An Atlanta Church Also Decides to Abandon ECUSA
Atlanta area church votes to leave Episcopal denomination
Gay bishop ‘a symptom’ of larger schism, leader says
By RYAN LEE | Feb 9, 3:35 PM
A conservative Peachtree City church voted to break away from the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta this week over objections to what it considers the Episcopal Church’s increasing liberal theology, including its acceptance of gay clergy.
Peachtree City’s St. Andrew’s in-the-Pines Episcopal Church voted to succeed from the Episcopal denomination this week in order to join the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, a division of the church led by anti-gay Archbishop Peter Akinola.
Congregants of the St. Andrew’s in-the-Pines Episcopal Church voted 145-67 during a special meeting Feb. 4 to leave the Episcopal Church (U.S.A.) and join the more conservative Convocation of Anglicans in North America. The Peachtree City church will now be known as St. Andrew’s in-the-Pines Anglican Church, said Dave Wardell, the church’s senior warden.
“It’s been a situation brewing for quite some time,” Wardell said of the split. “It’s a revisionist vs. traditional battle.”
The Atlanta diocese plans to fight the church's departure.
"Let me say at the onset that St. Andrew’s-in-the-Pines Episcopal Church will continue to be affiliated with the Diocese of Atlanta, although some of its members might choose to leave," Atlanta Bishop J. Neil Alexander wrote to parishioners.
Dozens of conservative American Episcopal parishes have departed from the Episcopal Church since 2003, when V. Gene Robinson, who is gay, was elected as the bishop of the Diocese of New Hampshire. Like St. Andrew’s in Peachtree City, many of those congregations have joined the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, which is the American branch of the Anglican Church of Nigeria.
The leader of the Anglican Church of Nigeria, Archbishop Peter Akinola, has raised international eyebrows for his extreme views toward homosexuality, including calling the ordination of gay clergy “an attack on the church of God — a satanic attack on God’s church.”
St. Andrew’s in Peachtree City now considers its domestic leader to be Bishop Martyn Minns, whose Virginia-based church split from the Episcopal Church just last December. Wardell and other former Episcopalians succeeding from the church insist the schism is not simply about gay issues or Robinson’s ordination.
“That’s a symptom of it,” Wardell said of the gay bishop. “We really are firmly saying that’s not the issue, it’s a symptom of the issue. It’s about the relative reinterpretation of scripture — that’s what it all boils down to.”
The Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta attempted to thwart the succession at St. Andrew’s, according to literature sent out by the congregation. The two sides are gearing up for a battle over who controls the property St. Andrew’s is housed in, but Wardell said he hopes litigation can be avoided.
“I would consider them [leaders of the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta] active revisionists,” Wardell said. “We don’t recognize the diocese of Atlanta as a
governing authority anymore.”
Gay bishop ‘a symptom’ of larger schism, leader says
By RYAN LEE | Feb 9, 3:35 PM
A conservative Peachtree City church voted to break away from the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta this week over objections to what it considers the Episcopal Church’s increasing liberal theology, including its acceptance of gay clergy.
Peachtree City’s St. Andrew’s in-the-Pines Episcopal Church voted to succeed from the Episcopal denomination this week in order to join the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, a division of the church led by anti-gay Archbishop Peter Akinola.
Congregants of the St. Andrew’s in-the-Pines Episcopal Church voted 145-67 during a special meeting Feb. 4 to leave the Episcopal Church (U.S.A.) and join the more conservative Convocation of Anglicans in North America. The Peachtree City church will now be known as St. Andrew’s in-the-Pines Anglican Church, said Dave Wardell, the church’s senior warden.
“It’s been a situation brewing for quite some time,” Wardell said of the split. “It’s a revisionist vs. traditional battle.”
The Atlanta diocese plans to fight the church's departure.
"Let me say at the onset that St. Andrew’s-in-the-Pines Episcopal Church will continue to be affiliated with the Diocese of Atlanta, although some of its members might choose to leave," Atlanta Bishop J. Neil Alexander wrote to parishioners.
Dozens of conservative American Episcopal parishes have departed from the Episcopal Church since 2003, when V. Gene Robinson, who is gay, was elected as the bishop of the Diocese of New Hampshire. Like St. Andrew’s in Peachtree City, many of those congregations have joined the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, which is the American branch of the Anglican Church of Nigeria.
The leader of the Anglican Church of Nigeria, Archbishop Peter Akinola, has raised international eyebrows for his extreme views toward homosexuality, including calling the ordination of gay clergy “an attack on the church of God — a satanic attack on God’s church.”
St. Andrew’s in Peachtree City now considers its domestic leader to be Bishop Martyn Minns, whose Virginia-based church split from the Episcopal Church just last December. Wardell and other former Episcopalians succeeding from the church insist the schism is not simply about gay issues or Robinson’s ordination.
“That’s a symptom of it,” Wardell said of the gay bishop. “We really are firmly saying that’s not the issue, it’s a symptom of the issue. It’s about the relative reinterpretation of scripture — that’s what it all boils down to.”
The Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta attempted to thwart the succession at St. Andrew’s, according to literature sent out by the congregation. The two sides are gearing up for a battle over who controls the property St. Andrew’s is housed in, but Wardell said he hopes litigation can be avoided.
“I would consider them [leaders of the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta] active revisionists,” Wardell said. “We don’t recognize the diocese of Atlanta as a
governing authority anymore.”
posted by Patrick Townson at 12:34 PM
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