Representatives from the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland met for mediation on Nov. 17 with representatives from Mount Calvary and the Joseph Richey House hospice. Joseph H. H. Kaplan, a retired judge, served as mediator. Though a settlement was not reached that day, significant progress was made and negotiations continued. The agreement states that the property currently occupied by Joseph Richey House, a hospice that started as a joint ministry by Mount Calvary and the All Saints Sisters of the Poor, will be permanently deeded to Joseph Richey House along with the parking lot shared by the congregation and Joseph Richey House. The Anglican Use Congregation will be deeded the church building, adjacent offices, and rectory, will keep all furnishings and personal property, and will retain the right to use the parking lot shared with Joseph Richey House. The Episcopal Diocese of Maryland will receive a monetary sum as part of the settlement, and will retain first right of refusal if the congregation vacates the property.
The Rev. Canon Scott Slater, on the bishops’ staff and part of the mediation team representing the Episcopal diocese, said, “This has been a thoughtful, prayerful, and respectful process by all three entities, and I am pleased that we have reached a solution that meets the needs of all three groups.”
The Bishop of Maryland is to be commended, though I wonder what would have happened if my old parish had proposed to join ACNA.
#1. It is good I suppose; the parish when through some very unpleasant times. The bishop is a weak leader and had a very pushy Standing Committtee who seemed to think they were the ones who ran the diocese. The parish didn’t get anywhere until there was a change at the last diocesan convention in the leadership of the Standing Committee. The people of this parish have paid dearly for their freedom. If you read Bp. Sutton’s letter on the diocesan’s web site it appears that he still doesn’t think the parish has left his church.
Well I imagine that the money comes from the endowment (which was sufficient to cover all parish expenses, even before any contribution by a member of the congregation). It’s the same kind of arrangement as that negotiated between Christ Church, Overland Park and the Diocese of Kansas. It seems like the best deal for all concerned.
If the story is correct about the negotiated settlement, it should be used as an example to TEC on how to settle property issues. The Diocese certainly had no use for empty church property and the parish had the financial resources to “buy” the property. Also, it avoids a rather horrible P.R. mess of the diocese taking away the Joseph Richey House Hospice property, “forcing the patients on the streets”. Lawsuit not needed!
ECUSA will sell to Rome, and sometimes Orthodoxy and we know that they have sold building to be mosques. But they won’t sell to the “competition”, those using the brand they claim to have exclusive USA rights to – Anglican.