|
By Jim Coggins
IN A MOVE long anticipated in some circles, the
Anglican Diocese of New Westminster is attempting to assert control over
property in the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley.
On August 26, the diocese moved to take control of the
buildings of St. Matthew’s parish in Abbotsford and St. Matthias and
St. Luke’s parish in Vancouver.
The two are among four parishes that voted last
February to leave the diocese over same-sex blessings and other issues.
Also on August 26, New Westminster Bishop Michael
Ingham appointed new wardens and trustees to assume responsibility for the
buildings and other assets. However, the current wardens have refused to
hand over the assets.
Just over two weeks after Ingham’s decision,
opponents of his leadership took legal action.
On September 9, 17 ministers and trustees of the two
parishes and St. John’s Shaughnessy parish in Vancouver took the
diocese to the B.C. Supreme Court. They are asking the court to rule that
the bishop does not have the authority to replace the wardens.
Cheryl Chang, a spokesperson for the group, said they
are not asking the court to decide who ultimately owns the buildings but
only “to clarify the trustees’ responsibilities until this
larger question can be settled.”
Since the trustees “were elected by the people of
the parish to safeguard the ministries and assets of the parish,” do
they have the right to hand over the assets to the diocese?
St. John’s Shaughnessy joined the lawsuit in
expectation that it and Church of the Good Shepherd in Vancouver will also
be asked to hand over their buildings and assets.
Peter Elliot, Dean of the diocese, said action had not
yet been taken against the other two parishes because it is “a
time-consuming process.”
However, Chang charged that the diocese had acted only
against “the two smaller parishes.” St. Matthias and St Luke
parish has average Sunday attendance of 160 – 190, and St.
Matthew’s has average Sunday attendance of just over 200.
Church of the Good Shepherd is the largest Chinese
Anglican congregation in Canada with Sunday attendance of more than 300.
St. John’s Shaughnessy is the largest Anglican
parish in Canada, with average Sunday attendance of 780 – 1,000.
The four parishes have been in “serious
theological dispute” with the diocese since 2002, when the diocese
voted to offer blessings for same-sex unions.
Continue article >>
|
The diocese had about 80 parishes in 2002. Eight
parishes left the Diocese in 2002 and established the Anglican Coalition in
Canada (ACiC). When they departed, they left their buildings behind.
The current four parishes are determined not to do
that. They are among 18 parishes across Canada that have joined the
Anglican Network in Canada (ANiC), which is administered by Bishop Don
Harvey under the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone (South America).
The dispute which began in New Westminster has been one
of the key reasons for the current split in the worldwide Anglican
Communion. The majority of Anglicans in the Third World have broken with
the Anglican Church of Canada – and also with its U.S. equivalent,
the Episcopal Church, which has ordained a gay bishop.
They refused to attend the once-a-decade gathering of
Anglican bishops at Lambeth in England this summer and instead held their
own gathering in Jerusalem. They have also established relations with
theologically conservative Anglicans in North America, including both the
ANiC and the ACiC.
There are currently two other court cases over the
assets of parishes that have joined the ANiC, involving three parishes in
the Diocese of Niagara in Ontario and St. Mary of the Incarnation parish
near Victoria in the Diocese of British Columbia.
In those cases, the courts have ruled that the
buildings must be shared by the dioceses and the parishes until a final
ruling is made.
Bishop Don Harvey wrote to the Anglican Church of
Canada earlier this year offering to seek “a negotiated or mediated
settlement” regarding the parishes’ assets, rather than going
to court.
However, the Diocese of New Westminster says the only
thing it is willing to discuss is “the timing” of the
parishes’ departure from their buildings.
October 2008
|
