Week ending 10/26/2015

South Carolina Episcopalians Appeal Again

While the parties in South Carolina await a ruling from the State Supreme Court, Bishop vonRosenberg and the Episcopal Church in South Carolina have given notice they will appeal the Federal court judge's ruling that the federal trademark infringement suit will be stayed until the state court issues its opinion.  This is the second time that Judge Houck has issued a stay on the case. (See Update article here.) The Episcopal Church appealed his first stay and the Federal Court of Appeals ruled that Houck had applied the wrong standards in issuing the stay.  They sent the case back to him and told him to hear it.  Instead he issued another stay using a different line of logic.  The appeal briefs have not yet been filed. Steve Skaradon, blogging at scepiscopalians.com had more to say about this case in his October 18, 2015 column.

Diocese of Albany Cathedral Dean Quits

The dean of the Cathedral in the Diocese of Albany has resigned his post.  He is apparently discouraged by the position that Bishop William Love has taken on same sex marriage and GLBT couples.  The bishop is one of seven holdouts in the Episcopal Church who are not allowing any recognition of same sex marriages.  The cathedral has lost a number of members over the issue. A recent article in the Times Union in Albany gives more background.

More Revelations of Child Abuse by English Bishops Reported

A new set of revelations of child sexual abuse have surfaced in England, this time involved a long-deceased English Bishop revered for his work in ecumenical relations. The church had just finished defrocking Peter Ball, a long-retired Bishop of Lewes, after his conviction on sexual abuse of a children more than 20 years ago, when news became public of the court settlement reached in a suit involving abuse by the Bishop George Bell of Chichester.   Bell died 57 years ago.  His victim had tried to bring the case forward in the 1990s but was brushed off by the diocese.  The diocese has now issued a formal apology and reached a settlement with the victim.  The news shocked many because Bell was known for his ecumenical work and had  been included in 2010 in the Episcopal Church's Holy Women, Holy Men on the date of October 5. 

St. James Newport Beach Finds a Temporary Home

The parish displaced from its church by the decision of Los Angeles Bishop Jon Bruno to sell the building now has a temporary winter home at a local art museum.  They had been holding services in the park across from their locked church building, but fall and winter bring cool mornings, fog along the coast and possible rain.  The congregation now will hold services at the Gray Matter Museum of Art in Costa Mesa, about 2 miles from the church.

Happy Ending for Baptismal Controversy in Central Florida

Bishop Brewer has baptized the baby that became the cause of controversy when his original baptism was postponed.  The reason for the postponement was because the parents of the child were a same sex couple.   Pittsburgh Update carried stories about the controversy here and here.

Historic Agreements Signed in Two Anglican Communion Regions

Ecumenical relations were in the news this last week.  The Anglican Church of Canada has signed a full communion agreement with the United Church of Canada.  The United Church  is a blend of Congregational, Methodist, and Presbyterian traditions. In 1975 twenty years of talks had collapsed when the Anglican Synod rejected a proposed plan of union.  Talks resumed in 2012 and have now led to a new agreement.   Across the ocean the Anglican and Lutheran Churches that are part of the Porvoo communion released a communique urging greater acceptance of refugees from the middle east.  The Porvoo Communion is made up of northern European Lutheran Churches and the Anglican Communion Provinces in England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales. It is named for the place in Finland where the communion agreement was signed.