Not satisfied with suing the California religious corporations that hold the property they seek to confiscate, the Episcopal Diocese and Bishop Bruno also have sued the unpaid and duly elected church members who have graciously donated their time to serve in church leadership, even going so far as to demand punitive damages from them. Among them are an elementary school teacher, graduate student, small business owner, homemaker and retiree. Will the Diocese be coming after their homes and bank accounts as well?

The Episcopal Church and the Diocese apparently believe that these local churches are a business, as they have pled claims for interference with an economic relationship and unfair business practices. This is not about politics or revenue loss, but respect for religious freedom and compassion for fellow Christians.

The lawsuits contend that the local church families and children are trespassing by attending Sunday services and Sunday school, as they demand an injunction to evict the priests and their congregations, saying that each day these families worship in the churches, the Diocese suffers “grave and irreparable damage.” We fail to see the damage caused by people worshiping God, taking Communion, singing hymns, and reading the Bible together. It is beyond logic and belief that Bishop Bruno, a man of the cloth, would ask a judge to shut down these houses of worship, eject the spiritual shepherds of the people, and lock out faithful Christians.

The lawsuits also allege that the Episcopal Church, the Diocese and Bishop Bruno “are the rightful owners of all personal property that belonged to the Parish prior to its purported disaffiliation including, but not limited to, church funds, assets, investments, intellectual property, and non-fixtures, such as bibles, chalices, and other articles pertaining to worship,” and then seek a court order for them. Does the Bishop of Los Angeles really want to deny Christian people their Bibles and articles of worship? Does the Diocese really want a court order to take away toys, crayons and paper crosses made by the Sunday school children on the theory that they were purchased while the churches were Episcopal?

And who are the so-called “faithful” Episcopalians Bishop Bruno claims are in exile, even though there are dozens of Episcopal churches within driving distance of St. James, All Saints’ and St. David’s? Even though Bishop Bruno took out advertisements in local papers and sent a letter to hundreds of members in these three churches in an attempt to solicit plaintiffs for his lawsuits, he could only muster five people. This pales in comparison to the hundreds of voting members who decided by a margin of 97 percent to amend the articles of incorporation to exclude any mention of the Episcopal Church.

Two fundamental American values are at stake in these cases: freedom of religion and property rights. The churches are confident that the California courts will respect these rights and ultimately conclude that they, as separate California religious corporations, can retain their property and get on with their ministries.

–Mr. Eric C. Sohlgren is attorney for St. James Church and Legal Spokesperson for St. James, All Saints’ and St. David’s Churches