Denver, USA - Colorado's largest Episcopal church was left in chaos after leaders voted to leave the denomination and the bishop responded by dismissing the parish's leadership.
The controversy at Colorado Springs' Grace Episcopal Church and St. Stephen's Parish is the latest to roil the Episcopal Church following the national denomination's acceptance of homosexuality.
The vestry of Grace Church and St. Stephen's Parish on Monday voted to bolt from the national church and instead join a conservative Anglican church based in Nigeria.
But Bishop Robert O'Neill rejected the move, dismissing the local leaders and saying the Colorado Springs parish would remain part of the Episcopal Church.
"The fact is people may leave the Episcopal Church but parishes cannot," O'Neill said in a statement.
The church's longtime rector, the Rev. Donald Armstrong III, who was suspended for allegedly mishandling funds, said O'Neill no longer has jurisdiction over the parish.
"He doesn't have an army. The courts will not interfere in an internal church dispute and the congregation is solidly behind us," Armstrong said.
Beckett Stokes, a spokeswoman for the Colorado diocese, said church law states that all parish property and assets are held in trust for the diocese. She declined to comment on Armstrong's reaction.
The leaders of Grace and St. Stephen's voted to join the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, a missionary diocese of the Church of Nigeria led by Archbishop Peter J. Akinola.
Parish leaders cited the handling of Armstrong's suspension, along with the denomination's rejection of the "historic faith," as reasons for the vote.
A 40-day process of discernment is planned for the congregation to fully understand the ramifications of the decision. At the end of that period, parish members will be given the opportunity to affirm the new relationship with the Church of Nigeria.
Senior warden Jon Wroblewski said the parish had fought for a return to orthodoxy within the denomination but has lost hope in reform.
"It's clear that The Episcopal Church no longer believes in the historic, orthodox Christian faith common to all believers. It's also clear that purported Episcopal values of 'inclusion' do not apply to orthodox believers," Wroblewski said in the statement.
The Episcopal Church is the U.S. wing of the 77 million-member Anglican Communion, a fellowship of churches that traces its roots to the Church of England.
Anglicans have been debating for decades how they should interpret Scripture on salvation, truth and sexuality. Those divisions reached the breaking point in 2003 when Episcopalians consecrated the church's first openly gay bishop, V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire.