The Episcopal Church of the United States has lost its first diocese over its rejection of Scripture and embrace of politically correct positions. In California's fast-growing Central Valley. Ellen Lee of the San Francisco Chronicle reports The Diocese of San Joaquin, a conservative fold that serves California's Central Valley and has long chafed under what it considers the increasing liberalism of its fellow Episcopals, on Saturday became the first in the nation to separate from the U.S. Episcopal Church, voting overwhelmingly to take a strong and definitive stance against how the church deals with homosexuality and other controversial issues.
The diocese, which serves nearly 9,000 parishioners in an area stretching from Lodi to Bakersfield, has effectively seceded from the American wing of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and has placed itself in the hands of the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone of America, which oversees the dioceses in six South American nations.
The diocese plans to retain ownership of church properties. There is no comment yet from the U.S. Episcopal Church as to whether or not it will legally contest ownership. When individual congregations have seceded from their dioceses, the church properties have reverted to the diocese, and the congregations have had to begin anew the raising of funds for churches and other facilities, as I recall.
Stay tuned. There is probably more to come, as the diocese of Pittsburgh is reportedly planning to secede as well.
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