THE GREAT UNRAVELING: OHIO EVENT SIGNALS ESCALATING ANGLICAN REALIGNMENT

The Ohio confirmations mark a turning point in the Episcopal Church’s internal crisis, signaling a shift from protest to structural defiance. Five retired U.S. bishops and one from Brazil crossed diocesan lines without permission—citing “impaired communion” with liberal leadership.

Details reveal careful planning: the service was held at an Orthodox church to prevent Bishop Grew from blocking it; priests from the six parishes were excluded to emphasize episcopal authority; Bishop FitzSimons Allison preached on defending the faith, invoking 19th-century Ohio Bishop Charles McIlvaine’s warnings against rationalism.

Reaction was starkly polarized. While conservatives hailed it as prophetic, liberals called it “defiant” and “troubling.” Observers note that enforcement is unlikely: retired bishops lack diocesan stakes, and the House of Bishops has historically avoided presentments—even against figures like John Shelby Spong.

Meanwhile, statistics underscore systemic decline: ECUSA lost 36% of its membership (1966–2001) while ordaining 63% more clergy, reducing members per cleric from 343 to 133. Over 500 parishes closed or left between 1985–2001.

This followed the resignation of revisionist Bishop Richard Shimpfley (El Camino Real), whose diocese shrank from 30,000 to 12,000 under his leadership.

Also noted: Archbishop Williams’ recommendation that schools study Pullman’s His Dark Materials—a trilogy ending with God’s death—to improve religious literacy.