Episcopal leaders
ousted a breakaway conservative bishop Wednesday in a
struggle for control of the Diocese of San Joaquin and its
properties.
The Episcopal
House of Bishops, meeting in Texas, took the action against
Bishop John-David Schofield, who last December led the
Fresno diocese to secede from the Episcopal Church.
San Joaquin is
the first full diocese to split from the liberal-leaning
denomination, which in 2003 consecrated the first openly gay
Episcopal bishop, V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire.
Presiding Bishop
Katharine Jefferts Schori, the head of national church,
has been working to maintain oversight of the central
California church region. Episcopal leaders still
consider the diocese part of the denomination.
Schofield, however, aligned the diocese with the
conservative Anglican Church of the Southern Cone, based in
Argentina.
The Episcopal
Church is the Anglican body in the United States.
The House of
Bishops voted to ''depose'' Schofield, which removes him as
head of the diocese and bars him from performing any
religious duties with the Episcopal Church.
Schofield, who
opposes ordaining women and gays, vowed in a statement to
continue leading the diocese as a member of the House of
Bishops of the Southern Cone. ''I am still an active
Anglican bishop,'' he said.
He warned that
any attempt by the denomination to ''seize our property''
through litigation would violate biblical teachings. The
diocese includes 48 church buildings in prime real
estate markets throughout California.
''It appears as
though the real motivation behind all of this is the use
of raw power and coveting property,'' Schofield said.
Jefferts Schori
cautioned that ''since he is no longer the bishop of San
Joaquin it would be inappropriate for him to retain title.''
About 2,000
parishioners in the 8,000-member diocese want to stay in the
Episcopal Church and have hoped for Schofield's removal,
according to Reverend Mark Hall, who is overseeing
efforts to organize parishioners who wish to stay in
the diocese.
''We've been
waiting for this,'' said Ron Miller, a former vestry member
at a Turlock parish that has split into opposing camps.
''Many of us have gone through very hurtful times and
vilifications by Schofield supporters. This is the
initial step leading us toward healing and
reconciliation.''
Since last
August, dozens of worshippers have been studying the Bible
at a parishioner's home and are planning to hold
Easter Sunday services in a park because congregants
who support the bishop have control of St. Francis
parish, Miller said.
Jefferts Schori
and other leaders plan to travel to Stockton,
Calif., on March 29 for a convention in which
parishioners who wish to stay with the national
denomination will elect a new bishop.
The global
Anglican Communion is a family of churches that trace their
roots to the Church of England. The fellowship is on the
brink of schism over Robinson's consecration.
Schofield and
other conservatives believe Scripture bars same-sex
relationships, and he told San Joaquin churchgoers that they
risked moral decay by staying with the Episcopal
Church.
Several dozen
conservative U.S. parishes have split from the national
denomination since 2003 and, like Schofield, aligned with
like-minded Anglican provinces overseas. But a
majority of Episcopalians accept gay relationships,
based on biblical teachings on social justice. (Garance
Burke, AP)
