St. Francis suit could go to jury

From El Paso-

When St. Francis on the Hill Episcopal Church voted to leave the Episcopal denomination in October, members of the El Paso parish intended to keep the church building and other property.

Now as the parishioners of the renamed St. Francis on the Hill Anglican Church, they are suing the denomination in a preemptive strike to prevent it from attempting to take back the property.

Such disputes are not uncommon, but this case could become the first of its kind to make it to a jury trial. Previous cases stemming from parishes and dioceses withdrawing from the Episcopal Church have been decided by judges. No case has so far made it to a trial by a jury.

The St. Francis case had been headed to trial Oct. 2, but after a hearing Sept. 17, the case was delayed until Feb. 5. The delay will give Judge Gonzolo Garcia of the 210th District Court in El Paso time to rule on motions that could determine the outcome of the case without a trial.

“Give me a summary judgment and let them appeal,” St. Francis attorney Richard Munzinger said at the hearing.

“We won’t enforce any action until the Court of Appeals (also) has ruled,” said Harrel Davis, who represents the Episcopal Church.

The dispute arises from the perception by some Episcopalians that the church denomination has drifted to the left. Rumblings of discontent were heard as far back as the 1970s when the church first ordained women.

But the movement to leave the national church began in earnest after the Episcopal Church elected a gay man to become a bishop in 2003.

Once the largest Episcopal parish in El Paso, the Church of St. Clement in Downtown also disaffiliated from the Episcopal Church, but first made arrangements to pay the diocese $2 million for the property.

More here-

http://elpasoinc.com/readArticle.aspx?issueid=263&xrec=4749

St. Francis El Paso leaves TEC

I ran piece on this sevral days ago, but here's more. For those who may not know, Bishop Frey is the former Dean of Trinity Seminary in Ambridge.

A statement released by the diocese said that the acting Bishop William Frey --- who had been appointed bishop following the resignation of former Bishop Jeffrey Steenson who last year left the Episcopal Church for the Roman Catholic Church ---- informed the parish that ”if they made the decision to leave the Episcopal Church, they could not take their property with them."

However, the parish stated it would contest the diocese’s claim of ownership. “As early as 2004, we let it be known that our by-laws clearly outlined how and why we owned our own property,” Mr Munden said. “We built this church with money from our parishioners --- not one dime came from the Episcopal Church or from the Diocese. This church and grounds belong to St Francis on the Hill.” St Francis is the second El Paso Episcopal parish to quit the diocese. In 2008 St Clements, one of the largest parishes in the diocese, seceded from the Episcopal Church, and was permitted by Bishop Steenson to take its property with them.

http://www.religiousintelligence.co.uk/news/?NewsID=3251