Like 46 other Episcopalian parishes in the cluster of nearby

counties, St. Mark’s Church in Tracy is now part of a much smaller denomination

after local Anglicans voted overwhelmingly to cut ties with its North American

province at a convention Dec. 8.

In the spirit of its founding nearly 500 years ago, when

King Henry VIII cut ties with the Roman Catholic Church to annul a marriage he

deemed inconvenient, Anglicans from 14 Central Valley counties that make up the

Diocese of San Joaquin voted for the separation from Episcopal Church USA to

protest the appointment of gay clergy and women in church leadership.

The separation could raise disputes over who legally owns

the properties in the local diocese, and even spark a lawsuit, say officials

from the Diocese of San Joaquin.

Except for eight parishes that were incorporated separately

or existed before the diocese was formed, Bishop John-David Schofield, who led

the schism, holds legal title to about 40 churches in the Central Valley

diocese.

“We hold that there is no legal ownership of the property

beyond the bishop (Schofield),” said Bill Gandenberger of the Fresno-based Diocese

of San Joaquin. “The question about property will have to be solved by the

courts if, and when, the Episcopal Church (USA) initiates actions.”

Even then, Gandenberger said, based on past fights between

congregations and their diocese, such a case could get postponed for years

before being heard in court.

Leaders from the national denomination will now look at forming

a new Central Valley diocese with an interim bishop after both clergy and

laymen from the San Joaquin Diocese chose to affiliate instead with conservative

South American Anglicans.

Schofield, who has isolated himself from the main Episcopal

body, has a history of rallying against gay clergy and what he holds to be “non-literal”

interpretations of the Bible.

In the months leading up to the secession, Schofield’s

archbishop, Katherine Jeffers Schori, wrote him letters urging him to communicate

with other diocese and voice his dissent formally instead of marginalizing

himself and rallying his own congregations against church higher-ups.

St. Mark’s was one of 45 congregations at the convention

this month that supported the separation. The remaining churches that voted

against the decision were St. Anne in Stockton and St. John the Baptist in

Lodi.

St. John’s and St. Anne’s churches will continue to operate

in practice under the authority of the national denomination, said Father Mark

Hall of St. Anne.

“We’re in a vacuum right now. Schofield is claiming powers

that were never intended him to have,” Hall said. “(Separation) is an illegal

action because you can’t disassociate from a body that created you.”

Hall said he believes the contentions about gay clergy

Schofield raises are signs of “a slight bit of mental illness” and the decision

to secede puts congregations like Hall’s in a “questionable legal status.”

“All of his arguments are specious arguments because he

can’t speak for people like me. We read the scriptures every Sunday and take

the Bible seriously, not literally. It’s easy to mislead when you take

statements out of context,” Hall said. “It’s a classic schismatic action of

someone who’s unstable, completely out of line (and) doomed for failure.”

St. Mark’s backs Schofield’s stance and supports his

decision to split.

With as many legal and doctrinal complications as it sparks

for its spiritual leaders, the denominational split should have little to no

bearing on day-to-day worshippers, Gandenberger said.

Church services in the separated diocese should be no

different under the shift in leadership, Gandenberger said.

“Our people will have the same styles of worship, the same

Book of Common Prayer, the same hymnals and newsletters,” he said.

What would change is that congregations would recognize

South American Archbishop Gregory Venables during prayer instead of the U.S. Episcopalian

Archbishop Schori.

Local parishes are teaching what Episcopalians have always

taught, said Ganderberger — Biblical Christianity.

“From our perspective, it is the leadership of the Episcopal

Church (USA) that is bent on breaking away from mainstream, Biblical

Christianity,” he said. “We are simply choosing not to follow them.”

•We want to hear what you have to say. To reach Tracy Press

reporter Jennifer Wadsworth, call 830-4225 or e-mail jwadsworth@tracypress.com.