Schism tears at church’s fabric
By Mary Garrigan, Journal staff
February 24, 2007


RAPID CITY — As his beloved Episcopal Church inches toward schism with the global Anglican Communion, the Rev. Ron Hennies watches the debate from a new distance now.

After 47 years as an Episcopal priest, Hennies was ordained by the Orthodox Church in America in November. That conversion allows him to leave behind the conflicts over same-sex unions and gay ordination that threaten to splinter the Episcopal Church in America.

“It’s a church I still love, but I’m interested in being a traditional Christian,” Hennies said by phone last week. He is a longtime area Episcopal priest. the rest