(Via email–KSH)

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

To file under “we-should’ve-seen-that-coming”…

…(On September 1, 2022)..the Episcopal Church and The Episcopal Church in South Carolina filed a Petition for Reconsideration and Rehearing with the South Carolina Supreme Court asking the Court to reverse their ruling regarding the property rights of two parishes whose rights they had affirmed in their August 17 ruling.

Those parishes are: Old St Andrew’s, Charleston, and the Church of the Holy Cross, Stateburg.

Please join me in praying the Court will deny this final effort and, once and for all, put this case to rest.

Additionally, The Church of the Good Shepherd, Charleston, whose property rights the Court denied in their August 17 ruling, filed a Petition for Rehearing asking the Court to reconsider that ruling.

We’ll pray that the Court will reverse that earlier ruling and affirm the property rights of Good Shepherd.

With me, you are likely tired of the back-and-forth and wondering if this will ever end. It will. Someday, in the not too distant future, I trust these matters will be behind us, and we will move forward—whatever the outcome—into ministry without this distraction. Until then, we do well to heed St Paul’s advice to: “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, and be constant in prayer.” (Rom 12.12) Never losing sight of the fact that, “…you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” That truth can never change.

Blessings,

–The Rt Revd Chip Edgar is bishop of the Anglican Diocese of South Carolina

[Diocesan PR] Columbia, S.C. (August 17, 2022) – [Yesterday], the South Carolina Supreme Court granted petitions for rehearing filed by six of seven parishes of the Anglican Diocese of South Carolina.

“We are grateful and heartened that the property rights of six more parishes were affirmed by this ruling,” said the Rev. Canon Jim Lewis. “Today we rejoice with those who rejoice and mourn with those who mourn, but the balance is with rejoicing.” With today’s revised opinion, all property ownership questions are finally settled.

The six churches whose petitions were granted today are: the Church of the Holy Cross (Stateburg), the Church of the Holy Comforter (Sumter), St. Jude’s Church (Walterboro), Old St. Andrew’s (Charleston), St. Luke’s Church (Hilton Head) and Trinity Church (Myrtle Beach).

These six churches, along with 21 others, have now had their property rights affirmed by the Supreme Court. Today’s opinion followed the Court’s earlier April 20 ruling in determining if a parish had created a trust interest in its property in favor of The Episcopal Church (TEC) or its local Diocese (TECSC). Four of the parishes in today’s ruling were judged to have never created a trust, based on that earlier standard. Two more were judged to have created a revocable trust, which they subsequently and properly revoked.

The earlier April 20 ruling stated that 15 parish properties of the Anglican Diocese of South Carolina will also remain with the Anglican Diocese. They are: All Saints, Florence; Church of our Savior, John’s Island; Church of the Cross, Bluffton; Christ-St. Paul’s, Yonges Island; Epiphany, Eutawville; Redeemer, Orangeburg; Resurrection, Surfside/Myrtle Beach; St. Helena’s, Beaufort; St. Paul’s, Bennettsville; St. Paul’s, Summerville; St. Philip’s, Charleston; St. Luke & St. Paul, Charleston; St. Michael’s, Charleston; Trinity, Edisto; and Trinity, Pinopolis. Of the 36 parishes that were parties to this litigation, 28 have had their property rights upheld. All 36 will continue their parish ministries going forward, though some in new locations.

Only one additional parish, the Church of the Good Shepherd, Charleston was ruled today to have created a trust interest in their property on behalf of TEC and TECSC.

In addition to the Church of the Good Shepherd, the April 20 opinion called for transfer of the deeds to Christ Church, Mt. Pleasant; Holy Trinity, Charleston; St. Bartholomew’s, Hartsville; St. David’s, Cheraw; St. Matthew’s, Fort Motte; St. James, Charleston and St. John’s, Johns Island to the Episcopal Church and it’s local diocese, the Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina.

Conversations between the Anglican Diocese, its parishes and the Episcopal Diocese concerning these properties are ongoing. Anglican Diocese Bishop Charles F. Edgar has met with Bishop Ruth Woodliff-Stanley, the leader of the Episcopal Diocese several times to reach resolution on the remaining questions.

The #SouthCarolina Supreme Court Approves Petition for Rehearing Sought by Six Parishes of the #Anglican Diocese of South Carolina https://t.co/bR4pRfZoAr #parishministry #law #religion #history TK pic.twitter.com/3uNpG0jYqQ

— Kendall Harmon (@KendallHarmon6) August 18, 2022

St. David’s, Cheraw, Holds First Service in New Worship Space

St. David’s, Cheraw, held their first eucharistic service in their new worship space (Wesley United Methodist Church) this past Sunday. Bishop Lawrence gave an uplifting sermon on faith and hope. “It was such a celebration of faithful Christians!” says Rector, Jason Varnadore. “We were joined in person by others in the diocese and in prayer by others in the state, country and world.”

The above photo was taken in the new worship space on July 31 following St. David’s final service in the historic building. After that service they held a covered dish supper—and then marched through town to their new place of worship! “We sat in the sanctuary, prayed, then broke out in the Doxology,” said Varnadore.

Read it all.

The Latest Edition of the #Anglican Diocese of #SouthCarolina Enewsletter https://t.co/3d0ADfV4Ag #anglican #parishministry #lowcountrylife (Saint David's, Cheraw) pic.twitter.com/trIS6F95ht

— Kendall Harmon (@KendallHarmon6) August 11, 2022

Today's pick: Raphael: The Conversion of the Proconsul https://t.co/sYXevNe6Pd pic.twitter.com/v8bePayipF

— Art and the Bible (@artbible) September 2, 2020

Revell Called as Rector of Christ the King Grace Church

The Rev. Roger L. Revell has joyfully accepted a call to serve as the next Rector of Christ the King Grace Church, Pawleys Island. With this appointment, Roger will be returning to his home state of South Carolina, having been born and raised in Rock Hill. Roger is married to Cindy, who is French, and they have two children: Audrey (age 4) and Hugo (age 2). Cindy has worked in the international development and relief sector for upwards of 15 years and is a trained Stephens Minister. After several years of work in electoral politics, followed by a stint in international business, Roger discerned a call to ordained ministry, which was confirmed by the church. He took his Holy Orders as an Anglican deacon and then priest in Canada and has served as a congregational pastor, church planter, and chaplain… Roger’s first Sunday as the Rector will be October 2, 2022.

Read it all.

The Latest Edition of the #Anglican Diocese of #SouthCarolina Enewsletter https://t.co/WEg8bjdYaX #parishministry #pawleysisland #clergytransitions pic.twitter.com/a8jY9JgV0K

— Kendall Harmon (@KendallHarmon6) July 28, 2022

You may also find more there.

#SaintOfTheDay: #Saint #Barnabas and his close of associate, Saint #Paul, were charismatic leaders in #Antioch where they had enormous success. Even though Barnabas was not one of the 12, he is the one who introduced Paul to Peter. pic.twitter.com/rDS1wk5C3t

— SrStFrancisHolyCross (@gbfranciscans) June 11, 2022

COVID-19 case levels are really high right now, although it is difficult to quantify because of the lack of test reporting and tracking, said Dr. Helmut Albrecht, medical director of the Center of Infectious Diseases Research and Policy for Prisma Health and the University of South Carolina. There are 50 hospitalized with COVID in the Prisma system.

“We should take this seriously again,” he said, advising people to once again mask up in public.

Those who have not gotten a second COVID-19 booster in the last six months and are age 50 and over should get one, he said. Not taking precautions now may mean “eventually your luck will run out with this,” Albrecht said.

Read it all.

The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control reported nearly 13,800 new COVID-19 cases and 13 new deaths related to the virus from July 10-16.https://t.co/dbfQnzlkWE

— The Post and Courier (@postandcourier) July 19, 2022

Some of South Carolina’s largest school districts are investing hundreds of thousands of dollars in advanced security technology with little evidence that it will actually keep students safer.

The districts are increasing security measures after the nation’s most recent mass school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, on May 24 shook the country. School shootings are on the rise, but experts warn that knee-jerk security increases don’t effectively protect schools.

Jason Nance, associate dean for research at the University of Florida’s law school, noted that barriers like metal detectors are tangible objects politicians and school district authorities can point to when they want to prove to the public that their schools are secure.

Yet there aren’t strong findings to show metal detectors better protect students…..

Read it all.

Several of South Carolina's largest school districts are putting hundreds of thousands of dollars in new school security technology with little evidence it will actually make schools safer. https://t.co/Vvugr4WkeZ

— Post and Courier Greenville (@PCGreenville) July 17, 2022

Pray for St. John’s, John’s Island This Sunday

We’re asking all our churches to include St. John’s in their “Prayers of the People” this Sunday. July 17 is their first Sunday meeting at Haut Gap Middle School.

A standing room only crowd filled St. John’s Walton Hall for their July 10 service, the final one held on the historic campus and the day they said farewell to their beloved rector the Rev. Dr. Greg Snyder (who had served the parish for 20 years) and his wife, Beth. Fr. Greg preached, acknowledging his own grief, admitting “I don’t like this,” and encouraging those present to admit their feelings, “When you stand before a loving God be honest about how you feel.” He didn’t stay in that posture though and told them, “When God’s people have been willing to sacrifice, great things happen… on the other side of this you are going to see marvelous things.” Listen to the sermon. View a video and photo album.

Read it all.

In Aug, The Rev. Dr. Greg Snyder, Rector, St. John’s, Johns Island & his wife, Beth Snyder, Assistant to the Bishop & Event Coordinator for the Diocese, will be moving to Knoxville, TN, where Greg has accepted a position at the University of TN. They will be sorely missed! #ADOSC pic.twitter.com/RZVVTfflSY

— Anglican Diocese of SC (@anglican_sc) June 8, 2022

The Holy City is once again topping a travel list.

On Tuesday, Travel + Leisure announced that Charleston had taken the top spot on its “Top U.S. Cities” list as part of its World’s Best Awards 2022.

According to Holy City Sinner, this is the 10th consecutive year Charleston has been listed as number one.

“There’s a reason people keep going back to Charleston: the city expresses the perfect balance of Southern charm, knockout food and drinks, and walkability. Many readers also found the city’s history to be a draw. Others appreciated the simple pleasures of strolling the side streets of downtown,” the publication wrote of The Holy City.

Read it all.

On Tuesday, @TravelLeisure announced that Charleston had once again taken the top spot on its "Top U.S. Cities" list as part of its World’s Best Awards 2022:https://t.co/YgM11x2RXl#chsnews

— ABC News 4 (@ABCNews4) July 12, 2022

South Carolina’s automakers are building cars as fast as possible, but computer chip shortages and other supply chain issues have limited the number of vehicles making their way to U.S. dealerships and, ultimately, buyers’ driveways.

Volvo Cars, which builds the S60 sedan at its $1.2 billion manufacturing campus in Ridgeville, said it sold 8,434 cars to U.S. customers in June — a 31.2 percent decline in sales from last year. Sales are down 20.7 percent during the first half of 2022.

“Demand for our cars remains strong but inventory challenges continue,” Anders Gustafsson, president and CEO of Volvo Cars USA, said in a written statement.

Read it all.

South Carolina’s automakers are building cars as fast as possible, but computer chip shortages and other supply chain issues have limited the number of vehicles making their way to U.S. dealerships and, ultimately, buyers’ driveways. https://t.co/UZwxLzUeOW

— The Post and Courier (@postandcourier) July 6, 2022

Shelton Called as next Rector of St. John’s, Johns Island

The Rev. Jeremy Shelton has accepted a call to serve as the next Rector of St. John’s Parish Church, Johns Island. In a message to the parish Shelton wrote, “Serving here the last four years has been a tremendous blessing. Serving with Fr. Gregory Snyder has been the best learning experience of my life. Learning from and pastoring the people of St. John’s has truly been God’s calling on my life and our family. …God has called us to here, at this point in time, for His greater purposes. I am certain that God has great things in store for Johns Island. My first Sunday as rector will be July 17, 2022. This will also be the first worship service of St. John’s Parish Church to be held at Haut Gap Middle School. I can’t think of a better way to begin this ministry and life as rector.”

Read it all.

The Latest Edition of the #Anglican Diocese of #SouthCarolina Enewsletter https://t.co/cuLjxQzze5 [New Rector Of Saint John's, Johns Island SC Jeremy Shelton and his family] #religion #parishministry #lowcountrylife #media pic.twitter.com/f533mclFbw

— Kendall Harmon (@KendallHarmon6) June 30, 2022

Christina Cody has a tireless, we-can-make-it-work attitude.

No matter the problem, she’s the kind of person who will offer up ideas one after another until she finds one that works.

Cody is a health and wellness specialist for Cherokee County Schools, a small, rural school district in the northwestern part of South Carolina. Over the past few years, she has been confronted with the growing youth mental health crisis at every turn. The reports from her colleagues filled her with worry. They would despair week after week as more students threatened to hurt themselves or others.

Some students were stabbing themselves with pencils or scissors. Others tore apart pencil sharpeners to get the blades and cut themselves. When the last school year started, there were seven mental health therapist positions to serve the district’s 8,000 students. None were filled. Without them, educators did the best they could to help in a job they weren’t trained to do.

Students’ mental health needs were increasing well before the COVID-19 pandemic began. The needs have only grown since. More than a third of high school students nationally experienced poor mental health during the pandemic, with half feeling persistently sad or hopeless, according to a Centers for Disease Control Disease Control and Prevention study. In South Carolina, children’s emergency room visits for mental health needs are up nearly a third since March 2020, state officials have said. Suicide attempts also increased, particularly among teenage girls.

“That’s just a lot of pressure,” Cody said. “You can’t lose a kid. You can’t. It’s not an option.”

Read it all.

South Carolina schools were some of the first in the nation to put mental health therapists in schools. More than two decades later, they’re seen as critical positions — but less than half of all schools in the state have one.https://t.co/lShv12rGaD

— The Post and Courier (@postandcourier) June 29, 2022

Friends,

As most of you are aware, the South Carolina Supreme Court released its final ruling in our case on April 20 this year. Shortly thereafter, eight of our congregations filed a petition for rehearing, each providing additional legal considerations for the court suggesting the standard adopted by the Court did not, in fact, create a trust interest in their property. Of those eight, there are still seven petitions being given active consideration by the Court.

Last week, legal counsel for the Episcopal Church (TEC) filed their Court directed return, detailing their legal arguments for why the remaining petitions should not be granted. Monday, legal counsel for the parishes in our Diocese filed their reply, providing counter arguments to those in the TEC return last week. Those filings can be found HERE and HERE.

To simplify somewhat, the ruling of the Court is that if a congregation acceded to the constitution and canons of TEC after 1979, it created a trust interest in the property in favor of TEC and its local Diocese. The arguments of the petitioning parishes, supported by yesterday’s reply, addresses two essential issues. Based on the Court’s holdings in April, to create a trust requires present action and present intent. Because the parishes of Holy Comforter, St. Jude’s, St. Luke’s and Trinity Church added their accession clauses long before the adoption of the Dennis Canon in 1979, those actions should not represent present action or intent to create a trust.

The other issue identified for Good Shepherd, Holy Cross and Old St. Andrew’s is that the documents referenced by the Court that created the alleged trust were adopted after January 2006. By state statute 62-7-602(a), trusts created after this date are revocable, unless there is clearly expressed intent at that time they should not be. Arguments provided in the petitions and Monday’s reply demonstrate there was no such intent at the time and these parishes clearly acted with intent to revoke any such interest.

Based on these arguments, it is our hope that these remaining seven parishes will be judged by the Court to have retained unencumbered ownership of their property. The outcome is now fully in the hands of the South Carolina Supreme Court. Please keep the Court, its Justices and staff in your prayers, that justice might be done, and swiftly.

In Christ’s service,

–The Rev. Canon Jim Lewis is Canon to the Ordinary in the Anglican Diocese of South Carolina

An #Anglican Diocese of #SouthCarolina Legal Update for today https://t.co/IzWszSHlj8 #religion #history #parishministry #trustlaw 'The other issue identified is that the documents referenced by the Court that created the alleged trust were adopted after January 2006….' pic.twitter.com/DIKfIFxUk5

— Kendall Harmon (@KendallHarmon6) June 29, 2022

You may also find more there.

Today's pick: Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn: The Stoning of St Stephen https://t.co/SE7Dhp9CN4 pic.twitter.com/UVV4CJLZiP

— Art and the Bible (@artbible) November 21, 2019

From here:

A Letter from our Sr. Warden
Regarding the New Rector

Sunday, June 19, 2022

Brothers and Sisters of St John’s Parish Church,
On May 3, 2022, Father Greg Snyder announced to the Wardens of St John’s that he would be leaving his position as Rector, that God had called him to a new ministry, a ministry which God has been preparing him for nearly 5 years. A ministry in the academy to young scientists and their professors. As Senior Warden, it was my responsibility to consult with the Bishop to determine what our options were going forward. Bishop Edgar explained the search process to me, that the Vestry should form a nominating committee that would prepare a parish profile, identify and screen candidates, interview them and present their recommendation to the Vestry for vote. Bishop Edgar also informed me that, given all else going on, if the Vestry chose to, we could vote to accept our associate Rector as our next Rector, and the process would be completed. After considerable thought and prayer, I chose not to pursue this option, as I felt we needed to be sure of who we are as a parish, and who we wanted as our next Rector. I instructed the Vestry to appoint a nominating committee, one that the Vestry voted should be comprised of members of the Vestry, as was recommended by Fr Greg and confirmed by Bp Edgar. The appointed nominating committee was made up of five members: Lindy Reynolds, Ann Edenfield, Todd Young, Jane Vaughan, and Jay Withington. As Senior Warden, I served as an ex-officio
member of the nominating committee.

The Nominating Committee identified five potential candidates to interview as the next Rector of St John’s. After much prayer and consideration, the committee voted unanimously to interview only one. Using input from several members of the parish, some of whom were not members of the Vestry, the nominating committee provided the interviewee with the parish profile, as well as the position description for Rector of St John’s Parish Church and spent the next two weeks in prayer and consideration over the process. The nominating committee conducted its final interview on Tuesday, June 14th, and presented their recommendation to me.

On Thursday, June 16th I brought the recommendation to the entire Vestry for a vote. The vote was unanimous, in favor of the recommended candidate. I then contacted Bp Edgar and informed him that the Vestry had made the decision for the next Rector of St John’s Parish Church. We discussed the decision, and he concurred with our decision. Bp Edgar also instructed me to make this announcement as soon as practical, that continuity of leadership was crucial in these days.

Therefore, it gives me great pleasure to announce that the Wardens and Vestry of St John’s Parish Church has voted unanimously to call Father Jeremy Shelton as our next Rector, and that after discussion on Friday, June 17, Father Jeremy has accepted the call. Fr Jeremy will be conducting his first service as Rector of St John’s Parish Church on Sunday, July 17 at Haut Gap Middle School, and I invite all of you to join us in worship as we move forward into this next chapter of the life of this Parish.

In Christ,

Ben Dixon
Senior Warden, St John’s Parish Church

Please read all the additional documents at the link above

Join us this Sunday, June 19, as we pray for the work and ministry of St. John's, Johns Island, and their clergy: The Rev. Greg Snyder and The Rev. Jeremy Shelton. View the full prayer calendar at https://t.co/JHew5ZdquG #PrayForChurches #ADOSC pic.twitter.com/tBvgipmSEQ

— Anglican Diocese of SC (@anglican_sc) June 17, 2022

The Senate’s bipartisan gun safety bill, which has the backing of South Carolina’s senior Republican U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, includes a pair of provisions that would address two issues of tremendous importance in the Palmetto State:

1. Closing the so-called “Charleston loophole” that allowed a young white supremacist to buy a gun on a technicality before going on a hate-fueled rampage inside a downtown Charleston church in 2015, and

2. Expanding the definition that determines which domestic abusers are barred from getting guns, an issue of significance in a state that ranks sixth-worst in the nation for women killed by men.

Graham was one of 14 Republicans, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who joined all 48 Democrats and two independents in advancing the bill June 21 for debate.

Read it all.

The Senate's bipartisan gun safety bill, which has the backing of Sen. Lindsey Graham, includes a pair of provisions that would address two issues of tremendous importance in the Palmetto State: the Charleston loophole and the boyfriend loophole.https://t.co/3t3OgFmst4

— The Post and Courier (@postandcourier) June 23, 2022

He and his wife had just welcomed a new baby boy. Life was supposed to be good, he thought.

“I found myself, in the moments that should’ve been the most joy-filled moments in my life, just feeling absent or despondent,” Hogan said.

Hogan is part of an estimated 10-30 percent of patients with major depression who don’t respond to typical antidepressant medications like Zoloft or Prozac.

But since starting a rather new therapy in 2020, deep transcranial magnetic stimulation, he’s felt better than he ever has.

Read it all.

Pioneered by two researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina, deep TMS therapy is a depression treatment that uses magnetic waves to target nerve cells in the brain to improve depression symptoms. https://t.co/wV6BP8fZMj

— The Post and Courier (@postandcourier) June 21, 2022

It doesn’t take long before the first embrace. And then Polly Sheppard greets another of the students, then another.

This group of young evangelicals, affiliated with the parachurch ministry Cru, is here at Emanuel AME Church to learn more about the 2015 mass shooting, visit the sanctuary and offer their prayers. They have just watched Brian Tetsuro Ivie’s documentary “Emanuel,” and they recognize Sheppard, who is visiting the church grounds, where a memorial soon will be erected.

The exchange between this survivor of the attack and the Cru crew is polite, warm, engaging.

Because that’s how the magnanimous Sheppard operates. Mostly, she sees the good in people. She’s ready with a smile….

Read it all.

Local paper front page #motheremanuel #motheremanuelchurchmassacre #resilience #history #violence #motheremanuel9 #religion #race #southcarolina #charlestonsc #lowcountrylife pic.twitter.com/llHbDaIZBo

— Kendall Harmon (@KendallHarmon6) June 17, 2022

Saint James Welcomes Toby Larson as Rector

The Rev. Toby Larson was welcomed by Saint James Church, James Island, on Sunday, June 12, as their new rector. Toby most recently served as Director of Celebration International in Fredericksburg, VA. He received his B.A. from Gonzaga University and his Th.M. in Biblical Theology and M.Div. from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.

Before his ministry at Celebration International, Toby worked in China, as a Foreign Expert in China’s Ministry of Television, Radio, and Film. After his time in China, he planted two congregations in Virginia and led evangelistic missions to central and east Asia.

Toby said, “‘Love God, Love Life’ is our family motto, and we’re excited to live that out at Saint James.” He and his wife Cynthia have five children the youngest of whom will live with them on James Island.

Read it all.

The Latest Edition of the #Anglican Diocese of #SouthCarolina Enewsletter https://t.co/bMBr9HxLVI [Toby Larson, new rector of Saint James] #parishministry #media #lowcountrylife #religion #faith pic.twitter.com/azlXYTmzEU

— Kendall Harmon (@KendallHarmon6) June 15, 2022