The dean of the Cathedral of Hope in Dallas, the world's largest gay and lesbian church, surrendered his ministry credentials to his denomination Sunday, two days before the church body said it would complete an investigation of him, officials said.
The Rev. Michael Piazza said he would remain in his role as dean and co-pastor. The cathedral board has called a July 27 meeting to ask the congregation to vote to sever ties with the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches (MCC).
The pastor said neither he nor the board was leading his congregation out of the MCC to dodge the investigation. He said his church had cooperated fully but that the denomination had unfairly extended the query and asked for irrelevant documentation, such as bylaws dating to before he began serving the church 16 years ago.
"It would take us another month to dig up this stuff," he said in a phone interview. "It's just the most ridiculous thing. There isn't anything that I'm guilty of in the complaint. Most of the charges have nothing to do with me. I've not been the personnel director, the person who handles these things."
The MCC launched an investigation in April after Terri Frey of Carrollton, a former cathedral board member, filed a complaint. She and 24 supporters, who call themselves Cathedral of Hope Reform, said they've had nothing but the church's best interest at heart despite being branded as malcontents by cathedral leaders.
"Our only goal was to bring forward the truth," Ms. Frey said Sunday after the announcement was made. "This seems like a drastic action to take in order to prevent the truth from being brought forward."
Expense concerns
The complaint hasn't been made public, but officials said the accusations concerned management of the church's health insurance, the capital campaign fund and the pastor's personal expense account. Mr. Piazza was not accused of stealing money.
The outcome of the investigation may never be known. Denominational leaders said Sunday they had no reason to continue investigating because Mr. Piazza was no longer on the clergy roster. They promised a lengthy statement this week.
The MCC licensed Mr. Piazza in 1981 and, under his leadership, the cathedral became the 35-year-old denomination's crown jewel. With more than 3,000 members, the cathedral is the 46,000-member denomination's largest church and contributor.
Ken Upton, the church's executive director, said the cathedral donates $500,000 annually in cash and resources. He said the church would keep all of its assets if it disaffiliates, but denominational officials said that isn't necessarily true and promised a battle.
In a show of unity, the cathedral's four pastors and five board members stood together as the announcement was made at the end of Sunday services. At one service, members rose to their feet with cheers and applause; at another service they sat in a stunned silence.
"The denomination continues to prolong the process with no assurance this will end anytime soon," board member Ramona Martinez told church members about the investigation. "The board has decided to put a stop to this and get back to the business of church."
Denominational leaders disputed the statement, saying Mr. Piazza had been notified in writing that the investigation would end Tuesday. Under church law, the denomination would then have 48 hours to decide whether to bring ecclesiastical charges against the pastor.
The pastor said the notification left open the possibility that the investigation could extend indefinitely. He said the formal investigation, led by private investigators, had been completed in late June. It was extended by denominational officials who, through the investigators, asked for more time-consuming documentation, he said.
"It was clear this was being driven by the church and not the investigators, and that's a violation of the process," Mr. Piazza said. "There was no end in sight. They even asked for the personnel file of someone who was deceased."
Denominational leaders said Sunday they followed the mandated process "by the letter of the law."
One issue in the complaint was whether the church had inappropriately provided health insurance to a volunteer with AIDS, who has since died. The church said it acted out of compassion, and that the volunteer was considered a staff member though he wasn't paid because he worked at least 40 hours weekly.
The most contentious issues have involved money. Denominational leaders have said the church is strapped for cash. To pay off debts, they say, the church may have to sell some of property acquired to build an estimated $40 million complex.
Church leaders say that isn't true, and that they may push to acquire more property. Mr. Upton said the church's cash flow has been tight, and the church has had to borrow from its capital campaign. In March, the church's balance sheet showed it owed the fund around $200,000 – a relatively small amount, according to experts in church finance, who say the practice is common.
Team to review practices
Last week, the board voted to establish a financial overview team to review the church's accounting practices and monthly financial statements. The team is also charged with conducting periodic forums to answer questions from church members.
"We've learned that we need to do things better and better communicate what we're doing with the congregation," Mr. Upton said.
Church members were told Sunday that the board made its decision to push for leaving the MCC during an emergency meeting Saturday. But denominational leaders said the cathedral's pastors had told them several weeks ago that they intended to leave.
"I take it as a personal slap when a congregation decides to leave," said MCC founder, the Rev. Troy Perry, during the denomination's international convention in Dallas earlier this month. Officials said the remarks were, in part, directed to Mr. Piazza, who was seated in the audience.
Cathedral leaders would not say whether they will seek to affiliate with another denomination if the congregation agrees to withdraw from the MCC. Earlier this year, they met with a local representative of the United Church of Christ to learn about the process of affiliation.
UCC officials said the process was lengthy and that there were no guarantees. Some denominational leaders said they would be leery of linking with the cathedral because of the questions surrounding Mr. Piazza's leadership.
Although the cathedral congregation has been largely supportive of Mr. Piazza, the investigation caused considerable strain. The reform group posted its concerns on a specially created Web site, www.cohreform.org. The church battled back by posting a rebuttal at a similarly named Web site, www.cohreform.com.
Many people leaving Sunday's service said they supported leaving the MCC, though they regretted that it had come to this. Many said the MCC was the first Christian denomination to affirm them as gays and lesbians.
"It's hard, but the church has to do this to move forward," said Wes Kennedy of Dallas, a member for 10 years.