Zoom tribunal for US Bishop of Albany

From The Church Times-

A BISHOP in the Episcopal Church in the United States faced a disciplinary panel over Zoom last Friday for his refusal to allow clergy in his diocese to officiate at same-sex marriages. The hearing had been due to take place on 21 April (News, 4 October 2019).

The ministry of the Bishop of Albany, the Rt Revd William Love, was restricted in January 2019 after he wrote an open letter to his flock challenging the authority and legality of a recent General Convention resolution (News, 18 January 2019). The resolution requires that all bishops permit churches in their dioceses to solemnise same-sex marriages where it is legal under civil law.

Parishioners at St Andrew’s, Albany, burned copies of the Bishop’s letter on the church steps in outrage.

The Episcopal Church argues that the letter amounts to breaking ordination vows to “conform to the doctrine, discipline, and worship of The Episcopal Church”.

More here-

https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2020/19-june/news/world/zoom-tribunal-for-us-bishop-of-albany

In disciplinary hearing, Albany Bishop William Love defends prohibition of same-sex marriage in his diocese

From ENS-

The dispute over Albany Bishop William Love’s prohibition of same-sex marriage in his diocese took a major step forward at a hearing on June 12, when The Episcopal Church laid out its charges of canonical violations against Love, whose counsel defended his actions as not conflicting with existing church canon law.

The hearing, conducted under the church’s Title IV disciplinary process, was originally scheduled to take place on April 21 in Colonie, New York, but was changed to a Zoom meeting due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Title IV hearings are held when a member of clergy is accused of breaking their vows, or violating the church’s constitution and canons.

In this case, the church argued that, by prohibiting clergy in his diocese from using the same-sex marriage rites approved for churchwide use by General Convention, Love broke the vows he took when he was ordained a bishop to “conform to the doctrine, discipline, and worship of The Episcopal Church.”

More here-

https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/2020/06/12/in-disciplinary-hearing-albany-bishop-william-love-defends-prohibition-of-same-sex-marriage-in-his-diocese/

A trial that should shame all Anglicans

From Christian Today-

Turns out, however, that Bishop Curry seems to have forgotten his own sermon – at least if his treatment of a fellow bishop in the US is anything to go by. For in a few weeks' time the Bishop of Albany, William Love, will go on trial, after Michael Curry restricted his ministry just over a year ago.

You might rightly wonder about Bishop Love's crime.  Was he siphoning off diocesan money, for example? Has he had a series of secret affairs? Does he not believe the Bible or deny that Jesus is the Christ? Has he, perish the thought, engaged in repugnant sexual acts with children?

But no. Bishop Love has done none of those things. Bishop Love stands accused of believing what most Christians – Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Pentecostal, Evangelical, and indeed Anglican – believe, and have always believed, about sex and marriage. His crime, if one can call it that, is not to permit same-sex marriages in his diocese.

More here-

https://www.christiantoday.com/article/a-trial-that-should-shame-all-anglicans/134377.htm

Hearing date set for Episcopal bishop who defied same-sex marriage order

From Albany-

The Rev. William H. Love will stand before a five-person disciplinary board in April to explain his refusal to follow an Episcopal Church resolution forbidding bishops from stopping same-sex weddings.

In a letter addressed to his diocese earlier this week, Love said the hearing will be held at the Desmond Hotel April 21. A start time has not been given, but Love said he expected the hearing to start mid-morning and last a few hours.

"Both sides have agreed that there are no contested facts regarding my actions and neither side will be presenting witnesses," Love wrote. "Instead, the attorneys will be making arguments as to what the canon law requires."

More here-

 https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Hearing-date-set-for-Episcopal-bishop-who-defied-15001924.php

Pretoria Anglican priest pleads guilty in sex scandal

From South Africa-

The head of the Anglican Diocese of Pretoria, Bishop Allan Kannemeyer, said it was a sad day that a church tribunal would decide on the fate of a priest facing charges of sexual misconduct. 

Kannemeyer said he was disappointed and angry that one of their priests had pleaded guilty to sexual misconduct with a member of the church.

He said he was sad that one of their own meant to provide guidance and counselling had opted to take advantage of his authority instead.

Kannemeyer was responding to information that the church was yesterday on its second day of a three-day tribunal looking into sexual allegations against one of the clergy.

According to emails sent to the victim, which the Pretoria News has seen, the church acknowledged it had instituted the Diocesan Tribunal to deal with allegations levelled against the priest.

More here-

https://www.iol.co.za/pretoria-news/pretoria-anglican-priest-pleads-guilty-in-sex-scandal-36807307 

and here-

https://www.thesouthafrican.com/news/anglican-priest-in-pretoria-pleads-guilty-in-sex-scandal-7-november-2019/

Central New York priest under investigation for alleged financial misconduct

From ENS-

An upstate New York priest accused of financial misconduct is now being investigated by law enforcement, according to the Diocese of Central New York, which announced on Oct. 31 that it had turned over the results of its own investigation to police.

The Rev. Joell Szachara had been serving as the rector of St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in New Hartford but resigned at the direction of Bishop DeDe Duncan-Probe, the diocese said in late September. At that time, Duncan-Probe placed Szachara on administrative leave, restricting her from engaging in ministry, while a forensic audit was conducted on the finances of St. Stephen’s.

With the audit complete, the diocese – which did not specify the type of financial wrongdoing Szachara has been accused of – referred the case to law enforcement as it continues its own investigation through the Title IV disciplinary process, Duncan-Probe wrote in an Oct. 31 letter to the clergy and wardens of her diocese.

More here-

https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/2019/11/05/central-new-york-priest-under-investigation-for-alleged-financial-misconduct/

Episcopal bishop who refuses to allow gay marriage in diocese to face hearing

From Christian Post-

A bishop of The Episcopal Church who has appealed a punishment for refusing to allow same-sex marriages in his diocese will go before a hearing panel to argue his case.

Bishop William Love of the Episcopal Diocese of Albany was punished last year by The Episcopal Church for refusing to enforce a recently enacted resolution allowing congregations in his regional body to bless same-sex marriages.

In a statement released Wednesday while attending the fall House of Bishops’ Meeting in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Bishop Love announced that the Title IV Reference Panel voted to refer his appeal to the Hearing Panel.

More here-

https://www.christianpost.com/news/episcopal-bishop-who-refuses-to-allow-gay-marriage-in-diocese-to-face-hearing.html

Albany Episcopal Bishop Being Disciplined Over Same Sex Marriage Views

From Albany-

The Episcopal Church says Albany Bishop William Love will face a disciplinary hearing over his views on same-sex marriage.

In November of last year, Rev. Love vowed to continue prohibiting same-sex marriages in defiance of a church resolution.

He wrote that sexual relations between two men or two women were never part of God's plan, and as such, is to be avoided.

That led to controversy, with parishioners burning copies of Love's edict on the steps of St. Andrew's while it was being read inside.

According to the Times-Union the disciplinary arm of the church has voted to refer Love to a five-person hearing panel.

More here-

https://wgy.iheart.com/content/2019-09-19-albany-episcopal-bishop-being-disciplined-over-same-sex-marriage-views/

Disciplinary hearing ahead for Albany Episcopal bishop

From Albany-

The Albany Episcopal Diocese bishop who vowed to continue prohibiting same-sex marriages in defiance of the church's orders will face a disciplinary hearing, the Episcopal Church announced Wednesday.

In November 2018, the Rev. William H. Love spurned Episcopal Church Resolution B012, which had been passed earlier in the year and ordered bishops not to impede same-sex weddings. In an eight-page letter, Love wrote that Episcopalians who embraced same-sex relationships had been deceived by Satan, and said the Episcopal Church and "Western society" had been "hijacked by the 'Gay Rights Agenda.'"

"Sexual relations between two men or two women was never part of God's plan and is a distortion of His design in creation and as such is to be avoided," Love wrote. "To engage in sexual intimacy outside of marriage between a man and women, is against God's will and therefore sinful and needs to be repented of, NOT encouraged or told it is ok."

More here-

https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Albany-bishop-who-refused-Episcopal-acceptance-of-14450905.php 

and here-

http://anglican.ink/2019/09/18/further-action-on-bishop-william-loves-november-10-2018-pastoral-letter-and-pastoral-directive/?fbclid=IwAR3PPq6WmnYmM5oeDngue9R1BLsPNzO0_2ZqqnCLJtJSPx7jp_RaN1YA_sY

Bishop suspended child porn suspect Rev. Gregory Lisby from Worcester’s All Saints Episcopal Church in 2018 over ‘inappropriate relationship’

From Western Massachusetts-

The bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts on Friday sent a letter to all congregants lamenting the arrest of the Rev. Gregory Lisby on a child pornography charge last night, highlighting that Lisby has been banned from all contact with the church.

FBI agents raided Lisby’s Worcester home — an Episcopal rectory where he lives with his husband and the couple’s two daughters — on Sept. 11. Lisby was a newly minted kindergarten teacher in Holyoke when the government closed in. He resigned his position at the school in an email sent to a Holyoke schools official at 2:30 Thursday morning.

Lisby was arrested last night in Northborough, according to a news release from the U.S. attorney’s office in Boston. He will be arraigned in a federal court in that city this afternoon. Lisby has been charged with possession of child pornography after agents recovered more than 180 photos and 15 videos from his computer, according to court records. That charge carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years.

More here-

https://www.masslive.com/news/2019/09/bishop-suspended-child-porn-suspect-rev-gregory-lisby-from-worcesters-all-saints-episcopal-church-in-2018-over-inappropriate-relationship.html 

and here-

https://www.gazettenet.com/Holyoke-kindergarten-teacher-resigns-amid-child-pornography-investigation-28474323

Why I Would Refuse Communion to the President

From The Living Church-

As a priest I would happily welcome President Trump to any service, but I would refuse to give him Holy Communion.

When President Trump is in Palm Beach he occasionally attends services at Bethesda-by-the-Sea Church, where he and Melania were married and where his son Barron was baptized. In the capital he sometimes attends services at St. John’s Church on Lafayette Square and at Washington National Cathedral, both of which are Episcopal churches.

For a priest to refuse anyone Holy Communion is not only unusual but practically unheard of. Most view Communion not as something to be earned, but as a sort of medicine for the soul — something that will help us deepen and strengthen our relationship with God.

So, why would I refuse to give Communion to President Trump? Not because I think he needs no medicine for his soul, but because he is a notorious sinner whose biography — and sins — are quite well known.

More here-

https://livingchurch.org/covenant/2019/02/28/why-i-would-refuse-communion-to-the-president/?fbclid=IwAR3P3JOwKqLnpKeQjYKNCW3C79rZArb_csZKbGIuuomIuauH8abDkRmIGCA

Anglican church recommends former assistant bishop Richard Appleby be defrocked

From Australia-

An Anglican church professional standards board has recommended a senior bishop be defrocked for failing to act on allegations of child sexual abuse within the Newcastle diocese.

Richard Appleby was assistant bishop in the Newcastle Anglican diocese from 1983 to 1992.
In December 2018 he fronted a professional standards hearing that was convened to determine if he was fit to continue to be employed by the church and remain in Holy Orders.

Bishop Appleby was referred to the board in the wake of his evidence before the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Abuse.

More here-

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-02-19/anglican-church-recommends-former-bishop-be-defrocked/10825962

and here-

https://www.foxnews.com/world/australian-anglican-set-to-be-defrocked-over-abuse-inaction

and here-

https://www.theherald.com.au/story/5912167/cover-up-culture-bishop-appleby-deemed-unfit-to-hold-office/v

Court of Review for Bishops upholds retired Los Angeles bishop’s three-year suspension

From ENS-

An Episcopal Church court has concluded that retired Diocese of Los Angeles Bishop J. Jon Bruno was properly suspended from ordained ministry for three years because of misconduct.

The Court of Review for Bishops said it made the three-year suspension retroactive to Aug. 2, 2017, the day a hearing panel originally recommended the sentence, rather than with the court’s Jan. 31 order.

The case against Bruno involved his unsuccessful 2015 attempt to sell the property of what was then known as St. James the Great’s in Newport Beach, California, to a condominium developer for $15 million in cash. That effort prompted some St. James members to bring misconduct allegations against Bruno, alleging he violated church law.

More here-

https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/2019/02/01/court-of-review-for-bishops-upholds-retired-los-angeles-bishops-three-year-suspension/?fbclid=IwAR3PDYnnSbpNsFPuGOC7-yErr-Lf6gAndWQ6ZdE8SdtgtP2CyjFhDYcs5Wc

Tossing Lines: A forgotten story of intrigue tucked in an attic

From New London CT-

Rummaging through my attic recently, I came upon a battered, weatherbeaten little book, its title long worn off, its pages fragile with age.

It was called “Memoirs of the Rev. Ammi Rogers A.M., A Clergyman of the Episcopal Church,” published in 1832. Rogers’ words on the title page caught my attention: “…persecuted in the State of Connecticut, on account of religion and politics, for almost twenty years” and “Falsely accused and imprisoned, in Norwich Jail, for two years…”

A local reverend persecuted and falsely imprisoned? Intrigued, I found it to be a remarkable local story indicating that the famous Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision of 1973 was born right here in our own back yard.

Born in Branford in 1770, Ammi Rogers graduated from Yale College in 1790, and chose to serve the Episcopal church.

Interning under the Rev. Jarvis in Middletown, Rogers initially boarded with the mean-spirited Jarvis family, but soon left in disgust.

This greatly insulted Jarvis, and he committed decades to relentless, cruel retaliation.

Jarvis objected when Rogers was ordained a priest in 1794, and followed him to churches in upstate New York, attempting to sabotage his career and integrity at every opportunity, through outright lies and false documentation.

More here-

 https://www.theday.com/local-news/20190115/tossing-lines-forgotten-story-of-intrigue-tucked-in-attic

Episcopal Church Prepares to Punish New York Bishop for Barring Homosexual Marriages in His Diocese

From CBN-

A New York bishop now faces disciplinary action after barring all same-sex marriages in his Albany-based diocese.

The Rev. William Love claims the church has been "hijacked by the Gay Rights Agenda," according to The Associated Press.

Last week, the Episcopal Church nullified Love's order.  Presiding Bishop Michael Curry wrote that Love's action "may constitute a canonical offense" and referred his case for disciplinary review. While the case is pending, Curry placed restrictions on Love that forbid him from penalizing clergy, laity or worshippers in the diocese for arranging or participating in same-sex marriages.

Last July, church leaders passed a Resolution B012 that gives bishops with theological objections to same-sex marriages the option of having another bishop conduct the wedding ceremony. The new policy went into effect on Dec. 2. 

Love said he would abide by the restrictions against him but would appeal any disciplinary action.

More here-

https://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2019/january/episcopal-church-punishes-new-york-bishop-for-barring-homosexual-marriages-in-his-diocese 

and here-

https://www.anglicannews.org/news/2019/01/albany-bishop-william-love-appeals-against-presiding-bishop%E2%80%99s-restriction-of-ministry.aspx

Episcopal Diocese defrocks St. Wilfred rector who confessed to theft of church funds

From California-

A priest who in October confessed to stealing funds from St. Wilfred of York church for his own use has been defrocked by the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles.

The defrocking means the Rev. Canon Michael D. Archer is no longer a priest, Rev. Canon Gary R. Hall, priest-in-charge of the Huntington Beach church, said in a Nov. 16 letter to parishioners.
Archer could not be immediately reached for comment.

Archer was permanently removed from the priesthood for reportedly violating an agreement with the diocese that he made when he was initially suspended for the alleged financial impropriety.
Specifically, the diocese discovered Archer had contacted parishioners after he had been told not to and misrepresented “crucial information” about his reasons for leaving his previous ministry with the Church of the Nazarene, Hall said in the letter.

More here-

https://www.ocregister.com/2018/11/19/episcopal-diocese-defrocks-st-wilfred-rector-who-confessed-to-theft-of-church-funds/

Church will sack unfaithful priests – Anglican Primate

From Nigeria-

The Primate of Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, the Most Rev. Nicholas Okoh, on Thursday in Abuja warned that the church would not hesitate to discipline clergymen who were not faithful to their calling.

The primate handed down the warning in his closing charge to participants in the 2018 Divine Commonwealth Conference, with the theme: “I will restore”

The Anglican leader noted that it had become worrisome that bishops of the church did not subject prospective priests to scrutiny through rigorous checks before their ordination.
Okoh said: “So many clergymen have been dismissed, so many have been defrocked and so many have been suspended from the church.

More here-

https://theeagleonline.com.ng/church-will-sack-unfaithful-priests-anglican-primate/

Disciplinary action abandoned as Newcastle bishop criticised by royal commission dies

From Australia-

Disciplinary proceedings against a former Anglican bishop in New South Wales have been discontinued in the wake of his death.

Alfred Charles Holland was Newcastle's bishop between 1978 and 1992.

The royal commission made adverse findings against him, and he was referred by the diocese to the Australian Anglican Church's Episcopal Standards Commission.

The current bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Newcastle, Peter Stuart, said Bishop Holland died earlier this month, and that proceedings have been scrapped.

"Noting that Bishop Alfred Holland died on 8 October, 2018, the Episcopal Standards Commission resolved to take no further action to investigate matters arising from the information it has received in respect of the late Bishop," he said.

More here-

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-10-25/church-disciplinary-proceedings-discontined-against-dead-bishop/10427796

Minister who railed against same-sex marriages resigns after disrespecting his wife

From Florida-

An anti-gay Anglican minister in Florida resigned last week after admitting to sexual harassment and “undesired physical displays of affection.” Dudley is married and the father of three.

Father Eric Dudley is the founder of St. Peter’s Anglican Church in Tallahassee and was the leader of that church until he resigned.

In a letter sent to parishioners by the Bishop Neil G. Lebhar of the Gulf Atlantic Diocese, complaints were brought against Dudley and an inquiry was launched by senior priests.

“Father Dudley admitted to inappropriate treatment of others, abuse of alcohol, and anger issues,” Lebhar wrote. “The complaints included patterns of undesired physical displays of affection which were deeply damaging to others and contrary to diocesan harassment policy.”

More here-

https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2018/09/minister-railed-sex-marriages-resigns-disrespecting-wife/

Gambier seminarian later tried for heresy

From Ohio-

Long before Bexley Hall was a part of Kenyon College, the building was the site of an Episcopal seminary school founded in parallel by the college's founder, Bishop Philander Chase.

For many years, before the organization broke off from Kenyon and relocated elsewhere, it served as a training ground for ministers for the Episcopal Church, and many of its students went on to prominent lives in the church across the United States.

But there was one student the seminary school probably later wanted to forget. William Montgomery Brown became briefly infamous in the 1920s, when he become the only person in modern church history to be put on trial for heresy.

More here-

http://www.knoxpages.com/history/gambier-seminarian-later-tried-for-heresy/article_61e3e380-1ce6-563a-85f9-f4a893be0abd.html