Orthodox Litigation Strategy 12/28/03

Maybe everyone knows this but in light of the most recent decisions from the various courts in California and in New York I would like to refresh the memories of many of our followers on some of the "issues" surrounding the litigation.

"Judge Bellows upheld the written law, correctly applied the Constitution, and was judicious in his rulings throughout this legal process. We hoped that TEC and the Diocese would recognize this and would have put this legal battle behind us," said Jim Oakes, vice-chairman of ADV. "We are saddened that The Episcopal Church and the Diocese find it necessary to continue with more litigation. An appeal process will cost additional millions of dollars that could be spent on mission and ministry.

www.americananglican.org dated February 3, 2009

Within the walls of North America we have The Episcopal Church and the Church of Canada fighting against the Anglican Resistance, using millions and millions of dollars in legal fees and defrocking anyone who stands in their way, without appearing to have any thought to the long-term damage to their own institutions.

BabyBlue dated March 2, 2009

The important question, though, is why would the leaders of the Episcopal church, the center of love, inclusion, and tolerance, spend millions of dollars to sue parishes that apparently amicably departed four years ago at the discretion of the bishop of Ohio? Well, I may have an idea. I have found that some who throw around the words “diversity,” “inclusion,” and “tolerance” are often some of the most non-diverse, exclusive, and intolerant folks around, especially if you don’t happen to agree with them on their pet issues.

blog.ancient-future.net

The facts relating to Diocesan withdrawal are well-known to all of you. Similarly, our position in the Calvary litigation has been consistent and straightforward from the very beginning. The 2005 Stipulation and Order does not address Diocesan realignment.

Mr. Robert Duncan's Lenten Pastoral Letter

3. What legal liabilities would you face if you wanted to leave your current diocese? Recent litigation indicates that the local diocesan authorities hold almost all the cards if they want to play "hardball".
But we think that the political realities are such that the American revisionist bishops will be reticent to play "hardball" for a while. They have just handed the gay lobby a stunning victory, but are forced to pay a fearsome price for it. The opposition at home is far greater than they anticipated and the opposition overseas is serious and inflamed. ECUSA will certainly lose members and funds at a high rate over the next few months accelerating their decline. . . .
ECUSA leaders know well how conservatives could quickly become the "victims" in the public mind. They also know that all our AEO (Alternative Episcopal Oversight)
work will eventually find its way across the desk of the Archbishop of Canterbury(ABC). All of this will create pressure for them to cooperate with the ABC/Primate's call for AEO. So we suspect that there will be a window of time before they return to "hardball" tactics.

This last piece is from Geoff Chapman, dated December 28, 2003.

Ladies and gentlemen, They continue to play all of us for all that they (and we) are worth. When next you see the orthodites complain about "litigating is hurting the church" and "suing is so unchristian like" please refer back to this post. And then, send that newspaper, blogger, editorial writer this reference. These antics are christian???