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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Following are answers to frequently asked questions related to the announcement about the separation between the Episcopal Diocese of Kansas and Christ Episcopal Church of Overland Park. 

Q: What caused the split between Christ Church and the diocese?

There are many reasons for why any relationship ceases to work, but a root cause in this case is that the parish and the diocese have different understandings of the nature of authority in the institutional church. Christ Church’s leaders have concluded that the structure of the national Episcopal Church no longer had legitimacy for them because of differing interpretations of Scripture and actions of the national church relating to homosexuality and other issues.  As these differences progressed, the parish moved away from fulfilling expectations that the Episcopal Church places on its member congregations.

Q: So did the diocese ask the parish to leave?

No.  The Bishop made repeated visits to the parish and had a number of conversations with its clergy and vestry.  In those conversations, the Bishop made it clear that the parish’s decisions would have consequences.  The diocese told the leadership of the parish that its actions – including not contributing its allocated share of the diocesan budget – could not continue.

Q: What happened that led to this outcome?

The most visible action occurred following the consecration of a gay man as the bishop of New Hampshire in November 2003, when the parish advised its members that it no longer would pay its required apportionment (the assessment paid by each parish for the support of the common work of the diocese).  It gave members the option of indicating whether or not they wanted a portion of their parish financial pledge to support the diocese and, by extension, the national church, and said the parish would forward to the diocese only that portion of its monthly payment agreed to by members. Members who failed to indicate a preference were considered as choosing to withhold funds.

Q: Did this have an impact on the diocesan budget?

Yes, it did. As the largest congregation in the Episcopal Diocese of Kansas, its payments to support the diocesan budget were the largest among the 50 churches of the diocese – just under $190,000 for 2004.  The parish in 2004 did pay about 13 percent of its commitment, apparently based on the responses of members asking to continue to support the diocese and national church.

But that created a large gap in the budget. Fortunately, more than 500 contributors responded to the special “ding the deficit” fundraising campaign in 2004 that collected more than $130,000 for ministries such as college work, youth, search processes for parishes looking for clergy, communications, and the work of diocesan committees and other bodies.

Q: How large is Christ Episcopal Church?

Christ Episcopal Church, in its required parochial report to the diocese for the year 2003, reported 2,290 baptized members and 2,152 communicant members, making it the largest parish in the Episcopal Diocese of Kansas.  It also is one of the larger congregations in the Episcopal Church.  According to information compiled for the 2002 Church Annual, Christ Episcopal Church ranks 41st in total membership and 17th in average Sunday attendance.

Q: Why couldn’t the diocese have left the parish alone to live its beliefs?

The diocese, and especially Bishop Wolfe, is committed to upholding members of the church in this diocese who hold a variety of theological positions.  It wasn’t Christ Church’s theology that proved a problem – it was the decision by the parish leadership that they were not bound by the same structures within the Episcopal Church as everyone else.  That decision meant the burden of funding the diocese fell to individuals and our remaining parishes, many of which have fewer than 100 members and exist in rural, struggling areas of the state. These places often have to sacrifice to meet their financial obligations – which they do – and they have a fraction of the human and financial resources of Christ Church.

Q: So it’s all about money?

Well, partly.  The leadership of Christ Church and the diocese agreed that money is symbolic of the issue.  The parish’s decision to withhold money became a visible sign of withdrawing from the life of the diocesan community.

Q: What are the terms of the financial obligations Christ Church would accept if the proposed agreement is approved?

A new entity, “Christ Church,” will assume the current parish’s mortgage debt of approximately $1.7 million and make payments totaling $1 million to the diocese over the next 10 years.

Q: Christ Church says the diocese and national church have abandoned the Bible.  Is that true?

There are various ways to view Scripture within the life of the church.  Some people stress a more static interpretation, and others see the Bible as being continually interpreted by the church under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  The leadership of Christ Church favor the more static interpretation. The Episcopal Church, in general, believes in understanding and living the revelation of Scripture in our own day through the Holy Spirit. Each position seeks to express the mind of Christ as best it can – even though the two beliefs are difficult to reconcile. And although many individuals and parishes with a wide range of beliefs about Scripture have found ways to continue to be part of the Episcopal Church, it became clear over time that it would not be possible in this instance.

Q: So Christ Church won’t be a part of the Episcopal Church. Will it be part of something else?

That is up to Christ Church.  It could affiliate with some other Protestant body, or it could stand alone as a congregational church.  It will not be an Episcopal church, and since the Episcopal Church is the expression of the Anglican Communion in this country, it won’t be an Anglican church in communion with the Archbishop of Canterbury.  Since the days of the Council of Nicea in 325 AD, the Christian church has been adamant that a local bishop is the only person with authority in that geographic jurisdiction.  That belief was upheld by the Windsor Report released to the Anglican Communion last October.

Q: What happens to the clergy? Will they get to keep their pensions?

The diocese will take the appropriate actions under church laws to remove the authority of some of the clergy to function as Episcopal priests and deacons.  Episcopal priests do participate in the Church Pension Fund, and Pension Fund rules govern who participates and how.  The former priests should have full access to past pension payments.

Q:  Did the outcome of the recent meeting of the primates of the Anglican Communion have something to do with this announcement?

No. First, the primates took no action that would apply in this situation.  More importantly, this announcement simply reflects the fact that after months of prayerful and meaningful discussion, the diocese concluded that the parish must obey church policy, and the leadership of the parish concluded it couldn’t do that.

Q:  What will happen in the Episcopal Diocese of Kansas going forward?

We will continue to preach the Word of God, administer the Sacraments, care for the sick, feed the poor, teach the children the Good News of God in Christ and help build the Kingdom of God in this place and time. We will make every effort to care for the members of Christ Church who want to remain part of the Episcopal Church USA. And we will allow nothing to deter us from the work God has called us to do.