Rochester Diocese Sues Irondequoit Parish; Rector, Vestry Also Named
03/06/2006

The Diocese of Rochester announced at a press conference Monday that it will be asking the New York State Supreme Court, Monroe County, to award it the property and records of the former parish of All Saints' Church, Irondequoit, N.Y., as well as unspecified personal damages from the former rector and vestry.

Last November the Rochester diocesan convention voted to terminate the All Saints' parish charter. The parish has continued to hold regular worship services, claiming affiliation and episcopal leadership from the Anglican Province of Uganda.

“We had hoped to come to an arrangement for receiving keys to come to an arrangement for receiving keys to the property and the records of people’s lives – baptisms, confirmations, marriages, burials, and financial records – without taking the action we have today,” the diocese said in a prepared statement. “But after repeated requests, the former rector and leadership continue to deny us access to both property and records, while continuing to meet in the space without our permission.”

The statement said the diocese is willing to withdraw the complaint if the parish leadership turns over the property and records and “take responsibility for dissolving the secular corporation that is All Saints' Protestant Episcopal Church.”

The rest at The Living Church