Authority of Dennis Canon to sieze property refuted by the South Carolina Supreme Court

Anglican Curmudgeon has his excellent commentary now up on the win of AMiA in their property dispute with The Episcopal Church. He writes:

The opinion presents a clear and thoroughly common-sense refutation of ECUSA's outlandish claims: that as a hierarchical Church, it has the power (1) to decide which congregation/vestry is the "true" congregation/vestry in a given parish; and (2) to override State law by imposing a trust on all parish property everywhere in its Dioceses without its being the owner of any of that property.

This is indeed at the heart of the official TEC argument. It has been a new invention since the current Presiding Bishop took office. I recall that in the Virginia Circuit Court, the Diocese of Virginia was asked why they didn't require the parishes to transfer the ownership of their properties to the diocese after the Dennis Canon was alleged passed by General Convention so that the diocese would comply with Virginia law, the lawyers for the Diocese said it would cause an uproar in the Diocese. Of course it would! And the ruling in South Carolina illustrates why.

Read Curmudgeon's excellent commentary here.