Episcopal Church sues to regain Bristol's Trinity

I'm not sure if this got in the paper today, but I see it's starting to make the rounds on some blogs, so here's the scoop:

BRISTOL – The Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut filed suit this month to regain possession of the Trinity Episcopal Church on Summer Street, whose congregation voted in May to quit the Episcopal Church U.S.A. and align itself with the more conservative Nigerian Anglican Church.
The suit argues that the Rev. Donald Helmandollar and leaders within the Bristol church “relinquished all legal right to possess or control” the parish, its records and furnishings.
The suit, filed in New Britain, asks a judge to order the Helmandollar and his supporters to turn over control of the building, account for their spending and perhaps impose a punitive fine.
Bishop Andrew Smith asked the renegade church members to vacate the buildings and surrender control of them to the Connecticut diocese by July 8.
Instead, the Bristol church members, through an attorney, said they wouldn’t give up the property and threatened “to bring trespass charges against any Diocesan personnel who help recover possession of Parish property for the use of loyal Episcopalians,” according to the diocese.
The church rebels have until Sept. 11 to respond to the suit.
Trinity is one of a half dozen Connecticut parishes that have rejected Smith's authority and no longer support the diocese.Along with a number of parishes across the country that are unhappy with the appointment of a gay bishop in New Hampshire in 2003, Trinity voted to align with the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, an initiative of the Anglican Church of Nigeria.
They say that they’re remaining true to the orthodox foundations of the church and allege that the mainstream church has drifted from its religious roots.
In addition to Helmandollar, the other individuals named as defendants in the suit, all of whom have held church leadership positions at Trinity, are Frederick Clark, Jr, Michael Saman, Marie Bartz, Raymond Bailey, Frank Cummings, Edward Dubois, Thomas O’Keefe, Deborah Thorpe, Deborah Wheeler and Robert Snyder.
The legal filing is available online at www.ctdiocese.org/news/Complaint080707.pdf.




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Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com