From Virginia-
Truro Church and six other Northern Virginia congregations want a judge to let them keep donations they received before their "official" split from The Episcopal Church. They argue that many of the donations and gifts were meant for their churches, never for the TEC or its diocese.
The Jan. 10 ruling in question came from Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Randy Bellows, who granted ownership of seven church properties to The Episcopal Church. Everything the congregations acquired before Jan. 31, 2007, the date Bellows notes as the official separation from The Episcopal Church, must be forfeited to the denomination and diocese.
If the court upholds its ruling, it could fly against religious freedom and other basic rights cited in Virginia law and the Constitution--or at least, that's what the congregations argue in their Feb. 22 motion.
“The core issue that we are asking the court to reconsider is the right of donors to restrict the use of their own gifts to the church of their choice. We believe that they could," said Jim Oakes, spokesperson for the seven Anglican congregations. "This is a religious liberty issue at its core as the courts are not lawfully able to coerce contributions to a specific religious entity against the wishes of the donors."
More here-
http://fairfaxcity.patch.com/articles/truro-giving-up-donations-violates-religious-freedom-laws
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