Christian Apologetics Society: 2009 Episcopal Year of Litigation

Scripture Memorization

Isaiah 55:11
So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it

Gen 1:3
Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light

Matthew 26:26
And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body."

Malachi 1:11
My name will be great among the nations, from the rising to the setting of the sun. In every place incense and pure offerings will be brought to my name, because my name will be great among the nations," says the LORD Almighty.

John 20:23
If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.

James 5:16
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

James 2:14
What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?

Luke 20:38
For He is not the God of the dead but of the living, for all live to Him.

Rev 21:27
Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.

1 Cor 3:15
If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

Psalm 51:5
Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me.

John 3:5
Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

Titus 3:5
Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

1 Timothy 3:15
but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

Acts 22:16
And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.

2009 Episcopal Year of Litigation

David Virtue of the Anglican blog VirtueOnline coined the title of our post. In one of his recent Viewpoints, which are summaries of the previous weeks Anglican events, David writes:

"2009 promises to be the Episcopal Year of Litigation with four dioceses feeling the wrath of Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori and her attorney David Booth Beers, not to mention smaller legal battles waging inside dioceses like Connecticut, Colorado, Pennsylvania to name only a few."

In December 2008, the national Episcopal leadership lost a major court decision in Virginia regarding the ownership of disputed property. The national Episcopal leadership has pledged to appeal the ruling.

David further notes:

"Last year, four retired bishops asked the Presiding Bishop where the money was coming from and never got an answer. Why make the Diocese of Dallas think they will get one? The only way to get this information is to bring a civil action to compel disclosure.

Meantime, the Presiding Bishop, fearful perhaps that she might not be able to spring money loose from the church's endowments, wrote a letter to members of the ST. IVES GUILD of the Diocese of New York asking for funds 'to litigate and defend and protect Church property against those who wish to secure the property on behalf of a foreign province.'"

For those unfamiliar with the ongoing schism among American Anglicans, David's post is a good summary of what has happened and is scheduled to take place during the coming year. Go read.

John 13:34-35

UPDATE

We wrote this post before Christmas and scheduled it for New Year's Day. Amazingly, today we read in that another Episcopal parish has left the Episcopal Church. Milwaukee Bishop Steven A. Miller has reiterated the "party line" that members can leave a parish, but parishes can't leave the diocese. Uh,yeh. Expect litigation by the diocese and national church to commence in Spring 2009. It seems the congregation owns the land and rectory but is uncertain about the church. I expect the diocese to claim it owns everything.

Looks like Kate Schori will go down in history as the Primate holding the hot potato or lacking a chair when the music stops.

Related Posts:
Episcopal Church Decline Continues
The Shrinking Church of England

Source: Viewpoints : Skeleton Dioceses Reconstitute...PB Pleads for Funds to Sue Dioceses

Labels: Anglican, Episcopal