Strategy of Episcopal Church Leaders revealed!

This essay captured by David Virtue gets to the heart of the strategy created by Episcopal Church leaders, including Presiding Bishop Katherine Jefferts Schori and her attorney David Booth Beers, when it comes to dealing with traditional Christian-Anglican Churches.

The question is will the Courts eventually intervene to protect freedom of religion issues that may be raised by parishioners in traditional dioceses? Or will the Court ignore the matter and allow the liberal perpetrators to steamroll traditional Anglicans?

The obvious point to make that is clearly being lost is that the overbearing position of Episcopal Leaders is simply anti-Christian. The fact is that even if they [Schori and her crowd] manage to choke out individual parishes and steal away their Houses of Worship, they won't be able to simply plant a new rector of their choosing with the expectation that all of a sudden the parish will flourish under the new age Episcopal banner - and they know this.

In their selfish view, they'd rather the parish die out, and Christians of a differing (traditional) viewpoint literally die off, or leave the Church. Why? Because deep down they know that over the long run they can't survive or compete with a traditional Anglican/Episcopal Church. After a while, the emptiness of what the new age folks have to offer will decompose the Church and their will be little left to maintain in an empty and pitiful congregation of liberal activists.

I hope the Archbishop of Canterbury sees what is happening here. And sees the megalomania involved by ECUSA Leaders.

What other course of action can their be? The Archbishop should move immediately to excommunicate the Episcopal Church United States.

Muslims stealing our Episcopalian leaders?

See this article from the Blog: The Deacon's Bench.

When it rains, it pours. Not only does the Episcopal Church struggle to keep its parishes and dioceses intact, while it withers away from Anglican Communion over the new age doctrines being introduced by ECUSA's left-wing leadership, but it looks as though at least one Episcopalian Rector has "taken off the collar" to weigh all options, and decide whether or not it's time to covert to the Muslim faith.

I have to agree with the Catholic author above in his commentary that Christianity and Islam have two very distinct approaches and have irreconcilable differences, particularly with regard to doctrines and history. Christianity is very direct in its claim that salvation comes through Christ alone. Islam is rooted in "golden rule" philosophies via Prophet Mohammad and is rooted in the Koran, and not the Word of God as found in the the One True Holy Bible. Having read both (required reading), neither are compatible. Salvation is through Christ - there are no substitutes in this category folks.

But with the confusion out of the Episcopal Church, and the heavy recruiting by Muslim clerics and followers, I can see where anyone can make the case that the ECUSA has fast lost its moral position (if not moved the point of endorsing immoral behavior in the case of Bishop Robinson and other matters found in the ECUSA's liberal agenda), and perhaps Islam tends to hold closer to moral precepts than new age Anglicanism. I'm sure that's hard for some to accept, but it actually may be true.

Interesting thoughts to ponder.

ALERT: Episcopal Bishop Andrew Smith to Storm small Bristol Connecticut Episcopal Church (through legal means, of course)!

Here is a story sent to me by a reader. It's from the New York Times dated July 7th, and oddly enough there is no story in the Hartford Courant today. So chalk up one for the Times over the Courant on local Connecticut coverage.

This story is sad but true. You can feel the sadness of the parishioners that only wish to practice their faith and be left alone by Bishop Andrew Smith and his militant band of lawyers and blinded followers. All that's missing from Bishop Smith's uniform is the swastika - as he strong arms churches into adapting his warped view of the world, crushing each one that defies him. What an outrage! This is what liberalism is.... hurting your neighbor, forcing them to believe what you believe, or shutting them down. So much for loving your neighbor. It must be nice to be a Bishop - and be above God's Word.

Parish Falls Out of Step, and Favor, With Diocese
By ALISON LEIGH COWAN

BRISTOL, Conn., July 5 — Standing inside the handsome sanctuary on Summer Street that has been home to Trinity Church since 1949, Fred Clark said that he was married here, baptized his children here and held funeral services here for the child he lost.

And although Mr. Clark, the congregation’s senior warden, said he and about 150 fellow parishioners were not eager to lose a place that had been a spiritual home to them and their ancestors since before the Revolution, they may not have a choice come Sunday.

Last month, Connecticut’s Episcopal bishop, Andrew D. Smith, defrocked the Rev. Donald L. Helmandollar and ordered the congregation’s lay leaders “to vacate the property of Trinity Church, Bristol, and release every claim on the assets of this parish by July 8, 2007.” The parishioners had objected to the church’s position regarding homosexuals in the clergy.

But Father Helmandollar, 68, who joined the clergy late in life, has no plans to go quietly. He said he was confident that parishioners would persevere even if they lost the right to the church, rectory and burial grounds they had held for generations in a fight that seems headed for court.

“It’s the people, not the steeple,” he said, quoting Rick Warren, a popular evangelical author.

The courtroom is increasingly familiar territory these days for Episcopal congregations. Growing dissatisfaction within the church over its acceptance and promotion of homosexuals in the clergy has led several dozen congregations to affiliate with more conservative Anglican groups overseas, including the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, which reports to the Church of Nigeria Anglican Communion. Father Helmandollar and Trinity Church took that step this spring.

The result has been several bruising battles over property rights and other issues. Just last month, a California appeals court supported the claim of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles that property did not belong to individual congregations in a hierarchical organization, but was held in trust for the diocese. Similar cases are pending in Virginia and Massachusetts.

In Connecticut, six conservative parishes, including Trinity, accused the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut in federal court of violating their civil rights. A district judge dismissed the lawsuit last summer, and the plaintiffs, known as the Connecticut Six, abandoned their appeal last month. Although some plaintiffs cited a recent plea from senior Anglican officials that parties refrain from litigating as the reason for their about-face, Michael P. Shea, the lawyer who represented the diocese, said, “I think that’s just an excuse for a weak appeal.”

In Rhode Island, Kansas and Texas, negotiated settlements have been struck that allow local parishes, assuming they have the money, to buy the buildings where they worshiped.

At the heart of these disputes lies a metaphysical question: Just whose church is it, anyway?

In Trinity’s case, parishioners say their situation is different, since the church traces its roots to 1747, 38 years before the first general convention of the Episcopal Church in the United States.

Moreover, Trinity’s real estate and other property has “always been held in its own name,” according to a letter sent Monday by the parish’s lawyer, Howard M. Wood III, to Bishop Smith. Mr. Wood also warned that “any interference with the property rights of Trinity Church Society will be met with a claim of trespass.”

Local police are aware of the situation at the church but believe a showdown on Sunday is unlikely. “We had a discussion with the diocese, and it appears that there isn’t going to be any action taken on Sunday,” said Lt. Thomas Grimaldi, a spokesman for the Bristol police. “They’re going to take the legal route.”

John W. Spaeth III, a top administrative aide to Bishop Smith in Hartford, dismissed the notion of a confrontation. “There are canonical ways we will work with to seize the property,” he said.
“We’re not people who move quickly. We’re people who are thoughtful and try to negotiate.”

Nonetheless, Father Helmandollar and his staff are taking precautions in case the diocese tries to take control of the parish, which happened two years ago at St. John’s Episcopal Church here when the rector, the Rev. Mark Hansen, fell out of favor with the diocese.

While there may be no locksmiths lurking this time, Father Helmandollar said he expected to see a priest, sent by the diocese, arrive with a letter demanding access to the pulpit. “Without a court order, they aren’t getting it,” he said. Already, he said, the diocese has moved in Probate Court to freeze about $80,000 in trust funds that the parish had expected to receive.

Much of the rift concerns the denomination’s 2003 decision to name Gene Robinson, who is openly gay, as the bishop of New Hampshire. His elevation alienated several conservative parishes and convinced some dissidents that church leaders in the United States were too quick to reinterpret the Bible.

The dissidents argue that such policy shifts take bigger theological leaps than past decisions to revise the prayer book and ordain women. And the dissidents warn that such actions jeopardize the American church’s standing within the larger Anglican Communion, which represents 77 million descendants of the Church of England worldwide.

After Trinity aligned with the Nigerian church, the diocese removed Father Helmandollar as a priest, ordered him to leave the rectory and threatened dissident worshipers with eviction. (The Convocation of Anglicans in North America recognizes Father Helmandollar as a priest in good standing.) But Mr. Clark said the vote to affiliate with the more conservative group was on the order of 60 to 1, a show of unity for a congregation that had trouble agreeing on very much before Father Helmandollar, or “Father Don,” as they call him, arrived in 1999.

More than 40 Episcopal congregations from around the country have lodged similar protests in various degrees since the Robinson appointment, according to a spokeswoman for the Episcopal Church in New York. Some have defected from the denomination or sought affiliations with other groups. Others have withheld funds.

Episcopal leaders have sought to put these situations in perspective.

“There are 7,500 Episcopal churches and only 45 you would deem as being dissident,” Mr. Spaeth said. “If they all left tomorrow, the impact would be insignificant.”

Father Helmandollar disagrees. He said he believed that the Episcopal Church had abandoned its principles and that he must lead his flock elsewhere. For instance, he said he had been pressing to have the word “Episcopal” removed from a road sign that directs motorists to “Trinity Episcopal Church.”

“I’m ashamed to be an Episcopalian,” said Father Helmandollar, who has a certificate in Anglican studies from Yale Divinity School and two master’s degrees. He said he grew up the youngest of seven children in West Virginia coal country, and lived on the streets for two years after dropping out of ninth grade. A father of three, he spent 20 years in the Navy and 17 more as a military contractor before pursuing a career in the clergy.

He said he was dismayed that the church’s philosophy of inclusion did not seem to extend to conservative factions like his own, complaining, “It includes everybody except us.”

“In the last 50 years, as society has changed, the church has changed,” he added. “It has become more revisionist and more liberal.” While he could accept those changes on theological grounds, he said, the recent quarrel over sexuality “has turned out to be the tripwire.”

With the showdown looming, banners made by parishioners have been taken down from Trinity’s nave for safekeeping, and Father Helmandollar has packed up some books he kept in his office. Bank accounts and valuables, he said, have been left alone until an agreement or court order decides their fate.

While the city of Bristol last appraised the church’s property at around $1.8 million, that estimate is old and might be low.

As Mr. Clark put it, “The pricelessness comes from the memories.”

Canadian Anglicans reject same-sex unions, but barely

This came my way today. A little late, but noteworthy on the homosexual crisis in the Anglican Communion.

Blessing of same-sex unions defeated

Source: The Anglican Church of Canada
Date: June 24, 2007

The General Synod of the Anglican Church of Canada has narrowly defeated a resolution that would have allowed dioceses to decide for themselves whether or not to bless same-sex unions.

Lay delegates voted 78 to 59 in favor of the motion and clergy voted 63 to 53 in favor But the House of Bishops voted 21-19 against it. As a result the motion was defeated, since it required approval by each of the three orders to pass.

The motion read:

"That this General Synod affirm the authority and jurisdiction of any diocesan synod, with the concurrence of the diocesan bishop, and in a manner which respects the conscience of the incumbent and the will of the parish, to authorize the blessing of committed same-sex unions."

The King's Commentary:
A few things are evident. First, the motion was supported by both the laity and the clergy which is of grave concern to everyone seeking to keep the Canadian Anglican Church in lockstep with God's teachings. Second, the House of Bishops defeated the measure by a mere 3 votes (I'm not sure what happens in a tie). This result may not provide immediate satisfaction for those looking to turn the Church on its axis and ram in their pro-homosexuality agenda, but it certainly gives them hope that they may fare better next year.

All things being equal, those pro-Christian delegates have some work to do on the laity side. Obviously Canadian Anglican parishes are sending liberal activists to represent them at their yearly Synod. This is rare occasion where pro-Christian groups have a slight reprieve - a second chance so to speak, and an opportunity to correct the imbalance within the Synod representation.

As for the clergy vote, there is obviously some work to do there. With a margin of ten clergy in the pro-homosexual agenda column, it looks like we are near or at 45-55 disunity within the local Church leadership (perhaps more). Senior traditional pro-Christian groups should route out those who voted in favor of the homosexual agenda and make their names public so that proper scrutiny can be brought upon those individuals, posing as Christian-rectors. These people are leading flocks right down the street of secularism and new age teachings.

O Canada... you are in a better position than us pro-Christian traditionalists here in the USA, but you aren't far behind. While our traditionalists "slept" and decided to pay no attention to the activists and rebel-rousers, we are now up to our elbows in trouble, and most likely schism. You guys have one year to help correct the problem, or else you'll face the same nightmare that we are facing here. Once new doctrines are entrenched, and your Church invested like termites, you are looking at a situation and doctrine that is hard eradicate.

So its time to become counter-activists and push in the other direction - the one leading toward Christ. Whispering angrily in dark corners of the Church will not help your cause. It's time to get vocal, and while you still have a chance - take a stand for Christ!

Good Luck, Canadian Anglicans. Let God save you from the Devil-owned torment we are facing down here.

Lastest comments from Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams...

Sharing this tidbit from Reuters on the latest new regarding the coming Anglican-Episcopalian Schism. For what its worth, the Archbishop and the Anglican Communion have been put in a terrible position by the leaders of the Episcopal Church USA (ECUSA).

I can understand the Archbishop's slant to try and slow the schism or even stop it, but with dozens of churches leaving the ECUSA each month, the schism is - in one way or another - already here.

Here is the article from Reuters, courtesy the AAC Blogsite:

Anglican schism not inevitable says Williams

Source: The Scotsman/Reuters by Michael Conlon, Religion Writer June 7, 2007

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, in an interview to be published on Friday, says he is not optimistic about the future of the Anglican Church but adds that a schism over gay issues is not inevitable.

The state of the 77-million-member global church "feels very vulnerable. I can't, of course, deny that. It feels very vulnerable and very fragile, perhaps more so than it's been for a very long time," Williams told Time Magazine.

But he also said:

"I don't think schism is inevitable. The task I've got is to try and maintain as long as possible the space in which people can have constructive disagreements, learn from each other, and try and hold that within an agreed framework of discipline and practice."
Asked if was optimistic, Williams said "I'm hopeful. Not optimistic," agreeing that "hopeful" was a "safer" word.

The Worldwide Anglican Communion, as the church is known, has been shaken and divided since 2003 when the Episcopal Church, its 2.4 million-member U.S. branch, consecrated Gene Robinson of New Hampshire as the first openly gay bishop in more than 450 years of Anglican church history.

His elevation not only splintered the U.S. church but riled defenders of traditional Christianity in the church's "Global South" -- African, Asian and Latin American congregations that now account for half of the world's Anglican followers.

Some U.S. Episcopalian congregations have already placed themselves under the jurisdiction of conservative bishops in Africa and elsewhere.

NIGERIAN CHURCH

The situation became even more strained recently when Archbishop Peter Akinola of Nigeria, a leading orthodox figure, ignored a plea from Williams and came to Virginia to install Bishop Martyn Minns as head of a new Nigerian-based church branch designed as a refuge for orthodox American believers.

Williams later announced that both Minns and Robinson would not be invited to the Lambeth Conference, a major church meeting held periodically since 1867 and scheduled again next year.
In the Time interview Williams said he did that to avoid the two bishops becoming the focus of the 2008 meeting.

"The mode of their appointment in the face of substantial protest simply means their bishoping is going to be under question in large parts of the Anglican world," he said

"Regarding Robinson, one thing I've tried to make clear is that my worry about his election was that the Episcopal Church hadn't made a general principled decision about the blessing of same-sex unions or the ordination of people in public same-sex partnerships," he said.

"I would think it better had the church actually taken a view on that before moving to the individual case. As it is, someone living in a relationship not theologically officially approved by the church is elected to a bishop. I find that bizarre and puzzling," Williams said.

Unlike the Roman Catholic Church, Anglicans are organized as a federation of national churches without hierarchical lines of authority, though the Archbishop of Canterbury holds a first-among-equals leadership position.

"It's impossible to get from Scripture anything straight-forwardly positive about same-sex relationships," Williams said.

"Those theologians who've defended same-sex relationships from the Christian point of view in recent decades have said you've got to look at whether a same-sex relationship is capable of something at the level of neutral self-giving that a marriage ought to exemplify. And then ask, is that what Scripture is talking about? That's the area of dispute," he said.

Trinity Episcopal Church, Bristol joins CANA: Robinson not invited to Lambeth

It's one of the missions of this blog to bring you key updates on the state of the Episcopal Church in Connecticut and abroad, and the latest news on the upcoming schism between the Anglican Communion and the Episcopal Church. Here are a few points to pass on, one local, one national:

Here is a snippet from a Press Release on Trinity Church (sanctuary pictured right), Bristol, Connecticut, from the Mission of the Church of Nigeria:

Trinity Church in Bristol, Connecticut, A pre-Revolutionary War parish that was established in 1747, Trinity Church built its first church building on Federal Hill Green in then New Cambridge in 1754. Trinity Church is one of the “Connecticut Six”, a group of Anglican congregations within the state of Connecticut who have sought to maintain their historic connections with the wider Anglican Communion despite continuing legal challenges initiated by the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut. Today, Trinity Church is an active worshipping community of approximately 130 under the leadership of the Rev’d Donald Helmandollar.

Here is a link to a story in the New Haven Register regarding Trinity's leaving the ECUSA. And another here from the Courant.

We at The King's View applaud the Bristol Church, Rev'd Helmandollar, and all its members for taking this positive and challenging step forward. Everyone realizes that it's been a tough road "going it alone" and taking on Bishop Dean Smith and his pack of lawyers and cronies. Smith's tough armed approach with the Connecticut Six will never be forgotten. We are just happy that the folks at Trinity, Bristol have found a home in the Anglican Communion where they can worship peacefully and in harmony with the Communion.

Rev'd Helmandollar's quote in the Courant article is worth repeating to underline the reason that that the ECUSA is falling apart and churches around the country are bolting the madness in the ECUSA:

"The defining issue for us is the absolute revisionist view of Scripture within the Episcopal Church, the idea that man wrote the Bible, so man can change it, " Helmandollar said. "You'll hear such things from the Episcopal Church. We firmly believe we do not have the authority to do that. We firmly believe it is the word of God and it's not to be changed."

Also noted this week... this comes at a time when the Anglican Church is preparing for the 2008 Lambeth Conference, where last week it was reported that gay activist and open homosexual alleged-Bishop Gene Robinson will not be invited to the Conference. The Conference could set the final stage for the removal of the Episcopal Church from the Anglican Communion due to the Episcopal Church's embarrassing incorporation of a new revisionist Christian doctrine.

It's clear that based on reports out of London that the Primates are becoming increasing frustrated with the Archbishop of Canterbury over his patience with the American Church (ECUSA) and for the fact that he will be taking a three month break from the activity. It's my own view that the Archbishop Williams is probably biding time and hoping that the ECUSA comes to its senses on all of this; but this isn't likely to happen given the leadership in the ECUSA which is hell-bent on moving further left in its interpretation of Scripture.

I, for one, would like to see Archbishop Williams take a tougher stand with the ECUSA, and perhaps that will come in time. At this point, I don't want to mistake any misinterpretation of inaction or "careful approach" by the Archbishop as a sign that he is siding with the ECUSA or not up for the task. I'm sure this is a tough matter for him and he thinks about the fact that his legacy could be that of the Archbishop who helped boot the ECUSA out of the Anglican Communion. From a human standpoint, I'm sure that's got to be gut-wrenching, and painful.

But the Archbishop should keep in mind that its the leadership of the ECUSA that brought this acid rain down upon all of us. And the Primates and other conservative (and moderate) voices have had enough with the ECUSA's polity. And if it helps, think about the way that Bishop Andrew Smith has ruthlessly treated the Connecticut Six - ripping the churches out from under the parishioners, and how Bishop Katherine Jefferts Schori has basically threatened a ninety year old man with excommunication hearings and such, and the many other nasty methods and attacks she has employed on dozens of parishes across the United States. Just what is Christian about Jeffert Schori's strong-armed tactics?