[Magdalen] Priest returns to The Episcopal Church

[Jay Weigel]

Wow! God does work in mysterious ways!

On Thu, Sep 18, 2014 at 3:17 PM, Ginga Wilder <gingawilder at gmail.com> wrote:

> 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.”
>