The departure of the Anglican congregation by close of business May 15 from The Falls Church leaves Bill Deiss with mixed feelings.
In 1985 Deiss, parish administrator for the last 16 years, wed his second wife in the church. His son also married there. He watched the baptism of his grandchildren inside the church.
Now the Anglican congregation has been asked to leave the premises.
“It was always a possibility but we didn’t think it would actually happen,” Deiss said Friday. “It’s sad but exciting as well.”
A serious question to which I hve no idea–Does anybody know how Bp. Johnston is going to keep the church open? I am assuming they are going to dissipate the endowments to pay the light bill?
Be sure to read the fascinating comments, after the article, from the radically inclusive folks who support TEC. They are real eye openers. I guess these folks didn’t get the “follow the Golden Rule” message from our first gay president.
Regarding that “Golden Rule” –
One of our congregants died, during the period of litigation between our Anglican parish and TEC. The faux church and the TEC diocese refused to permit the late congregant’s family to bury him by his wife in the church graveyard.
David – I have a number of guesses. I expect them to spend down the 2.8 million in cash in the Falls Church loses its appeal. They will take the rectors home (average housein DC area is $500K), owned bythe church, and sell it as well. Then I bet they will rest out the large church for everybody and anybody to use. For graduations, conventions, meetings, assemblies etc (Another 200K). My hunch is that might give them 5-10 years of leeway. I am assuming that it costs 300-500KK a year to run the facility. Again, a lot of guesses.
Sophy0075 – Do you know of any online statements, news stories, etc that people like myself could point others too about your situation? I would like to send to others. Thanks
My wife and I met at TFC in the mid 90’s so we decided to attend last evening’s final service in the historic church. After years as Catholics it was really nice to sing all those great Protestant hymns in that beautiful place again. Indeed a bittersweet moment.
RE No. 3, I would be interested in more specifics. That sounds quite different than what we have experienced in Virginia. The rhetoric and attitudes from the Episcopalian side toward those who left have been very conciliatory. Generally, at least at the parish and diocesan levels, one finds a far softer way of talking about this when the exiled church is referring to the departing group than the other way around. During the Occupation, several Episcopalian members of The Falls Church were buried or married on the property. I imagine that will continue in reciprocation in the future for those who left to join the new denomination.
RE: “Generally, at least at the parish and diocesan levels, one finds a far softer way of talking about this . . . During the Occupation . . . ”
Tee hee.
Yes, we can all tell how the faux church found a “far softer way of talking about this.”
Hey Sophy — “faux church” is exactly the right term, and I plan to use it or something similar for the remainder of my life.
I asked about Sophy’s reference to burial being denied to a congregant whose spouse was buried in the Churchyard because it seemed very out of character with the tone and attitudes of other Dioceses and parishes that have gone through this. I would have thought such apparent nastiness would have excited considerable commentary at any number of sites that cover these things, but recall nothing about it. I hope that perhaps Sophy is mis-remembering this. If not, it is a shameful commentary on how coarse this dispute has become. Religious schisms, like civil wars, seem to excite more violence (rhetorical or real) than purely secular disputes.