By Bruce Smith ST. GEORGE — The bishop of the Diocese of South Carolina testified Friday that he never originally intended to split with the national Episcopal Church as a three week-trial stemming from the acrimonious division came to a close. The bishop for the state’s parishes that are remaining with the national church, meanwhile,…
By Jennifer Berry Hawes ST. GEORGE – The judge presiding over the local Episcopal schism trial said Wednesday that she considers the case a matter of neutral, secular state laws and not about a hierarchical church’s authority, a potential blow to The Episcopal Church’s argument that it has the religious freedom to govern its own…
By Jeffrey Collins ST. GEORGE, S.C. (AP) — About 50 conservative Episcopal churches in South Carolina are in court this week, trying to keep their name, seal and $500 million in land and buildings after they broke away from the national denomination in a wide-ranging theological dispute. The breakaway group, the Diocese of South Carolina,…