An Episcopal priest at odds with church leaders over many of their views, including on homosexuality, is breaking from the ranks by retiring Sept. 30 to start a new congregation, Christ Church Anglican.
The Rev. Gilbert Wilkes, rector of Christ and the Epiphany Episcopal Church in East Haven, said Saturday his new congregation will meet for the first time Oct. 14 with services at 8:30 a.m. and 10 a.m. at a middle school in East Haven. His church will be part of the Convocation of Anglicans in North America – or CANA – founded to offer disaffected Episcopalians a theologically friendly church structure.
“I hate to see him leave the Episcopal Church – he’s been an exemplary priest and pastor,” said Diocesan Bishop Andrew E. Smith. “We’ve always had a great relationship.”
Good for Father Wilkes! He’s starting out with two services? wow! What will TEC do if all the orthodox clergy who could retire, do decide to retire and they each start an Anglican Church? And start by offering two services on the first Sunday- he must know something about his flock.
heh. I like that he’s RETIRING first. What a shrewd move! Now he gets his pension, the bishop can’t inhibit him, and he’s essentially free to do whatever he likes with regards to starting an Anglican Communion parish. Smart!
libraryjim,
you’ve got it right on the pension biz, but +Smith could go ahead and waste paper and time on the inhibition biz. Retirement does not provide the benefit of emeritus lifetime licensing. You are right, though, if you meant to say “can’t effectively inhibit him”, since +Akinola (or +Minns) wouldn’t accept the inhibition in Fr. Wilkes’ case.
Rob Eaton+
First, just a reminder to all again that clergy vested in the Church Pension Fund will receive their earned pension benefits when they’re eligible to do so–that is to say, full pension benefits, as earned, when they’re 65–or when they are 55 and have at least 30 years credited service. It’s also possible to retire early and receive pension benefits at a reduced amount. While you cease earning additional credited service when you leave the ministry of the Episcopal Church, there is no sense in which you lose anything you’ve already earned.
There are some modest differences, though, in benefits available to clergy who retire from active service (relocation benefits, for example, continued–at a reduced death benefit–life insurance, etc.), so it probably would make good sense for clergy eligible to retire to retire in fact before leaving the Episcopal Church.
Hopefully the “not Episcopal Church” congregations that clergy are serving will be continuing, via 403B’s, disability insurances, and other instruments, to provide meaningful long-term compensation support for their clergy and clergy families.
I had, by the way, the privilege of meeting Gil Wilkes when his daughter was married in my parish a couple of years ago. An exceptionally nice guy.
#5, that’s just a snarky comment.
A person who, over several decades participated in an organization he fully agreed with and supported, can at the end of that time, conclude that the original origanizaiton he joined, has differentiated itself to such a degree, that he no longer wants to affiliate with it.
The funds paid in to support the retirement plan, are his.
By your reasoning, if you do not agree with US Government policy, you ought to stand with the courage of your convictions and refuse your social security payments.
and refuse any tax refunds, as well.
RE: “But if they are leaving the Episcopal Church because they believe it is sinful, should they not refuse to take money from the Episcopal Church in any form?
No — they should help the rest of us out who are still in TEC and take as much of their money as possible!
It’s their duty to their brothers and sisters still in TEC. ; > )
#10- None of us (least of all Sarah, if she is who I think she is) hate the Episcopal Church. We do not hate KJS or VGR or even bishop Spong, indeed we will do what we can to save them from themselves. Although I am not sure “hate” is really the correct word, you might be close to the truth if you said, we hate what has been done to the Church by those who have been using it to further their own personal and social agendas, and those who seek to take people away from the “faith once delivered.”
On the subject of the Pension Fund, it is NOT money belonging to the Episcopal Church. It is defered compensation given for lifetimes of service to that Church, and in some cases, a form of “insurance” for the families of deceased priests. They have already earned it, it has just not been paid yet.
TJ
TPaine, your feigned objection to receiving one’s pension from the Church Pension Fund is simply incoherent. The funds the retired cleric or lay church worker receives from his pension did not accrue from business activities of The Episcopal Church per se, but from those funds, stocks, bonds etc in which the Pension Fund invested.
The Pension Fund doesn’t grow because of the activities of The Episcopal Church, whether those activities be faithful to the catholic and apostolic faith or not. No funds are tainted by pluralistic universalism or sexual ethical revisionism. The pensioners are not receiving money “from the Episcopal Church”, but from their own pension fund accounts to which The Episcopal Church contributes only so long as the person is in active ministry in TEC. Your accusation of hypocrisy is simply ludicrous.
#11 You raise some good points. My silent prayer for the PB is that God will open her eyes and help her to realize what she is doing. The same thought for our Dioscesan Bishop.
We’ll keep them in our prayers.
TPaine,
So … now you are advocating impoverishing elderly priests by taking away their pensions if they don’t buy the current “group think?”
Wow. Just Wow.
Maryland Brian
Actually, TPaine raises a good question. Those who manage the pension fund are appointed by General Convention so it can not be argued adequately that the pension fund has nothing to do with the Episcopal Church or its leaders. Simply look at the picture of its governing board, especially the clerics, and count how many you would agree with on the subject of the day. The African bishops refused tainted money from the Episcopal Church that would no doubt help the ailing and infirmed and uneducated (yes, some money goes to help schools so spare me your anti-“uneducated African” nonsense). And yet, when money is coming to a priest via the Pension Fund, that’s somehow different? Ah, the argument goes, it’s because the pension is built on trusts, and stocks, and yada. So if the Diocese of New Hampshire sent Orombi some funds from the revenue of its stocks, bonds, and trusts, he would take it? I don’t think so.
TPaine,
NO … I think I pretty clearly understood the implication of what you wrote. Debating whether an elderly priest, having paid into a pension plan throughout his/her career should now somehow have thoughts about actually living on that pension is… just an amazing thing.
So not only will we sue you if you make the mistake of remaining with the Anglican Communion, we’ll even raise the specter of impoverishing you in your old age. Amazing … simply amazing…
Maryland Brian
I think that the money “came from” the parishioners who paid into the Fund on behalf of their priests. TEC is merely the custodiam, not the bestower of some unearned grace.