Posted on 01/31/2007 3:39:00 PM PST by Huber
The Diocese of Virginia has filed suit in various legal jurisdictions regarding real and personal property claims made by 11 congregations where the majority of the membership recently voted to leave The Episcopal Church.
The 11 new complaints seeking court action with respect to the real and personal property now held by the 11 congregations were preceded by legal filings last week in which the diocese objected to any transfer of property, citing both Virginia law and the canons of the diocese and the General Convention.
Following the votes to separate, eight of the congregations initiated proceedings in their respective local circuit courts in an effort to transfer ownership of their real properties away from the diocese and The Episcopal Church and to the Church of Nigeria through a missionary endeavor, the Convocation of Anglicans in North America (CANA).
The clergy in charge and lay leadership of each of the 11 congregations have been named as defendants in the actions. The diocese is not asking the courts to impose any personal liability on any of the individuals named defendants at this time.
According to a written statement released by the diocese, it is seeking in these suits:
• A declaration that the congregations have made improper claims regarding Episcopal Church property (“declaring that there has been an improper trespass, conversion, alienation and use of the real and personal property”); • A court order upholding the interest in the property of the diocese (“the trust, proprietary and contract rights of the diocese”); • An order restraining further use and occupancy of the property by the separated congregations; • An order conveying legal title to and control of the property to the bishop of the diocese; and • An order requiring a full accounting of the “use of all real and personal property” by the separated congregations.
The 11 congregations named in the litigation are: Christ the Redeemer, Centreville Church of the Apostles, Fairfax Church of the Epiphany, Herndon Church of Our Saviour, Oatlands Church of the Word, Gainesville Potomac Falls Episcopal, Sterling St. Margaret’s, Woodbridge St. Paul’s, Haymarket St. Stephen’s, Heathsville Truro, Fairfax The Falls Church, Falls Church
Traditional Anglican ping, continued in memory of its founder Arlin Adams. Therefore, they have no hope for a future except through litigation to acquire porperty so they can spend down the assets of previous generations of faithful Christians in pursuit of their radical political agenda.
Damn them to hell!
The Virginia Anglican churches believe that their case is strong. Commentary that I have seen based on legal precedent is more mixed. Also, as you know, courts are highly unpredictable.
Truro and The Falls Church predate the country, and were deeded to the Anglican Church.
I don't understand how the Episcopalians think that they have title.
If anything, they owe 200 years back rent.
Ah, well, cornered rats desperate to grab whatever they can probably will fight it all the way, particularly for such historic and prestigious properties.
"Also, as you know, courts are highly unpredictable."
And the best cases are lost and the worst cases won. I know. I've done both.
Probably more important to them than both the $25 million value of the properties, and the historic significance, is that Truro and The Falls Church tithe $14 million a year.
I'm not sure if it's the money that they want, although that does figure into the equation.
I believe that TEC's national leadership has such an intense hatred for us for challenging their authority that they want to grind us into the ground, homeless, mired in litigation. This fight is personal now...remember that Lee threatened to go after the individual clergy and vestry members of the parishes and hold them PERSONALLY responsible.
The spirit in control of TEC is not of our God.
TEC is a dead church now.
That is up to you - I am a catholic, around the corner at St. James.
Pierobon has said that the 11 congregations are fully prepared for a court battle. On Monday, he said, lawyers for seven of the congregations filed a motion at the state Supreme Court, asking that the property disputes be consolidated into one case.
An attempt to shield smaller parishes behind TFC and Truro ("the big dogs")?
I'm not sure if it's the money that they want, although that does figure into the equation.
Well, the property is one thing and the $14 million a year tithers are another. If (God forbid!) ECUSA can take the property the vast majority of tithers won't go with it.
And I agree, rabscuttle385, about the degree of hatred and fury TEC's leadership has for the dissenters. After all, the rank and file had put up with so much from the 1960s on that they weren't supposed to be rebelling; they were expected to sit down and shut up as usual. It always blew over before, y'know.
BTW, rab, I've read your impressive home page and if nobody has welcomed you to FR, I'd like to be the first.
Of course, you should have been doing the normal newbie services; bringing the coffee and the doughnuts every day for a while. But at the end of your probation period, you will be expected to pass the FR final exam: that is, you will stand naked in front of your computer screen and sing "I'm a little teapot". Your performance will be graded against all past ones and after all the votes are in, management will let you know how well you did. Good luck!
And no matter what a secular court decides, our monies are lost to the Episcopal church. We have not been contributing this for quite some time.
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