Episcopal Diocese enters battle over parish property

Jean Torkelson, Rocky Mountain News

Published May 12, 2007 at midnight

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As the Episcopal Diocese closed in on alleged financial wrongdoings, the Rev. Don Armstrong was shredding documents and records so furiously that a shredding machine broke down, according to a countersuit filed Thursday in El Paso County District Court.

With the lawsuit, the diocese formally entered the fray to regain control of the historic Colorado Springs parish property, Grace Church and St. Stephen’s.

The property is currently under the control of Armstrong, its rector of 20 years, and a majority of the church’s governing board, which voted with him in March to break away from the Episcopal Church.

"Time after time courts have ruled that while individuals can leave the church, it is illegal for them to take the property with them," said the chancellor of the diocese, Lawrence R. Hitt II, in a statement. "Grace and St. Stephen's has been an Episcopal church for over 130 years and it will continue to be an Episcopal church."

Alan Crippen, the spokesman for Armstrong, said, "It strikes me the diocese has thrown everything they have, including the kitchen sink, into this thing." He called the shredding charge "on its face, incredulous."

The escalating war between Armstrong and the diocese centers around two battlefields.

In March, after a year-long investigation, the diocese accused Armstrong of misappropriating hundreds of thousands of dollars in parish funds.

Armstrong, who denies the charges, says the diocese is persecuting him for criticizing the Episcopal Church. He’s part of a national movement of conservatives who believe the church has strayed from historic Christian teachings on issues of sexuality and scriptural authority.

They hope to bring the parish property with them into a national network of conservative churches called the Convocation of Anglicans in North America (CANA). A parish vote is scheduled for May 20 to determine if a majority of the 1,500-plus member congregation also wants to join CANA.

The diocese’s countersuit argues that the parish was seized illegally.

The diocese quotes from a purported March 26 e-mail from Armstrong to vestry head Jon Wroblewski as they were preparing to break away. Referring to Episcopal Bishop Rob O’Neill, the e-mail said: "He has no army and no keys and no authority — possession is 9/10s of the law and I have the microphone."

Wroblewski sent the e-mail on to other vestry members adding his own message: "Prepare for battle. Ramming speed."

Wroblewski acknowledged his e-mail today. Crippen shrugged off the exchange, saying Armstrong was out of town but suspected the rector wouldn’t deny the aggressive e-mails.

"The vestry is made up of bunch of military veterans including Armstrong himself, and these guys talk like this all the time," Crippen said. "When they voted on March 26 they were in a very celebratory mood. That probably lasted about 10 minutes when they realized what was coming down the pike."

The Armstrong camp argues that it’s free to join CANA because the parish is a separate non-profit corporation founded 14 years before the Episcopal Diocese. Also, it has held its own title to the property since the land was donated to the church in the 1870s by Colorado Springs founder, General William Palmer.

They regard it as relevant that the parish is incorporated under name which doesn’t include the word "Episcopal."

In its counterclaim, the Episcopal Diocese said that the parish and the congregation used the name Episcopal regularly over the years, dating back to the mid-1800s when the first Episcopalian settlers came to Colorado.

What’s more, the diocese maintains that while a local parish corporation may hold the title to the property,the parish’s purpose has always remained constant — to further the mission of the diocese and the Episcopal Church, said the diocese's attorney, Martin Nussbaum.

"This is absolutely settled law in Colorado," Nussbaum said.

The diocese is citing a 1986 Colorado Supreme Court decision which said an Episcopal parish in Denver had to return its property to the diocese. The parish, St. Mary's, tried to keep its property after it broke away from the Episcopal Church in the 1970s after it voted to ordain women.

Hitt said in his statement that the diocese will continue with a church trial against Armstrong, and he suggested the legal challenges mounted by Armstrong's group are attempts to deflect the serious allegations against him.

"This litigation is not about theology or differences of opinion in the church," Hitt said. "It is an effort by that break-away group to distract attention from the very serious charges of theft and misconduct against Armstrong."

Crippen said the Armstrong group will continue to fight for the church’s right to self-determination.

"This thing is going to play out over several months and maybe years," Crippen said. "We'll patiently for the civil court system to administer justice."

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