A leader with the Diocese of South Carolina is pleased with a judge's ruling that the parishes can leave the Episcopal Church and take property, including church buildings, symbols and other assets.
A South Carolina circuit court judge handed down the decision last week.
Canon Jim Lewis says this is the latest loss for the national Episcopal Church, which has used threats of litigation to keep its members in line.
Lewis tells OneNewsNow that the diocese and its congregations are protected legally and "have every right" to disassociate with the Episcopal Church.
"The way the judge said this in her ruling is that With the freedom of association necessarily comes freedom of disassociation," Lewis recalls.
The Post and Courier newspaper reported that Judge Diane Goodstein issued a 46-page ruling that affects the diocese and 38 parishes, and about $500 million in church properties.
In 2012, the conservative Diocese of South Carolina separated from the more liberal Episcopal Church over a variety of theological issues.
Following the judge's decision, the Diocese says it will continue to follow the Anglican tradition and intends to focus on the faith needs of its members.
Meanwhile, the Episcopal Church is expected to appeal the ruling.
The newspaper story stated that South Carolina is the fifth Diocese to leave the Episcopal Church. The first was in San Joaquin, California, in 2007.
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