The following comes from a July 18 Virtue Online article by David W. Virtue:
The property loss last week by the Anglican Diocese of San Joaquin after eight years of battling, has drawn to a close. The winner, at least on the surface, is The Episcopal Church. They were handed a cool $50 million worth of properties including investments, endowment portfolios, as well as a crown jewel of real estate: Evergreen Conference Center, by the California Supreme Court.
The court action let stand an April decision from the Fifth District Appellate Court in favor of the Episcopal Church. That court found that the late Bishop John-David Schofield and the diocesan convention had failed to comply with the Episcopal Church’s canons when attempting to transfer properties.
But the Episcopal diocese has not won the hearts of a single Anglican Christian. The Episcopal diocese draws a total average weekly Sunday attendance (ASA) of 925. The one Anglican Hispanic congregation built under the episcopacy of the evangelical catholic bishop Eric Menees, has close to 1,000 members.
More than 90 percent of the congregations that had once comprised the Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin severed their Episcopal ties and joined the Anglican Church in North America.
The Episcopal diocese may have won a bunch of real estate, but that’s all. They have not and will not be able to make those parishes grow again. Period. In a few months, perhaps in a year or two, most of them will be on the chopping block, available for sale to imams for mosques or upstart evangelical congregations. The Episcopal Church has no ability to draw Nones or pansexualists into their churches. Their rectors do not know how to do the hard work of making disciples for Christ, especially if all you are selling is a load of social bonhomie, anti-racism training and an ill-defined Jesus Movement à la Michael Curry.
The figures speak for themselves. The San Joaquin diocese has only 20 congregations, with three parishes above 100! Last year, the diocese saw 9 children baptized, received some 16 into its congregations and saw 14 marriages. Burials totaled 43! More than three above combined.
The deeper truth is that the Episcopal Church is dying, and so is this diocese. It cannot draw into its fold young people, and homosexuals/lesbians are not banging down the red doors to crawl into episcopal pews. In one diocese after another, churches are closing and buildings are going up for sale, even diocesan headquarters in prestigious dioceses.
None of us here can care less about this “church” of laymen who play “dress up” and pretend to be priests and bishops, and have so called women priests and bishops, folks this is a dead and dying sect. The only Church we should care about is the Holy Roman Catholic and Apostolic Church, founded by Our Lord God Jesus Christ himself!!! Deo Gratias
All true, but it’s an important object lesson on what happens when a religious organization attempts to be ‘updated’ and ‘relevant’, thinking it will attract more people, or bring back those who have left. If their de facto motto is “Whatever…”, then why should anyone bother to devote an hour of every week to it, much less a lifetime of service? Please take note, Certain German Cardinals.
And so goes the Catholic Church, if it follows the same path of these apostates.
I recall talking to an Episcopal lady, from a church of the Diocese of San Joachin, when this first started. She and her congregation were all so determined to split from the Episcopal Church, and follow Christ! They all knew there would be a lawsuit– and her family would all lose their beloved church home, which their ancestors had helped to build. So heartbreaking! But the property really now belonged to the Episcopal Church, not them, as they were breaking away! I felt so badly for them all! But I also admired their great courage! And the statistics say– that the Episcopal Church someday will be extinct, in the U.S.!! True Christians will leave it, and the rest don’t care!
At the time I talked to this lady (a long time ago, now!)— she told me that her congregation had actually joined with a big Anglican branch, that had split away from the Anglican Church– and had returned to the old Anglican-style service, with male priests only, and no gays, either. She called this branch, headed by a “breakaway” bishop– something like “Southern Cone.” This bishop, and his branch, which was very large— had all returned to the old Anglican or Episcopal church– before their modern reforms, in the 1970’s. I bet this lady’s parish church later switched to the Anglican Church in North America, as is stated in this article.
This specter of Schism threatens the Catholic Church as well. The Gaystapo Infiltration and Ephebophile Attack on Boys has not only bankrupted many Diocese, but kept Men and Boys from active participation – lest they be soiled with the same sickness.
This has led to primacy of Radical Gender Feminist Misandry (Hatred of Men & Boys, Masculinity & Normal Heterosexuality) all the way from Catechism up to University – like the disgrace of Santa Clara and its Rank Hatred of “Dangerous Outsider Straight Men” (quoting white house ‘Trans-Fellow- Shannon Minter).
‘We” – have surrendered to the Radicals because it is too much trouble and pain to stand up to them – and then wonder why the institution is failing like the Episcopal Schism…