[Magdalen] Priest returns to The Episcopal Church

[Ginga Wilder]

Returning priest welcomed and reinstated through new path for
reconciliation(Find
this article and additional photos on our website, episcopalchurchsc.org)
<http://www.episcopalchurchsc.org/2014-09-18-returning-priest-reinstated.html>

Bishop Charles G. vonRosenberg has welcomed a returning member of the
clergy back into good standing as a priest, hailing the reinstatement of
the Reverend H. Dagnall Free, Jr. as an important day for The Episcopal
Church and an encouraging step toward reconciliation in South Carolina.

On Tuesday, in a brief liturgy led by Bishop vonRosenberg, Fr. Free
reaffirmed the vows he took at his ordination in 2010 and signed a formal
declaration promising to conform to the doctrine, discipline and worship of
The Episcopal Church.

Fr. Free was a priest serving at St. John’s Episcopal Church on John’s
Island in 2012, when a breakaway group under Bishop Mark Lawrence announced
it was leaving The Episcopal Church. After the schism, a number of clergy
remained with The Episcopal Church. However, Fr. Free stayed at St. John’s,
which followed the breakaway group under Mark Lawrence.

Yet in the eyes of The Episcopal Church, he remained under Bishop
vonRosenberg’s authority. Over a five-month period in 2013, the Bishop made
efforts to contact each breakaway clergy member. In most cases there was no
reply. In August 2013, with the advice and consent of the Standing
Committee, the Bishop formally removed Dagnall Free and more than 100 other
priests and deacons from the ordained ministry.

“After clergy left The Episcopal Church, I had the obligation to discipline
them according to church canons,” Bishop vonRosenberg said. But the canons
gave him a choice about which disciplinary procedure to follow. One option
would be to “depose” clergy who did not recognize the Church’s authority.
Bishop vonRosenberg chose instead to “release and remove” the clergy, which
left open a possibility for reconciliation and eventual reinstatement.

“I chose the less severe option in hopes that occasions like this one today
might be facilitated,” the Bishop said. “We rejoice when that goal becomes
realized – even one person at a time.”

The first step in that journey came in April 2013, when Fr. Free came to
see Bishop vonRosenberg to ask if there was a path open for him to return.
The bishop’s immediate answer: Yes.

But the very first step was a difficult one: He had to acknowledge that he
had been removed as a priest in The Episcopal Church. He became “Mr. Free,”
stopped wearing his clerical collar, and ceased to perform the duties of an
ordained minister. “He was under that discipline, and he was faithful to
that,” the Bishop said.

Canonically, the only requirement for reinstatement was the Bishop’s
approval. But Bishop vonRosenberg said it was important to ensure that
reinstatement was the right move – not only for one priest and one diocese,
but for the church. “He’s a priest of the whole church, not just South
Carolina,” he said.

Creating a process

A major hurdle involved Fr. Free’s personnel files, which are in the
possession of the breakaway group that still controls the pre-2013 diocesan
records. Officials there have refused to cooperate with any of the
Episcopal Church clergy who have sought access to their professional
records for their ongoing employment.

Working in consultation with the Standing Committee, Chancellor Tom
Tisdale, and Commission on Ministry member Dr. Amy Webb, the Bishop set
forth a reinstatement procedure that required:

   - Consulting with the Bishop on a regular, ongoing basis;
   - Working with a development coach for evaluations and discussions about
   his spiritual journey;
   - Cooperating with the administrative staff in rebuilding his
   professional file, including background checks, training certificates,
   references and other documentation. “Doing that was necessary for the
   protection of the whole Church,” the Bishop said.
   - Meeting with the Standing Committee to discuss his desire for
   reinstatement.

On September 11, having completed the initial steps, Fr. Free met with the
Standing Committee. After a brief discussion, the committee unanimously
approved a motion advising the Bishop in favor of reinstatement.
Bishop vonRosenberg said the process has proven to be a good one, and
likely will be used again. Discussions are occurring with other clergy who
have had second thoughts about the schism. “It’s important that they know
that this process is available,” the Bishop said.

When the 78th General Convention of The Episcopal Church meets in 2015, it
likely will consider a resolution about reinstatement procedures, and South
Carolina’s experience will be valuable to that discussion. “Once again,
we’re on the leading edge in some ways,” Bishop vonRosenberg said.

Looking ahead

The path ahead of Fr. Free still has its challenges. He is no longer
employed at St. John’s. Bishop vonRosenberg and Archdeacon Calhoun Walpole,
the deployment officer for The Episcopal Church in South Carolina, are
assisting him in finding opportunities in Episcopal churches. Fr. Free and
his wife Sallie are parents of two teenagers, and staying employed was one
factor in his choice to remain at St. John’s when the schism took place.
Another factor was that he enjoyed serving the people of that parish, and
there were others as well. But Fr. Free told the Standing Committee that he
does not offer them as excuses. “I made a mistake,” he said.

“Part of what I had to learn is that you can’t take anything for granted.
God will teach you, and re-teach you,” Fr. Free said on Tuesday.

Fr. Free said that it seemed far from coincidence that the readings of the
Daily Office this summer included the stories of Moses, Joshua, and finally
Job. “It’s been kind of like walking through a desert,” he said. “But I
think we’re through that now.”

Archdeacon Walpole, who was present for the reinstatement liturgy Tuesday,
said Fr. Free’s experience reminded her of the words of a prayer for the
Church found in Eucharistic Prayer D, which asks God to “reveal its unity.”
“Here we have an example of that unity today,” she said. “Even though we
don’t always act like it, the reality is that the church is one.”