At present there is just one lawsuit pending in the Diocese of Milwaukee, brought by ECUSA and the Diocese against those whom it contends are the rector and vestry members of
St. Edmund's Anglican Church, in Elm Grove, Waukesha County. As is ECUSA's custom in such proceedings, the lawsuit names each of the members of the vestry individually, when the whole
parish -- not just the vestry -- voted on December 29, 2008, by an overwhelming majority (75 in favor, nine against), to be the first parish to leave the Diocese, and consequently also the Episcopal Church (USA). And also as usual in such cases, the Diocese wants to claim a parish's property for its own by rigid application of
the Dennis Canon, so that the church buildings can lie vacant and not be used, since nine members do not a congregation make.
There are lots of background details to the dispute in
this local news story. Prior to voting to withdraw from the governance structure of the Diocese and of ECUSA, the parishioners adopted
a Declaration which encapsulates the quintessential reasons for making such a resolve. There are more background details and links to documents
in this article, as well.
As and when the court documents for the lawsuit become available, I shall put up further posts.
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