The Diocese of Ottawa’s version of St. Alban’s in Ottawa is obviously having a little difficulty placing bodies in the pews now that the ANiC congregation has vacated the premises.
To create the illusion of an active parish, the diocese is importing the congregation from All Saints’ Sandy Hill – and closing it for part of the summer:
Enquiries on this Anglican congregation shell game may be directed to what appears to be an abbreviated email address: assh@on.aibn.com.
Why does the diocese need St Alban’s when All Saint’s has hit the wall according to its web site? I suggest the ANIC parish hang in til the buildings of All Saint’s come up for sale. Might be fire sale pricing by then.
There are a number of reasons.
1. All Saint’s is in terrible shape, and needs a great deal of money in repairs.
2. St. Alban’s is a heritage building, so it can’t be torn down.
3. Father George was very prominent in the Essentials movement, and I think there was a “get George” element involved.
So – I think All Saint’s will be sold to a developer, and the congregation moved to St. Alban’s.
When will you guys just stop talking about buildings and grow up?
If you haven’t noticed yet:
1. Provincial Supreme Courts have ruled time and again that ownership of a church is not subject to the fleeting fad of the current congregation
2. Congregants are stewards of property that pass from one generation to the next
3. The deeded ownership of all church property is to the diocese
4. The ACC will not be bullied by a renegade group bent on destroying the church community
We could talk forever about church property. You could save everybody a whole lot of money and grief if you just went on your merry way and built your own church elsewhere.
Why are you so threatened by us? I really have to wonder why you keep making comments like that. We talk about it because it matters. If you don’t like it, nobody is forcing you to read it.
Yes, we seem to have lost in court. No, I don’t think that it is just that a parish like St. Hilda’s, which has paid for its building with zero contribution from the diocese, will have to walk away. Take a look at the stewardship post – that stewardship fellow in Toronto has seen through the smokescreen.
Oh dear. I hadn’t realized that the eighth myth was your writing, David, I thought someone in the ACoC had actually connected all the dots. Joke’s on me.