Not All San Joaquin Parishes Plan to Leave
12/11/2006

At least four congregations in the Diocese of San Joaquin will probably remain with The Episcopal Church if clergy and lay delegates to the 2007 annual convention in the Diocese of San Joaquin approve a second reading of constitutional changes that would effectively remove the California diocese from the denomination.

Holy Family, Fresno; St. Anne’s, Stockton; St. John the Baptist Church, Lodi; and St. Francis, Turlock have taken official decisions not to leave. Other clergy and congregations in the diocese are likely to remain loyal to The Episcopal Church, but have chosen not say so publicly, according to the Rev. Rick Matters, rector of St. John the Baptist.

“Some feel intimidated,” Fr. Matters told The Living Church. “For Christians there is a unity that from my perspective a diocesan convention cannot undo. If you live in Lodi, you are automatically a resident of California and the United States. It’s no different being part of this diocese and The Episcopal Church.”

the rest at The Living Church