Diocesan officials also addressed a $4 million line of credit ”” of which $3.5 million has been spent to date ”” that it has taken out to fund a three-year lawsuit against 11 conservative churches that left the diocese in 2006 and early 2007. When market conditions approve, the diocese will sell parcels of unconsecrated land to help pay the $3.5 million.
The diocese seeks to win back millions of dollars of property taken by the departing churches, which left over liberal trends in the denomination. After the conservatives won the lawsuit at trial, the diocese appealed. The case will go before the Virginia Supreme Court this year.
The departure of the conservatives, which reduced the diocese’s membership by about 10,000, was referred to several times Saturday as causing much “pain” to the remaining Episcopalians. However, a last-minute amendment to form a “reconciliation task force” between Episcopalians and former Episcopalians failed for lack of time to consider it adequately.
[blockquote]The departure of the conservatives, which reduced the diocese’s membership by about 10,000, was referred to several times Saturday as causing much “pain” to the remaining Episcopalians. However, a last-minute amendment to form a “reconciliation task force” between Episcopalians and former Episcopalians failed for lack of time to consider it adequately.[/blockquote]
Oh, please. Why, so the Episcopalians can badger the ex-Episcopalians into believing in gay marriage so the Episcopalians can get the properties and money back? The gay thing is a horse that ran out of the barn a long time ago in Episcopalianism. (The town where I work has a partnered lesbian rector; the only reason I know or care is I’m the local paper’s religion editor.) Unless they’re going to recant on that, which they won’t, this talk of ‘reconciliation’ is rubbish. Besides, both sides commune all baptised Christians so the few conservative Episcopalian parishes and the ones under new management don’t need this condescension.
Most of the pain was caused by the Diocese of Virginia going back on its promise to work out an amicable solution.
Most pain in the diocese now is over the continued efforts to change the gospel.
Church of the Word
“When market conditions approve, the diocese will sell parcels of unconsecrated land to help pay the $3.5 million.” better hope that happens before you drown in interest payments…
They’ll be lucky if this happens anytime soon…….and MAYBE they’ll get 50 cents on the dollar.
Glendermott (#2),
I’m glad you chimed in. I have fond memories of my year spent serving Church of the Word before the current rector came.
It’s sad to see how far the Diocese of VA has lurched to the left since the most conservative churches left about three years ago.
So I guess they’ll use up the last half million dollars or so on the appeal to the state supreme court. If they lose, as I expect they will, then the diocese will have poured $4 million down the drain and have nothing to show for it. And by selling off their undeveloped land, they will be sacrificing their future growth prospects along with their throwing away their past.
Meanwhile, the ADV (Anglican District of VA) has set itself the ambitious goal of starting 150 new churches (or at least home fellowships) in the next five years.
David Handy+
Would that “unconsecrated land” perhaps be the empty buildings they would acquire in a successful lawsuit?
marney (#6),
Perhaps you meant that tongue in cheek. Such a wisecrack would be fitting, given the foolishness of wasting millions on those scandalous lawsuits. But just for the record, the unconsecrated land in question is empty, undeveloped land, kept in a landbank as sites for future new churches that will now never get started.
David Handy+
Thank you, Glendermott, #2, for pointing this out – it should not be forgotten.
It is sad and frustrating that Bp. Lee commissioned a group to reach an equitable, dare I say, “Christian” solution and was proceeding forward until KJS and her lawyer told him to scrap that and proceed with a scorched earth litigation policy. Under Lee’s plan, all would have sacrificed, but nothing like has been done under the Schori plan.
David, yes I was being sarcastic, but I also appreciate knowing the real story. Thanks!