FORMER BISHOP WILLIAM LOVE LOSES LOVE FOR THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH
Perhaps to no one's surprise, the Rt. Rev. William Love, the former bishop of the Diocese of Albany is leaving the Episcopal Church. He says he is heading to the Anglican Church in North America, a new denomination not in the Anglican Communion. It was created in 2009 in order to exclude open and non-celibate homosexuals from the church and women from positions of authority in the church. The ACNA was formed as part of the counter-revolutionary reaction in the culture war of contemporary America in opposition to the democratically-aligned and human rights oriented Episcopal Church.
One will recall that Love had defied the last General Convention of the Episcopal Church's resolution requiring the availability of same-sex marriage in every diocese. In defiance of this, Love refused to allow same-sex marriages in his diocese. On Oct. 2, 2020, a disciplinary panel judged that Love had violated church law. Bishop Love then announced he would resign as bishop on February 1, 2021. Subsequently, he asked the Presiding Bishop, Michael Curry, for a release and removal from the ministry of the Episcopal Church. Curry granted this on March 29, 2021. Love said it would be effective on 2 April. The Diocese of Albany has no bishop now; the Standing Committee is the authority (as in the Diocese of SC at present).
Interesting that Love did not try to take the Albany diocese out of the Episcopal Church. It would be fascinating to know why he passed on this. Progressive Episcopalians, while they will disagree with his resistance to social reform in the church, should have a certain respect for Love. In the first place, he did not try a schism. In the second place, he adhered to the church rules for leaving the church. He requested, and received, a formal release and removal from the Presiding Bishop.
This is a stark contrast to what happened in South Carolina. There, the bishop declared, on Oct. 15, 2012, the Diocese of South Carolina to be disassociated from the Episcopal Church (the federal court subsequently ruled that the DSC did not leave the Episcopal Church). This split the old diocese; and the schismatics started a still-ongoing and very expensive and bitter legal war. Too, Lawrence did not ask for a release and removal. Instead, after he declared publicly his abandonment of the Episcopal Church at the diocesan convention on Nov. 17, 2012, the Presiding Bishop issued to Lawrence a formal Release and Removal on Dec. 5, 2012. One cannot know, but can wonder whether the disastrous experience in South Carolina influenced Love's choices.
Find the Episcopal News Service's article about this here .
The statement of the Presiding Bishop is found here .
