The Los Angeles gathering would be the first admission of schism by the 2.2-million-member denomination.

"It'll be who gets the money and who gets the kids," Bishop Jecko said. "I hope it will be an amicable divorce. ... Those of us on the [theologically] orthodox side have no interest in going to court."

The diocese of Salisbury, one of the oldest in Britain, is among those asking clergy to turn financial detective. In a letter it asks them to detail the "earning capacity" and "employment types" of their worshippers and asks staff to collect information about the size and style of homes owned by churchgoers. The advice urges clergy to "look in the car park" to gauge the earning power of worshippers.

Mr Tong, a Sydney solicitor and close friend of Sydney Archbishop Peter Jensen, took a combative stance yesterday, saying that although Dr Carnley had given interviews suggesting how the panel would operate, the panel itself would decide that when it met.

He agreed that his appointment was a significant concession by Dr Williams to evangelicals, who oppose gay priests and gay marriage.

Two clowns in full regalia stood on a Downtown sidewalk. On a gray morning, they were bursts of color in their red and orange wigs and painted faces. One wore a red and white costume with pom-poms. The other was in a red and yellow oversized clown suit complete with bowtie.

Had the circus come to Lower Manhattan?