either the number of nominees or the nominating procedure) within either Constitution or Canons. Patricia Micklow, Chancellor

It is futile to point out that the word "election" comes from a Latin root meaning "to choose out", "to choose from among", and that there can be no election in the proper sense of the word when there is only one choice. Not only does the process violate the Diocesan Constitution and Canons, but it violates the very language of Canon III.11.1 just quoted. The national Canons also provide an alternative for going through the House of Bishops or through the Province, but neither of those fit the model here, and so they were not used. The delegates to the "Special Convention" were specially chosen, and presented with a fait accompli to ratify, or else to face accusations for blowing up the process. The outcome was, under the circumstances, foreordained.

Truly, it was an election designed by a Zen Buddhist. The choice was to vote for one: you may (a) choose the Rev. Kevin Thew Forrester and the team of Ministry Developers, or (b) choose the team of Ministry Developers, including the Rev. Kevin Thew Forrester. Such a choice is the electoral equivalent of the sound of one hand clapping.

In other answers to questions, the EMDT disclosed that it felt the second convention of the Diocese of South Carolina, held after the initial consents to the election of Bishop Mark Lawrence were not obtained, was a precedent for what it was doing. At that second convention, Mark Lawrence was the only name submitted for election. Needless to say, however, that was a second, not a first, election to fill the vacant post of bishop. It is again typical of the entire process that it would isolate that event and call it a precedent for the procedure it claims to be following.

Many of the other blogs have gone into the theological incompatibilities between Buddhism and Christianity; I shall not rehash those debates here. For me, it is sufficient to note from all the facts I have set out above that the driving force behind this latest "election" is neither Buddhism nor Christianity as such, but the spirit of the 1970s that gave us a new Prayer Book, a new Baptismal Covenant (thanks, Professor Weil---I do not know your contributions to the new ordinal vows, but you might also want to read this post), and a whole new set of liturgies. The leaders of this movement have ever since sought validation for what they did, and they seek it by trying to envelop both the laity and the clergy in its friendly atmosphere of inclusiveness, designed not to scare anyone away with hocus-pocus, mumbo-jumbo or negative statements.

(An aside: I have recently been teaching a confirmation class, and even my students noticed what the 1979 revision to the Catechism had done to the Ten Commandments. They are all restated in the positive, with not a single "Thou shalt not . . ." to be seen or heard or uttered. Check out pages 847 to 848 of the BCP.)

Again, there is nothing wrong with friendliness or inclusiveness as goals, but they have to take second place to the content of the faith itself. When that content is subordinated to the ministry, so that the ministry can envelop everyone regardless of the level of their faith or understanding, and regardless of whether they hold contradictory views such as Buddhism, or Islam, or Wiccan or even Druid sentiments, the content gets lost in the All---or is it the shunyata?

Anyone who has troubled to read this far should appreciate the magnitude of the uphill battle that lies ahead. It should be obvious from all the connections spelled out earlier that a number of bishops, beginning with the Presiding Bishop, will want to see this election confirmed---not for the benefit, necessarily, of the parishioners in Northern Michigan, but for its precedential value as a method to control the selection of bishops in other dioceses.

Take a look around the Church. The movement for "Mutual Ministry" is already flourishing in many other dioceses (albeit the more sparsely populated ones)---Eastern Tennessee, for example, parts of New England, and even the Church of England. As finances become critical with declining membership, the model of the "Bishop/Ministry Developer" pioneered in Northern Michigan will become attractive to more dioceses. Because Mutual Ministry is virtually content-free (it has to be in order to be all-inclusive), it combines well with any other set of spiritual beliefs, not the least of which is Buddhism.

This is where the changes of 1979 have brought us. The future of our Church lies before us as we watch what is happening in the Diocese of Northern Michigan.


Posted by A. S. Haley

A Pastoral Letter from Bishop Bob Duncan

Posted by Kendall Harmon at TitusOneNine:

After the Realignment Resolution passed at the 2007 Diocesan Convention, Calvary took the position that if Realignment occurred after a second reading of the resolution at the 2008 Convention, then the Stipulation would act to bar the Diocese from continuing to use and administer Diocesan property. We opposed this argument, advising the court of our position that the Stipulation did not address realignment. We advised the court that the process for Diocesan realignment was in place and that we intended after realignment to continue to hold and administer Diocesan property for the beneficial use of all the parishes.

This process was transparent. We have tried to follow the good example of St. Paul in the 26th chapter of Acts by speaking and acting openly, and "not in a corner."

The leaders of the new diocese challenge the validity of the Diocesan realignment. Although we strongly disagree with this position, we recognize that some of these leaders publicly took this position at our 2007 and 2008 Conventions. In this respect, it is right to acknowledge that their position on this issue is consistent, and to recognize that they believe it their duty to challenge the legitimacy of the Diocesan action.

The same cannot be said, however, for the new diocese leaders' recent adoption of Calvary's arguments regarding the 2005 Stipulation and Order. On behalf of the new diocese's Standing Committee and Board of Trustees, Dr. Simons and Mr. Ayres (the presidents of each body) have written: "We call attention to the stipulation signed in good faith by Bishop Duncan's attorneys on October 15, 2005, which clearly defines how assets are to be disposed of, if any attempt to leave the Episcopal Church occurred - they are to stay in the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh of the Episcopal Church."

The statements made, and the inferences apparent for readers to draw, are both incorrect and unfair. The reference to "good faith" and "Bishop Duncan's attorneys" appears to be an attempt to personalize the present dispute as being about my actions alone, and they question my good faith. Our counsel represented me as Bishop of the Diocese, but also represented all of the other defendants in the litigation, including the then-members of the Standing Committee, and the Diocese itself as an entity. Personal attacks on me during the litigation are not new, but I reject the improper personalization of my role as Bishop. On issues of property and fiscal stewardship, the Bishop operates within a well-defined role outlined by the Diocesan Constitution, Canons, and Financial Regulations. This structure delineates the proper role of not only the Bishop, but also the role of the Standing Committee, the Board of Trustees, the Diocesan Council, and the Diocesan Convention. I have faithfully exercised my duties on all of these issues.

For the full text, go to:

http://www.pitanglican.org/news/local/filesforposting/022709duncanpastoral.pdf

Priest Calls Social Activism ‘Duty to Our Goddess’

From The Living Church via TitusOneNine:

Posted on: February 26, 2009

The Rev. Luis Barrios, an Episcopal priest canonically resident in the Diocese of New York, was sentenced to serve two months in a federal prison after he and five others were found guilty in January of entering the Fort Benning military base in Georgia as part of a protest against the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation. He is scheduled to begin serving his sentence on March 9.

Fr. Barrios and others opponents claim that graduates of the institute, formerly known as the U.S. Army School of the Americas, “have been implicated in some of the worst human rights violations in the Western Hemisphere.” They want the government to order the school closed permanently.

“I will not try to escape the consequences of my actions,” said Fr. Barrios in a statement he submitted to the court as part of his sentencing. “This would do nothing but diminish the validity inherent in these actions of civil disobedience,”

Fr. Barrios is associate priest at St. Mary’s Church, New York City and chairman of the Latin American studies department at New York’s John Jay College of Criminal Justice. He received written assurance earlier this month from the Rt. Rev. Mark S. Sisk, Bishop of New York, that his federal conviction would not be considered conduct unbecoming a member of the clergy.

“Though I may disagree with elements of your actions, I consider those actions to be a living out of your vows as a priest rather than a violation of them,” Bishop Sisk said.

In an open letter to supporters after his conviction, Fr. Barrios said that the ultimate goal of his social activism is “being able to organize the religiosity of the people, so they can reach their liberation.” He said it is his “duty to our Goddess to build a better world.”

This is not the first time that Fr. Barrios’ activism has drawn the attention of the diocese. In 1993, he was suspended as priest-in-charge of St. Anne’s in the South Bronx because of several instances of “vocational immaturity,” according to the New York Times. Last June the New York Daily News claimed Fr. Barrios had initiated more than 300 children into the Latin Kings street gang. An investigation by Bishop Sisk determined the allegation to be false.

America was once a better place to live.

From the Evansville Courier-Press:

Joseph Gleason/reader columnist
Friday, February 27, 2009

I love my grandparents. I love to learn about the world they grew up in. And a part of me wishes I could travel back in time to raise my family then.

My grandpa, Cliff , was born in 1903, my grandma, Alta, in 1907. There was no such thing as "income tax." If my grandpa's dad earned a dollar, he got to bring it home in one piece.

Cliff worked to support the family, and Alta stayed home to nurture the children. The family Bible was a central focus. They raised good food in the family garden. And instead of only listening to the radio, they spent time singing and playing music together.

Children were still considered a blessing. Birth control and abortion were illegal. As the last of six children, my aunt Doris was in no danger of being either avoided or eradicated by her parents. Doris now has grandchildren of her own, and they are quite thankful that their grandmother was born. My own dad was the third child, so I'm glad my grandparents didn't stop with two.

Homosexuality was rejected by the church and also by lawmakers and psychologists. And in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) published in 1952, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) listed homosexuality as a mental disorder.

With few exceptions, stores were closed on Sunday. Store owners did not worry about competition, because their competitors were also closed on Sunday. In reverence to God's gracious fourth commandment, our nation got a day of rest each week, making time available for worshiping Jesus, and for spending time with family.

America has gone downhill since the days of my grandparents.

Early In 1913, our federal government instituted the income tax. It has gotten worse since then; so now a huge portion of every paycheck goes to Uncle Sam.

In 1965, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Griswold v. Connecticut that laws prohibiting contraception were unconstitutional.

In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Roe v. Wade that laws prohibiting abortion were unconstitutional, citing Griswold v. Connecticut as precedent.

In 1974, after gay activists protested at several APA annual conferences, the APA reclassified homosexuality in the DSM, no longer calling it a mental disorder. Instead, they called it a "sexual orientation disturbance."

Most businesses run seven days a week now. No day of rest.

America was a better place to live in the days of my grandparents. The laws and the culture were more in-tune with the Bible.

Scripture prohibits government taxation beyond 10 percent of your income. The Bible teaches that children are blessings, neither to be avoided (birth control) nor murdered (abortion). The Bible teaches that homosexuality is wicked. And the Bible teaches us to rest one day in seven.

I want to live in a country where the laws match the pattern of the Bible.

In the early 20th century, the United States of America looked more like that pattern.

The End of Reasoned Faith?

In the post below Canon Kevin Martin looks at the situation in Northern Michigan and calls it the end of reasoned faith. I call it another instance of the totalitarianism of liberal pecusa. pecusa is led by a presiding bishop who routinely violates the Constitution and Canons, so why should we be surprised when a diocese violates the procedures in nominating and electing a bishop from a slate of one? Why should we be surprised when this single candidate had a hand, some say a strong hand, in the election process? This is how totalitarianism operates and pecusa is up to her eyeballs in this miscarriage of leadership.

As for reasoned faith, that went out when James Pike was not tried for heresy. It was acknowledged as out at the Righter trial. It's not time for surprise; it's time to wake up, acknowledge that pecusa is not a church, and align with a church. This is the reason for the new province for North America. The non-response that Canon Kevin Martin received is another sign of the ineffectiveness of the entire Communion Partners strategy within pecusa.

From Covenant Communion via TitusOneNine


By Kevin Martin

February 24, 2009

I started to call this “Adventures in Hiawatha Land” because it is rooted in what I accidentally learned about the recent election in Northern Michigan. All this started when I read that the Diocesan leaders there announced that they were only putting forth one candidate for Bishop. Explaining that they by applying their “Total Ministry” model, they had come up with a diocesan team that would be elected at their convention that included one name of a Bishop/developer.

I was not surprised that this diocese of vast territory but few congregations might want to do a different or experimental way of calling a Bishop. Then as I thought of it, I became troubled. What troubled me was that the leaders there had asked Standing Committees and Bishops to consent to an election. They had not asked for permission to do some other process. Further, I looked over the canons and discovered there was a method for such a diocese to hold an alternate election process that involved the Province, but they had decided not to use it. I had a nagging feeling that such a small diocese with so few clergy could easily have such a process take on its own life, and this became a further suspicion for me when I noticed that the person nominated was active in the process that brought about the nomination. So, I spoke up.

I wrote the Presiding Bishop pointing out that our Diocesan Standing Committee had consented to an “Election” not an appointment, and I spoke up on the House of Bishops and Deputies Listserv. I make it clear in both my letter and in my post that I was not objecting to the person nominated, but to the process. At that point, I was willing to let the issue go. Then, a blistering post was added that said the real “elephant in the living room” was the person they had nominated and that all the blogs were full of chatter about the person. This was the first indication that I had (I am not a big blogger person) that some were objecting to the person because of his Buddhist training. Even then, I had little concern about the person. I have known clergy who have received Buddhist Meditation training and did not consider this in and of itself a concern. My concern remained the process.

Then one person rebuked me for bringing up an issue that obviously was not a problem for anyone in the Diocese of Northern Michigan because “no one there” had objected to the process. Then, the private emails started to arrive. The more disturbing emails came from people in Northern Michigan. They called to my attention that the “team” being put forth was nearly the same as the “design team” that carried out the process. They further pointed out that the nominee for Bishop was a leader of this team who had considerable influence in the diocese. I suggested that the unhappy folks needed to follow my lead, speak up, and contact the Presiding Bishop’s office. What I discovered was that people had spoken up. They were told two things. First, they were informed that the Presiding Bishop had monitored the process there, given permission for it, and that it would do them no good to question it since “she had already given her permission.” Next there came the really distressing revelation. I was then informed by a couple of people that they were informed that there could be repercussions if they spoke up.


Even with this information, I hesitated about speak up further. I still believed that any change would need the local people to voice what was happening. Finally, realizing that I was now something of a voice for the voiceless, I shared what I had learned with the Listserv. I was quickly accused of “Triangling.” I pointed out that I was merely being an advocate for those who because of pressure might not have a voice. Having had my say, having found no interest, having not heard from the Presiding Bishop in response to my letter, I said the serenity prayer and let it go.

So, a flawed process, run by a small group of people, has resulted in a questionable candidate elected to the Episcopate. This will result in some conservatives focusing on the person and his non-orthodox views which will result in an immediate endorsement by the progressive members of our church who will close rank to defend one of their own. The whole affair will be reduced to a conservative/liberal argument. The result will be one more Unitarian in our House of Bishops This is not what will trouble me the most.What will trouble me is three-fold. First, the dissenters in Northern Michigan have informed me that their only real alternative is to just leave the Church. Second, the Church will be pushed further by its most extreme members in silencing any true moderate voices. Lastly, it is one more sign to me that the Church, made up of a thoughtful middle of caring and gracious centrist folks who honor our rules and procedures as a way of honoring a truly embracive and inclusive community, has sadly become something else. What we have most seen in the Episcopal Church in the past 10 years is the end of reasoned faith.

VTS Faces $1 Million Budget Cut

From The Living Church:

Posted on: February 24, 2009

Faced with significant losses to its investments, the board of trustees of the Virginia Theological Seminary has ordered the largest Episcopal seminary to cut $1 million from its budget.

For the past four months, the seminary, which draws 67 percent of its operating income from its endowment, has had the value of its portfolio decline 36 percent, from $144 million to $97 million. The Very Rev. Ian S. Markham, dean and president, has been asked by the board to produce a restructuring plan in time for the next meeting of the board’s executive committee on March 11.

While some immediate steps to cut personnel costs already have been taken, such as the suspension of faculty and staff searches and the launch of an early retirement plan for seminary employees, additional steps are likely to include plans to revive focus on the school’s annual fund and other legacy gifts, the seminary said in a news release.

Archbishop of Canterbury Sees Anglican Communion as Giant Chess Game

COMMENTARY

By David W. Virtue
www.virtueonline.org
2/25/2009

Watching and observing the Archbishop of Canterbury at work, most recently in Alexandria, Egypt, one senses that Dr. Rowan Williams, a brilliant theologian/strategist, sees the Anglican Communion as an open-ended chess game.

It is a game which never really ends (there is no classic end game), no checkmate (no one can lay down his miter or be thrown out of the communion), players go backwards and forwards, bishops, knights, rooks (castles) all move, but nothing is taken off the board. It is a game no one wins or really loses.

The odd pawn is sacrificed (like orthodox parishes in the US or the Diocese of Recife in Brazil), but the game goes on endlessly with the kings and queens (you may take the latter literally in the person of Gene Robinson), but even he gets to stay on the chess board as it is considered infra dig to hit on a queen.

Pieces move effortlessly and soundlessly around the board (from Canterbury to Alexandria) with the Grand Master (Williams) always in control and determining pre-ordained moves and counter moves. A bishop (archbishop) moves sideways up the board angrily denouncing sodomy, but is blocked by a knight (Kenneth Kearon and the ACC) and moves back several squares. Akinola moves to the right. Aspinall to the left. A pawn moves in to block any progression a right-thinking archbishop might make. Everyone breathes a sigh of relief. The game goes on with no winners or losers. The Anglican Communion is a zero sum game.

Theo Hobson, in an article in The Spectator, appropriately titled "Mainly Monk", captures a singular truth (there is more than one) about Rowan Williams.

"He decided as a boy that he would be a priest and theologian, and never had any trouble getting there. He never had a period of adulthood, or even adolescence, in which he wondered what to do with his life, in which he dipped even a toe into another form of life. He has always belonged to the subculture of Church, and since undergraduate days it was obvious that he would have a successful career in it, and the universities joined to it. Contemporaries rightly saw him as a donnish prelate-in-waiting. So his life has been sheltered by the institutions of Church and Oxbridge, to a remarkable degree. He has never had to seek employment, or existential meaning, outside this world. He has almost always been housed by either Church or university, thus being spared a major form of worldly responsibility and angst. He happens never to have driven a car, another reprieve from dirty worldliness," wrote Hobson.

Is it any wonder then that Williams has become the Grand Master? His skills were evident from the beginning. The chess board was his. It was only a matter of time. He has also emerged as the Grand Manipulator.

He has been able to duck and weave over black and white moral issues like homosexuality, because he could say his personal beliefs would never interfere with the generally accepted views of the communion at large and the received teaching of Scripture.

Scriptural authority might be negotiable for Williams but, as Hobson observes, the authority of the Church is utterly non-negotiable to him, for the simple reason that he has never imagined living outside of its subculture. His reforming radicalism has always been analogous to that of the young aristocrat, who is hot for change, as long as nanny and cook are still there to look after him.

And a chess board is nearby.

He is for the ordination of women (advance the queen), but he wants Forward in Faith's views acknowledged (advance the knight). Women bishops will be ordained (the queen has threatened, smiles, and then retreats, she has won. No need to take any players off the board). The knight is made to feel he is still a player, but he gets little support from the Grand Master. The knight is threatened by a pawn that has moved forward en passant. The knight retreats. Everybody breathes a sigh of relief. The game is temporarily halted. Everyone breaks for tea and crumpets. Pleasantries are exchanged. A joke or two is shared, then it is on to Evensong, dinner and another day has passed. No one has been checkmated. The game goes on.

A lengthy article in "The Atlantic" magazine (March edition) by Paul Elie titled The Velvet Reformation profiles Williams and draws attention to him as the Great Temporizer.

Elie frames the challenge facing Williams and the Anglican Communion in terms of "anti-gay" versus "gay-friendly" parties, tacitly assuming the rightness of the latter.

"They [questions having to do with homosexuality] are not going to go away, and we shouldn't pretend that they are," Williams said. Williams' position is disingenuous in implying that the Church, as Church, has not addressed the question."

Nonsense. She has addressed it, and has definitively answered it. "Sodomy is an open question not among churchmen qua churchmen, but among the fashion-conscious professoriat, and it is in his role of academic rather than archbishop that Williams seeks a vocabulary of sexual accommodation. The striking characteristic of (First World) Anglican bishops is their "faculty meeting" approach to Christian doctrine. None of them pretends that a layman might make a real-world decision as a consequence of what he might say. None pretends to speak with authority greater than his most enlightened lay associate. None pretends that the '"mind of Christ'" on an issue is something knowable, immutable, and distinct from the conflict of bias, fashion, and political self-interest that generates new theologies in every age," writes Elie.

Perhaps, it's not surprising that the contrarian atheist Christopher Hitchens has keener insight into Rowan Williams than does Paul Elie. Two years ago, in a Vanity Fair column, Hitchens recounted a fortuitous meeting in a Georgetown bistro: I lean over. "My Lord Archbishop? It's Christopher Hitchens." "Good gracious," he responds, gesturing at his guest -- "we were just discussing your book."

As Hitchens cynically notes, what does Williams care what some Bronze Age text says about homosexuality?

The brilliance of Williams is his enormous ability to sabotage closure. Witness what happened in Alexandria.

A number of orthodox archbishops in Alexandria said the Anglican Communion is irretrievably broken. There are two different understandings of the Anglican faith at work, two religions even, but still there was no schism. Lambeth and GAFCON now must somehow coexist. TEC and ACNA will muddle along glaring at each other across the great theological divide. The Windsor Report, in all its manifestations and permutations, lies in tatters. A Covenant, if it ever reaches a final stage, will have the value of toilet paper. Will another decade of blue ribbon committees change anything? Of course not, but keep everyone talking, keep everyone at the table.

Williams is always "listening", always searching, but never coming to a knowledge of the truth, for if he did, the communion and the chess game would be over. Keep everyone talking and "listening", mainly of course to the whine of gays like The (Rev.) Colin Coward and (Bishop) Gene Robinson. Is anyone listening to Bishop Robinson Cavilcanti?

As Elie notes, if you hope for gay lib to triumph, moral leadership is the last thing you want to provide. "The game is to keep things as blurry as possible while the tide of secular sentiment carries society as a whole to the place you want it to be."

Elie is absolutely right. The Western Anglican branch of Anglicanism is stoically, if not joyfully, following the culture. Is it any wonder then that patriarchal Anglican theologian Dr. J.I. Packer, called on Williams to resign? The smell of good faith "searching" of which Williams is a past master grows more rancid with time.

In the meantime, the Anglican Communion's western provinces will continue to wither and die, victims of their own liberal theological diseases and pansexual rot. The Global South provinces will continue to grow and expand exponentially driven by a clear precise understanding of the gospel of God's grace of repentance and faith.

There will be no checkmate. The players (archbishops and bishops) simply will not turn up to play on Williams chess board any longer. The liberals will scream victory even as defeat claws at their throats. There overthrow is written into the warp and woof of their post-modern gospel - a "gospel" that, at the end of the day, saves no one and nothing.

END

Rushing to Judgment

From the Anglican Curmudgeon via TitusOneNine:

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

In what can be described only as a somewhat terse performance by its collective justices, the California Supreme Court has corrected a rather glaring error in its prior opinion in The Episcopal Church Cases, 45 Cal.4th 467 (2009). It has published a short per curiam (meaning: unsigned) order, which it says does not affect its earlier judgment. But since the order has no byline, and carries no explanation, its significance is easy to miss.

Those to my left have, as usual, jumped to totally unwarranted conclusions. Out of the three sentences used by the Court to describe what it was doing, they select only this one: "The [local churches'] petition for rehearing is denied." Then they trumpet headlines like "California breakaway churches lose in court again". What they ignore are these words: "Request for modification granted. . . The opinion is modified." (Emphasis added.) If I were to read things as one-sidedly as they do, I could have titled this post: "California orthodox churches win in Supreme Court"; or (only slightly less outrageous) "Supreme Court concedes mistake in prior ruling in favor of ECUSA". I have decided instead to reach two birds with just one cast, and call what has happened in both the Supreme Court and on liberal blogs "rushing to judgment".

I explained in this earlier post what was wrong about the Court's original opinion. Briefly, the Court said it was deciding "the merits" of the case---before the defendants in the case, the individual parishes in Orange County who had each been sued first by the Diocese of Los Angeles and then by the Episcopal Church (USA), had even answered the complaints! Just like any other branch of government, courts cannot deprive people of their property without following "due process of law". One does not have to be an attorney to appreciate that if you are sued, you get a chance to answer your opponent's complaint before anything can be decided in your case "on the merits".

The error must have been at least a little embarrassing for the justices and their law clerks. In their zeal to render an opinion in the case, they literally rushed to judgment by purporting to decide the case "on the merits". The latter is a legal turn of phrase meaning that the case is decided squarely on the facts presented to the court, instead of being brushed aside on procedural or technical grounds that do not resolve any of the factual or legal issues raised. Normally, therefore, one expects a decision "on the merits" at the end, and not at the beginning, of a case. For the Court to assume it could decide the merits of the Episcopal Church Cases before the churches themselves had even an opportunity to answer would make it look as though the justices were biased, or had prejudged the case to such a degree that they did not even need to hear from any of the defendants. In other words, they would be saying: "Our minds are made up---don't confuse us with the facts!"

Now let us take a look at how the Court has gone about stepping back from its mistake. The modifications it made may best be understood by presenting the text of the original opinion below. Then, by using strikeouts for deletions and underlining for new language, I show just what the Court decided to change in order to avoid any appearance that it was prejudging the case.

The first change made is as follows, in the first full paragraph on page 473 of the published opinion:

Applying the neutral principles of law approach, we conclude, on this record, that the general church, not the local church, owns the property in question.

The Court has decided to add the three underlined words, together with offsetting commas, to its earlier sentence. I shall return to the meaning of this later. The second change, to the third full paragraph on page 476, is this:

We granted review to decide whether this action is subject to the special motion to strike under Code of Civil Procedure section 425.16 and to address the merits of the church property dispute.

Are you beginning to see what the Court is doing here? By inserting a second infinitive ("to address"), the Court has changed the meaning of its original sentence from "We granted review to decide . . . the merits of the church property dispute" to "We granted review . . . to address the merits of the church property dispute."

The changes continue. On page 478, the first full paragraph under Section B is changed to read as follows:

Both lower courts also decided addressed the merits of the dispute over ownership of the local church---the trial court found in favor of the local church and the Court of Appeal found clear and convincing evidence in favor of the general church. We will first consider what method the secular courts of this state should use to resolve disputes over church property.* We will also decide address this question, which the parties as well as various amici curiae have fully briefed. We will then apply that method to resolve analyze the dispute of this case.

__________

*{My footnote: Unusually, the official report of the Court's per curiam decision today on Westlaw omits this sentence, while the summary carried on the Court's own website (scroll to the bottom) includes it. It is rare for Westlaw to make such a mistake; the sentence is clearly necessary to make the word "also" in the next sentence grammatically meaningful.}


And the last change, to the first full paragraph on page 493, is like the first:

For these reasons, we agree with the Court of Appeal's conclusion (although not with all of its reasoning) that, on this record, when defendants disaffiliated from the Episcopal Church, the local church property reverted to the general church.

Now, then, just what do these changes accomplish? First, note that the Court has definitively backed off from its pretense to have decided the merits of the case; instead, it has only "addressed" them---or, in the other instance, it has "analyzed" the merits instead of "resolving" them. This is a huge relief to all concerned. (I doubt that even ECUSA's attorneys would have wanted to defend the position that it was entitled to a final judgment just by filing its complaint, without ever having to prove its case.) Second, the Court's "addressing" of the merits applies only to the merits as shown "on this record"---i.e., on the case in the posture presented to it, before the defendants have had a chance to answer the complaints.

"On this record", however, has a further technical meaning in this case, which attorneys will appreciate. For in the case of the complaint brought by ECUSA, the trial court granted the defendant parish's demurrer to it without leave to amend. (A "demurrer" to a complaint is just the same as saying: "So what if everything you say in your complaint were true? You still haven't stated a case on which the court can grant the relief for which you are asking [in this case, the transfer of the parish's property to the Diocese and to ECUSA]. And when a court "sustains", i.e., upholds, the defendant's demurrer "without leave to amend", it means that nothing the plaintiff could plead in his complaint would change the result---it would still not state a claim upon which relief could be granted. The case is then over, without the defendant ever having had to answer, because the plaintiff's case is so weak that it could not succeed even if everything the complaint says---or could conceivably say under the circumstances---were true.)

Thus in reversing the dismissal of ECUSA's complaint, the judgment of the Supreme Court has the effect of reinstating the complaint, and requiring defendants to answer it (they cannot demur to it any more). The Court has held, in effect, that if everything the Church alleges were true, then it would be entitled to the property of St. James's, Newport Beach.

It is in this sense of the matter that I read the addition of the word "found" twice to the paragraph on page 478. By finding in favor of the local church on its demurrer, the trial court held that ECUSA had failed to state a claim for the property, and by reversing that decision, the appellate court "found" the opposite. The word is potentially confusing, however---and do not think that ECUSA's attorneys will shy from exploiting this aspect---because a "finding" by a court is usually on a matter of disputed fact. When a court rules on a disputed point of law, as all three levels of the system did here, the word normally used is that it "concluded" that the law was thus and so. (Courts do not like to create the impression that they "find", or discover, the law; instead, they reach a conclusion as to what the law is---or should be---after carefully considering all the applicable rules and precedents.)

Things are now, in short, back to normal. A demurrer to ECUSA's complaint was sustained by the trial court, reversed by the appellate court, and the reversal was affirmed by the Supreme Court. The case will now go forward on ECUSA's complaint (and on the Diocese's, as well). If ECUSA proves at trial that everything it alleged is true, then it can use what the Supreme Court said on the merits "on this record" to ask for judgment in its favor. But if the facts prove to be otherwise at trial than what ECUSA alleges, it could prove to be a whole new ball game.

It is way too early to tell. Certainly it is premature to crow about "losing again in court".

Episcopal Dioceses and Parishes Face Worst Financial Crisis since Depression - Part III

News Analysis

By David W. Virtue
www.virtueonline.org
2/24/2009

Investments and collection plates are getting lighter at Episcopal Churches across the U.S. There is little evidence that the trend of declining attendance and shrinking revenues will reverse in these tough economic times.

The effects of the economic downturn are reaching into the collection plates and endowment funds of America's Episcopal churches at alarming levels. Bishops and parish priests are watching with horror as donations dwindle and investments decline. Unemployment is beginning to hit the collection plate hard. Usually when times are tough, more people go to church. That does not seem to be happening in the Episcopal Church. Churches that depend on the collection plate for the majority of their income are also worried about the effect of declining employment rates on their weekly plates.

The bishop of the Diocese of East Carolina, Clifton Daniel III, said in his annual convention address that he is looking to close some parishes. "As one effect of the economic recession, giving from parish to diocese has suffered somewhat, and our Executive Council and Finance Committee have made the difficult adjustments to our budget. Further adjustments and changes in staffing configuration may be needed as well." The bishop said he had accepted the recommendation of the Finance Committee to delay filling the position of Canon Missioner for at least six months.

The bishop then said that a handful of parishes appear to have reached or are nearing the end of their effective congregational life and mission. He cited All Saints, Fairfield, and St. Barnabas, Snow Hill, for closing, as neither has had an active congregation for many years. Other churches will undoubtedly fold in the coming months and years. The bishop cited stewardship of resources, as well as matters of insurance and liability. The bishop said he wanted each congregation to assess its strength, vitality and general health, clearly code that if you can't pay your assessment, watch for the axe to fall.

Across the nation the news is the same.

The Episcopal Diocese of Chicago reported that the members of St. Hilary's Episcopal Church in Prospect Heights chose to end their ministry in the face of financial constraints and difficulty in increasing membership enough to support ordained leadership and meet the expense of program and building. With the assistance of The Rev. Gina Volpe, the members are in discernment on their options for continuing their witness collectively or individually with neighboring Episcopal congregations. Bishop Jeffrey Lee, Elgin Dean, and The Very Rev. Robert Dekker, met with the members to discuss their decision and their opportunities to share in the life and ministry of the deanery and larger diocesan community. Their final service to celebrate 45 years as a diocesan congregation was held on Sunday, February 15.

The Diocese of Newark, the former ecclesiastical home of Bishop Jack Spong, reported that 60% of its congregations were reducing their pledge for 2009. Bishop Mark Beckwith said that while there were few changes in percentages pledged for 2009, the pledge dollars were significant. Approximately $140,000 less in dollars was pledged this year, he said. "Nearly 60% of the pledges fell between the 5% to 10% range." Many have not yet paid their 2008 pledges. Richard Graham, diocesan treasurer, said the year was ending with a $590,000 deficit. "The correlation between a shortfall in income and the deficit was clear. Income was $550,000 below projections. Also, some of this deficit will be covered by uncollected 2008 income received in 2009. Pledge income received for the month was $32,000 (15%) over budget, but did not clear the other past due receivables. Year to date pledge income was currently over $380,000 (17%) below budget. In addition approximately $100, 000 remained uncollected from 2007 and will likely be uncollectible over the near term, if at all."

At its annual convention, the bishop of the Diocese of Tennessee, The Rt. Rev. John C. Bauerschmidt told his people that the diocese is the co-borrower or guarantor for a number of significant bank loans made to parishes, intended to help them grow and expand the ministry of the Diocese as a whole. "This is appropriate work for the Diocese, but it has had some consequences. Our indebtedness now is significant and serious in relation to our ability through unrestricted assets to meet those commitments. The same economic challenges that have had an impact on our annual budget have also had an impact here. As a Diocese, we are going to have to dig deep within the resources that our common life affords in order to continue to move forward. There are no quick fixes here, and we will need to be in this for the long haul."

From the parish of St. Anne's in the Diocese of Fond Du Lac, Wisconsin, comes this word. "This year, we are facing a large deficit and our own financial crisis. We have a budgeted sixty thousand dollar deficit and we currently do not know where the funds will come from to cover it. There are two primary reasons for the large deficit presented in the budget. First, our expected revenue is down by $33,000 from the 2008 budget, and the second, there is no provision for a draw from the endowment. The recent market adjustment has reduced the value of the endowment to a point where we are not able to draw any funds in 2009."

From Trinity Cathedral, Cleveland, the home of The Very Rev. Tracey Lind, a lesbian priest comes this, "In response to the economy, the Cathedral has trimmed our operating budget by almost five percent ($100,000) and reduced our endowment draw by almost one percent ($170,000). Without a generous 3 1⁄2% increase in congregational pledge income, we would have had to cut even more. Like so many, we are doing more with less in 2009."

The Rev. Daniel C. Gunn, rector of St. Stephen's, the pro-cathedral in Wilkes Barre in the Diocese of Bethlehem, says his budget for 2009 will be tight. "Expenses are beyond where we would like it to be in spite of our efforts to reduce them by 20% over the past three years. We still depend too heavily on the endowment, and not enough on contributions. Our leadership has worked diligently to reduce expenses, but the reality is that we are down to bare minimum. We have budgeted for nothing but staff for the most part. Put plainly, to reduce the budget any further means that staff cuts would be necessary. Reducing our staff reduces our ability to offer the very ministries that we appreciate about St. Stephen's ministries I believe will become more important as the difficulties in our society likely worsen. We are exploring opportunities to lease part of the parish house, but that has not materialized yet. There is no substitute for simply asking you to help us more financially than you have in years past." From St. John the Evangelist in Spokane, Washington, comes word that economic conditions are having an effect on the budget of that cathedral. "In order to balance the 2009 budget, I have recommended to Chapter across the board cuts in both staff pay and benefits - starting with the dean - and we are taking a number of other measures to make sure that every single dollar goes as far as it can," proclaimed The Rt. Rev. James E. Waggoner, Jr., Bishop of the Diocese of Spokane.

In the tony suburb of Brookline, Mass., St. Paul's Episcopal Church is feeling the pain. The Vestry wrote to say that due to the impact the financial downturn is having on the parish, plans for renovating the parish house will be scaled back. They also noted that they would be looking for ways to cut operating expenses. The position of Parish Administrator has been eliminated.

The rector of St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Clarence, New York, in the Episcopal Diocese of Western New York, came right out and said, "What is the future of St. Paul's? I see two choices at this crossroads. We can stay on our current path and let the parish slowly slide down a slippery slope. Then, like so many other Episcopal parishes in Western New York, we will be a church of chronic scarcity, hanging on with a part-time priest or perhaps a supply priest for a service on Sunday, with a small committed core of workers Although a large majority of people increased their pledge this year, the number of pledge units is down. A deficit budget was approved last year, which is something we do not want to do this year. Therefore, at present income levels, it will likely be necessary to offer a salary compensation package for the new rector that may be considered by the Diocese to place St. Paul's into Group Two."

Fr. Paul Bresnahan of St. Peter's in Salem, Mass., wrote that his congregation had an endowment worth around half a million dollars at the beginning of the year. "We had to take around $50,000 to pay for mandated building improvements according to city codes, and then we had a significant shortfall in weekly income. In addition, stock market reversals have taken yet another toll on the value of our investment...we don't even know how much yet...but I wouldn't be surprised if we've lost yet another $50,000 in market value from our endowment. That means our portfolio is now worth something in the $300,000 range."

The priest noted that week after week, he would deposit anywhere from $800--$1300...and week after week, the church would be spending $1600-$1800. "You can see that we are hemorrhaging rather significantly from the life blood of our financial well being. What is going on is that we are depleting our resources at a rate that puts the continuing existence of St. Peter's at risk. It is time to say so right out loud. At the rate we are going, we will not be able to continue at our present rate...we will have to cut the priest out of the budget within a year or two...and then perhaps at best have a supply priest. That is not what I would like to see happen."

Christ Church in New Brunswick, NJ, reported that they will not have an endowment left very soon. Said The Rev. Dr. Deborah Meister, "What is not healthy is the state of the parish finances. Income to date is $258,000 which is roughly what was budgeted. If trends continue, we will finish with a budget deficit of $279,000. This amount represents a draw against the Investment Account of about 15% of the last 3 years rolling average of the Investment Account (before the recent economic downturn). A 2009 budget assumes a pledge income of $250,000. It also includes a salary adjustment for all staff, but without increases for paid choristers. Even so the deficit next year will be $114000, less than this year."

The rector of Grace Episcopal Church in Norwood, Mass., told parishioners at their recent Annual Meeting that the church's financial challenges have not gone away. He bluntly told the congregation that the vestry had two major ideas: growing the parish by inviting people "not like us" to Grace Church, or joining forces with another parish in a cluster or shared ministry. The projected deficit budget of $50,000 for 2009, the largest ever, cannot be met. Now, the church must face going out of business or "juncturing" with another parish. He said there are two other Episcopal churches within three miles of Grace, and several others in the area that are experiencing similar struggles. The full time clergyperson would have to go and a part-time rotating priest with other parishes is the only way forward.

The Rev. De Freeman, Jr., vicar of Epiphany Church in Crestview, Florida, told his congregation that the budget was $90,000 when he first came and is now at $120,000. As it now stands, the current budget will lead to a deficit of $50,000 by the end of the fiscal year. If this happens, the Bishop (John Howard) will re-assign the vicar to another parish. Freeman gave the parish two plans of action. The first he called conservative, "We cut back on every possible part of the budget and hold back on our resources." This was declared defeatism and a recipe for disaster. The second he called aggressive, "We challenge the church and community and raise the money necessary and control cost and development."

St. Barnabas Episcopal Church in Florissant in the Diocese of Missouri faces a crisis. The church is $21,000 short in pledges and cannot find a new rector. The Vestry determined that it could not afford an interim priest and continued to use supply priests. The Church Deployment Officer, The Rev. Canon Dan Smith said that normally he would not recommend this particular plan of action, however, the church has been able to maintain a healthy Sunday attendance number and pledge receipts for 2008 are about 95% of the budgeted amount, which is better than most churches in the Diocese. Smith feels like the church is moving in a positive direction.

St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Auburn, California, acknowledged that while they had a balanced budget for 2009, they did so by eliminating the paid secretarial position and reducing the rector's salary and time by 10% with no COLA for any staff members. The budget will be reviewed at the end of each quarter in 2009.

St. Paul's in Duluth, Minnesota, faces serious retrenchment. Recently, the parish had 16 paid staff positions, not including nursery attendants. Today it has four full time equivalents. The Vestry approved staff changes that included eliminating the Assistant Priest as a paid position with The Rev. Margaret Thomas agreeing to serve as a regular supply priest, for emergencies and funerals when the rector is away. The Sunday Sexton position was also eliminated. The Secretary position was reduced to 20 hours per week. "We need to think and do things differently. I have no doubt God is calling us to a new thing. I do not know what it is," said The Rev. Bill Van Oss. This parish recently had John Shelby Spong speak to it.

Parishioners at St. Francis Episcopal Church in Indiana Springs, Alabama, got the bad news from The Rev. Neil Kaminski. He told them the Parish Administrator, who had been at the church for 11 years, had been let go after the position was eliminated. The decision to eliminate the position was driven by budget considerations, he said. The church has been drawing upon reserve funds and the hope was that the parish would grow enough in pledges in 2008 to absorb those added expenses in 2009. It never happened. "The last half of 2008 has also had an unfortunate impact on giving." He said the parish would look to hiring temporary help to keep the doors open during the week. The position of Director of Religious Education will continue through the end of May. When the school year ends, it will be revisited.

At St. James Episcopal Church in Bowie, MD, The Rev. Anne-Marie Jeffery told her dying congregation that the 2009 budget meant only one thing - explore merging with St. George's (a nearby parish), working at the same time on marketing and growth. "We face this challenge - the challenge of whether we grow, we merge with another congregation or we close," she told the parish. "What is God wanting me to do? What is God wanting us to do as a congregation? I don't know. I don't know the future of St. James church," she cried. "We may give away our spirit by closing. Maybe the energy of our people is needed desperately by God elsewhere."

St. David's in Austin, Texas, a wealthy congregation with a budgeted revenue, learned that contributions in 2009 were $1,562,000 vs. 2008 when budgeted revenue contributions were $1,760,884, a drop of 12.5%. Said the rector, David A. Boyd, "At this point, most ministry needs remain unfunded, and the lay staff has been forced to take across-the-board pay cuts. While we have been able to preserve all but one permanent position, the staff is severely limited in many areas that have yet to be funded. Your prayers are needed as we try to find solutions to the effects of this world-wide economic situation, and its effects on our programs."

St. Stephen's in Ridgefield, CT, issued their annual report with the treasurer announcing that the parish income for 2008 fell short of budget by $33,600, due primarily to a shortfall in total amounts pledged as well as the actual collection of amounts pledged. Total income for 2008 reflected a decline of about 4.4% over 2007. The drop in Outreach expense was due almost entirely to the reduction in the commitment (pledge) made to the Diocese ($90,000 was pledged, $45,000 was paid). He said the operating deficit for 2008 was $223,228.00. The collected pledge income was $485,000 for the year, compared with $551,170 for 2008, an overall drop of some 12%. Staff reductions are pending. He said the 2009 deficit will fully deplete the Operating Reserve by mid-year. "Without a major increase in pledge income, the parish will have to consider making additional, substantial cost reductions. Without a significant combination of increased pledge income and further expense reduction, the unrestricted endowment will ultimately be fully depleted, and a more drastic reconfiguration of St. Stephen's will be required."

St. Mary's Episcopal Church in Newton, Mass., is an example of a parish relying on endowments while ignoring economic reality. Pledge budget for 2009 declined from $261,000 in 2008 to $245,000 in 2009. The church ate into its endowment fund contribution and increased its pull down from $69,588 in 2008 to 73,176 in 2009. The endowment fund was worth $2.1million in Dec. 2007. By Dec. 2008, it was worth only $1.5million. The endowment balance dropped by $600,000 in a year. Despite that, they are increasing the amount they draw from it next year. The church said it could therefore maintain all its programs.

St. Nicholas's in the Diocese of Washington heard some good news and some sad news from its vestry. The good news is that the parish experienced exceptionally strong membership and financial growth in the latter half of 2008 - growth that, if present trends continue, would take them into the black sometime in the latter half of 2009. The bad news is that, as strong as the financial growth rate was, entering black ink in the latter half of 2009 would not be soon enough to maintain staff at its current level. The Vestry decided to fire the part-time assistant rector. The Vestry blamed dramatically increased fixed costs including carrying costs of $2,000 on a construction loan. The vestry noted that its operating reserves were also dwindling.

The Rt. Rev. Kenneth L. Price Jr., bishop suffragan of Southern Ohio, captured the situation well when he said, "There is not a week goes by that I do not hear how one or another of our congregations is being challenged by its economic situation. Giving is scaled back, income from endowments is down, resulting in some cases in reductions in staff, programs and outreach. I think there is a parallel between the situation in our nation and in our church. Yes, we are in hard times. Yes, this is a long-term problem without a quick fix. Yes, such a situation evokes a measure of fear. Yes, we all feel the pinch. We also must learn how to do more with less and benefit from sharing the resources we have."

Price said that in Dayton, the clergy are in conversation about pooling the talents of their ordained leadership as well as exploring how they might purchase supplies in bulk to benefit from an economy of scale. The clergy of the Hocking Valley deanery also are viewing their ministry differently as they seek to combine their talents so the congregations can be better served. Such has been the case in the East Central Ohio Area Ministry and the Northern Miami Valley Episcopal Cluster for several years. Now Good Shepherd in Clermont County is rediscovering how, by better utilizing the talents of all their members, they can be less dependent on paid, ordained leadership and share the ministry among all the baptized.

"As essential as clergy are to an apostolic and sacramental church, there also are high costs associated when every congregation has its own clergyperson. Although finances may be the initial reason congregations might seek to explore new ways of cooperation, that search can open the door to new and exciting ways of being the church in the 21st century.

"Our diocese has likewise eliminated one of its canons and duties are being redistributed. Diocesan Council is currently preparing the 2010 budget with the reality that there may be less money to work with. And yet at the same time we are excited about some new areas of ministry that will better enable us to be the church God is calling us to be in the 21st century and new ways of doing that ministry that will broaden the participation of us all."

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