Bishop, Staff won't talk to media about Reservation mission closures

From the Sioux Falls Argus Leader:

Robertson was not at work Wednesday and would not answer questions at his home Wednesday night.

"I'll be in my office (Thursday)," he said.

Diocesan Administrator Randy Barnhardt did not return a message left at the diocese Wednesday and was not home in the evening.

And do I dare mention that we had the news up on this blog 3 days before the major daily newspaper? Mainstream Media - Some of the news, and most of it late.

Two Resolutions That We've Put Forward in South Dakota

Diocesan Convention here is Oct. 3 - 5 in Chamberlain. Please pray - especially that the Holy Spirit will open eyes, ears, hearts and minds.

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#01 REQUEST FOR ACCOUNTING OF EPISCOPAL CHURCH LAWSUITS

Submitted by The Reverend Timothy & Melissa Fountain, Dale & Ingrid Dobrovolny, Ron & Tammy Briggs, Jane Hassenstein

RESOLVED, that the One Hundred Twenty-second Convention of the Diocese of South Dakota requests that the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church provide the denomination with the following information:
a. the dollar amount spent by TEC on litigation against dioceses, parishes, groups of churches and individuals since General Convention 2006;
b. a list of the church accounts and/or budget items from which these funds were taken;
c. an accurate comparison of dollars spent on litigation versus dollars spent on Millennium Development Goals since General Convention 2006;
d. the proposed amount of money for litigation to be presented to the 2009 General Convention of the Episcopal Church.

RESOLVED, that the Ecclesiastical Authority of the Diocese of South Dakota communicate this request to the Presiding Bishop no later than November 5th, 2008.

RESOLVED, that the Presiding Bishop’s response (or lack thereof) be reported to the clergy and people of the Diocese of South Dakota prior to the Bishop Coadjutor election in 2009.

Explanation: Earlier this year, I sent a letter to the Bishop, Standing Committee Members and General Convention Deputies of this Diocese, objecting to the Episcopal Church’s campaign of litigation against people all across the United States. I did not receive a single reply (not even an acknowledgement) of my letter.

Meanwhile, the Episcopal Church has lost a number of large cases that it initiated against churches in Virginia and California, and is currently appealing those cases at even greater cost. Funds designated for Native American ministries (including South Dakota), for overseas missionary support, and for other programs have been cut while the money spent on litigation continues to be spent without any accounting to the church.

The last General Convention (and this Diocese) voted to make the United Nations Millennium Development Goals the mission priority of the church. There needs to be an accurate accounting to show that Episcopal Church spending is true to this stated goal and not being diverted to unreported projects.

Our diocese, parishes and missions practice good stewardship by keeping and publishing accurate information about their finances. There is simply no excuse for concealing the use of money that has been donated by faithful Christians for God’s work. This is especially true when programs are being cut and needs are going unmet.

Impact on Budget: Potentially positive if the national church stops funding lawsuits and restores money to local mission and ministry.

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#02 - REQUEST THAT THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH REPLACE LAWSUITS WITH NEGOTIATION AND/OR MEDIATION WHERE POSSIBLE

Submitted by The Reverend Timothy & Melissa Fountain, Dale & Ingrid Dobrovolny, Ron & Tammy Briggs, Jane Hassenstein

RESOLVED, that the One Hundred Twenty-second Convention of the Diocese of South Dakota requests that the Episcopal Church adopt a policy of negotiation and/or mediation prior to initiating lawsuits over property.

RESOLVED, that the Ecclesiastical Authority of the Diocese of South Dakota communicate this request to the Presiding Bishop and Executive Council of the Episcopal Church no later than November 5th, 2008.

RESOLVED, that the Ecclesiastical Authority of this diocese report the national church’s response (or lack thereof) prior to the election of a Bishop Coadjutor in 2009.

Explanation: Because of controversial issues, some dioceses and congregations wish to separate from The Episcopal Church. The Episcopal Church has sued hundreds of these dissenters, including individual lay people, all around the country. Whether or not one agrees with the dissenters, the following facts need to be addressed by church leaders:

a. The Bible says that litigation between Christians is “spiritual defeat” for all involved (I Corinthians 6:1-8);
b. Our Baptismal Covenant calls us to seek both “justice” AND “peace”;
c. The laws are different in every state, which forces many lawsuits, at great cost, with no consistent results;
d. The Episcopal Church has lost several large cases already, and is now spending unreported amounts of money to file appeals;
e. There have been efforts (Overland Park, Kansas and Plano, Texas are two examples) in which negotiation worked. The Episcopal dioceses received payment for property and other significant compensation, and the dissenters were allowed to keep their property;
f. It is common in Labor, Family and other types of courts to use negotiation as a means to avoid the expense and relationship damage of litigation;
g. The current policy of The Episcopal Church, (suing without negotiating), is very expensive in a time when resources are scarce, is not effective in retaining property or resources, and it works against good will for future reconciliation within the church.

Impact on Budget: Potentially positive as negotiation is less expensive than litigation, and the national church and dioceses would gain immediate and future income from negotiated property settlements.

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Also sent this cover letter to all Senior Wardens around the diocese:

September 1, 2008

Dear Friend in Christ,

I am writing you because you are a leader entrusted with the well being of God’s people – both their spiritual well being and the good stewardship of the church’s resources.

Are you aware of the following facts?

The Episcopal Church has sued congregations and even lay people all around the country, in cases costing millions of dollars.
TEC is losing many of these cases and going on to file even more expensive appeals.
The proposed diocesan budget shows that General Convention is cutting its grant to the Diocese of South Dakota by 5% in 2009.
The proposed Diocesan Budget places the burden on congregations to give more and uses endowment money to make up for what TEC is taking back to use on unaccounted actions.
National church funds for Native American ministries and Overseas Missionaries were cut last year.

I am part of a concerned group that has submitted Diocesan Convention Resolutions, asking for TEC to give full accounting of its lawsuits and to adopt more Christian means of conflict resolution. These Resolutions should be present at your Deanery pre-Convention meetings this month. It is my hope that you will take them seriously and ask questions about how the church’s money is being spent. This has significant implications for our diocesan budget in 2009.

Please share this information with your diocesan convention delegates! This information is NOT being reported by TEC or in diocesan news, and many clergy are afraid to speak up.

May Christ Jesus bless your service in His Name. If you have questions, feel free to be in touch with me: (605) 332-1474, rector.gsc@midconetwork.com .

Tim+
The Rev. Timothy Fountain

Province VI calls on Episcopal Church to restore funding for Native American ministries

In June, the Provincial gathering passed this resolution:

Resolved, that this 2008 Synod Province VI, meeting on the Standing Rock Reservation of North Dakota, request the Program, Budget and Finance Committee of the General Convention, to increase by 15% the base budget support awarded at General Convention 2006 to each of the four "aided dioceses" for ministry with Native peoples.

Be it further resolved, that the Executive Council's Budget Committee include this request in their budgeting process leading to the next Triennial Budget of the General Convention 2009.

From the Diocese of South Dakota Church News
http://www.diocesesd.org/SepOct08.pdf (scroll down to pp. 4 & 5)

Enlightened, freedom loving "pro-choicers" vandalize Pro-Life display on private property - PLEASE HELP THE CAMPAIGN FOR LIFE!

Ain't we lucky that people who do this are the ones who lecture us on what constitutes a "wanted child," a "healthy family" or a "meaningful life"?

Please donate to South Dakota's Vote Yes for Life Measure 11. The abortionist opponents of the measure are in the midst of a national fund raising drive.

Hat/tip Voices Carry Blog (see my Useful Links down to the right of this page).

Diocese " will dispose of " nine Pine Ridge Reservation churches

The September '08 newsletter of St. Katharine's Church, Martin, SD, contains a report on The Pine Ridge Episcopal Mission Council meeting of August 31st.

The following is from that report.:

"...read two letters from Bishop Robertson regarding the Ministry on the Pine Ridge Mission. Both letters concern the viability and presence of the Episcopal Church on the Pine Ridge Mission and both offer an (sic) new and different vision for the ministry on the Mission...

'...Effective the first Sunday of Advent, November 30, 2008, the following actions will be implemented...

...The churches of Christ, Red Shirt Table; St. John's, Oglala; Epiphany, Wolf Creek; St. Andrew's, Wakpamni Lake; St. Thomas, Manderson; St. Barnabas, Kyle; St. Timothy's, Potato Creek; St. Alban's, Porcupine; and Inestimable Gift, Allen, will be closed and property disposed of according to Diocesan Policy.'"

Bishop Robertson and the Diocese faced a hard decision. I've blogged about the low attendance and lack of church cohesion on the Reservations. The Diocese is combining some congregations on the Pine Ridge and the nine that are closing had very low attendance. This is the kind of decision a diocese must make sometimes, and it is thankless and painful work.

That being said, a few questions need raising:

• In April, Bishop Robertson himself stated that Episcopal Church budget cuts were costing South Dakota the financial means to support a Reservation Vicar (a missioner to a regional cluster of churches). The Episcopal Church is spending into the millions of dollars (although it won't answer requests for specifics) to sue Christians who dissent from TEC's departures from Biblical and traditional Christian faith. So, the question hangs in the air: Is the lawsuit policy of TEC's New York bureaucracy cutting out ministry to some of the poorest people in the United States? Are efforts to grab up suburban church buildings being subsidized by the "disposal" of Reservation churches?
• We White folks tend to romanticize Native Americans, but they have plenty of common human foibles. Tribal/clan identities can fuel feuds and grudges. It has been known for some time that several Pine Ridge leaders (mostly Oglala Lakota) and the Bishop (who is Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota) have been squabbling or estranged (gee, sounds familiar). There are many struggling congregations in South Dakota - why did the Pine Ridge take the hit?
• The rush to "dispose of property" does not pass the smell test. I've sat in plenty of clergy meetings here where priests argue for giving this or that piece of the state "back to the Lakota." Heck, that's probably right based on the treaty-breaking that snatched the land. But when push comes to shove, TEC is there to cannibalize property for its own use. No thought of, "Let's give this to the people of the Pine Ridge." Why don't "justice" and "Millennium Development Goals" apply to TEC property management decisions?

And of course the screaming issue is that TEC is closing more churches. TEC can't evangelize. TEC can't develop Christian communities. TEC is dying by attrition with no converts, no births and no intergenerational transmission of faith. TEC is getting rid of - even suing - the clergy and lay leaders who have the best track records in evangelism and congregational growth.

TEC's tale just gets shabbier and shabbier.