Was it because this lover asked the bishop to marry him - as their version of what is traditionally known as The Big Question?

Or did this have something to do with the physical aspects of their relationship?

Within days of this male bishop's announcement of his forthcoming June bridehood, the first entire diocese in the Episcopal Church voted overwhelmingly to get out, leave, secede and depart from this U.S. denomination of tolerated bridal buggery.

In Fresno, Calif., the 47-church Diocese of San Joaquin voted overwhelmingly to leave the Episcopal Church and affiliate with other Anglicans overseas.

This did not result in no comment from Presiding Bishop Schori, as did the New Hampshire male-bride announcement.

Schori announced that she received this news "with sadness" and she went on to say:

"We deeply regret their unwillingness or inability to live within the historical Anglican understanding of comprehensive-ness."

This ecclesiastical sweet talk of regret, when translated, really means that this most Reverend Lady has in mind the following:

"We'll see you in court! We are a legal establishment of religion, a Corporation. If your conscience leads you to reject any new rules and beliefs we enact in General Convention, you are free t o exercise your right to worship.

"But if you do so, we will seize all of your church property!"

Will all secular courts tolerate this bizarre manifestation of Christian charity - which could be described as a Real Estate Inquisition?

How in the name of the First Amendment can any civil court in the United States allow the guaranteed exercise of religious freedom to be penalized by property confiscation?

This especially applies in the case of two of the 11 Episcopal churches - Truro and Falls Church - that have seceded from the Diocese of Virginia, which is presently suing them in civil court.

Truro and Falls Church were both founded before the Episcopal Church - or the United States - existed.

Why should any court allow their property to be seized - by either the Episcopal Church or by the Church of England, from which they also rebelled during the American Revolution?

Presiding Bishop Schori also threatened more seceding dioceses. But the Diocese of Pittsburgh's Bishop Duncan replied that he would not compromise the faith of the Apostles. And when Schori similarly threatened Bishop Iker of Forth Worth, he rebuked what he described as her "aggressive, dictatorial posturing" and warned that her threats "do not frighten us."

END