Q&A About Our Future

Updated September 29, 2006

Since the announcement of our agreement with the Diocese of Dallas on September 15, 2006, some members at Christ Church have asked for further information or more detail about our future. Those questions are answered here. If you have further questions, please click here to email us and we will post the answers here.

Q: What is our current status right now?
A: We are fully disassociated from the Episcopal Church (ECUSA) and the Diocese of Dallas and under the oversight of Bishop Bill Godfrey of the Diocese of Peru. This is a temporary arrangement until an appropriate and permanent link is made within the Anglican Communion.

Q: Are we committed to remain in the Anglican Communion?
A: Yes. Our heritage and heart is with the Anglican Communion. It represents a worldwide fellowship of evangelically minded believers in nearly every continent in which the Christian faith is beautifully expressed and experienced.

Q: Will we continue to worship in the Anglican tradition and use the Book of Common Prayer?
A. Yes. Our disassociation with ECUSA and our future status will not require us to make any change at all in the way we worship and/or the style of our liturgy.

Q: Why did we have to leave the Diocese of Dallas, and why now?
A: Bishop Stanton is very clear on his role as a bishop under the Constitution of the Episcopal Church. Christ Church sees a biblical mandate in the Great Commission: “Go, make disciples and teach them to obey the commands of Christ.” We could not pursue that mission within a denomination whose direction runs counter to ours and to that of the great majority of the Anglican Communion.

Q: How did you arrive at the $1.2 million settlement price to secure our property?
A: We paid $1.2 million dollars as a severance/settlement to the Diocese of Dallas. We worked with Bishop Stanton to create a win/win situation. The bishop asked us to pay 100% of our assessment for the next year, 80% for the following year, 60% for the next year and so forth on a five-year decline. The total of the five years added up to $1.2 million.

Q: What is our church’s new name?
A: Our legal name is now “Christ Church of Plano, Inc.” We will simply go by Christ Church (internally) and Christ Church Plano (externally).

Q: Where will we find clergy in the future?
A: Our leadership development plan is still in process, but we are confident that future clergy will come from within the Anglican Communion.

Q: Are you against the new Presiding Bishop because she is an ordained female bishop?
A: No. Our concern about her is not her gender, but her stated Christology and her vision for the church, including her clear commitment to the church’s blessing of same-sex unions.

Q: Is this all about the sexuality issue?
A: No. As in our culture, the issue of human sexuality is a central flashpoint, but it is a symptom of a larger issue. Regardless of where the culture goes and what the culture endorses, the church cannot bless what is not God’s best for people. The church should never speak against the clear teaching of Scripture. ECUSA has chosen its future and it is very different from our own, and thus we must let the denomination go on without us.

Q: What will be Bishop Godfrey’s role at Christ Church?
A: Bishop Godfrey is a long time friend of Christ Church. Our church has sent over 20 mission teams to Peru in the last nine years. He is a man of God and we are humbled that he would take our clergy and parish under his authority and ministry. By God’s grace, he will be visiting Christ Church in the middle of October. We will sit and pray together about the details of our relationship, e.g., clergy oversight, financial support and confirmations.

Q: Does Christ Church intend to join the Network? What key events must transpire before Christ Church takes formal action to reconnect directly with orthodox Anglicans in the U.S.?
A: Christ Church is in the Anglican Communion. We are under the direct oversight of Bishop Bill Godfrey of the Diocese of Peru. Our vestry and clergy, led by Fr. David, are engaged in a process of “due diligence” to determine the most beneficial Anglican linkage for us and for the future of our clergy’s ministry.

Q: What about the clergy staff? Are they moving their official status to Peru as well?
A: All of our paid clergy staff have expressed their desire remain connected to the Anglican Communion under Bishop Godfrey. We are waiting until he comes to Christ Church in October to meet personally and pastorally together. The bishop of Dallas has given our clergy a few months to make their final decision.

Q: What about clergy and lay pensions?
A: The vestry has taken this on as a special ad hoc assignment and will insure that all of our staff receives benefits and coverage. Obviously, we will endeavor to be sure that our staff and clergy are not adversely affected by this move. Any specific questions can be addressed to the Senior or Junior Warden of the Vestry. (Call the church office at 972-618-0222 for their email address.)

Q: I don’t see a denominational label on the sign…why not? Why don’t we use the word “Anglican”?
A: We have always been in the Anglican Communion and we still are! As we have said, our connection in Peru is temporary while we pray about and determine our future. Once our vestry and clergy are satisfied with a new affiliation, we will make any changes that might be needed.

Q: Didn’t the Archbishop of Canterbury recently suggest a solution for the fractures within Anglicanism?
A: The Archbishop of Canterbury recently mentioned a “two-tiered” structure for the Communion. It is hard to know how such an idea was received, but in any case, it would be many years before any such arrangement could be manifested.

Q: Where are we getting the $1.2 million and is that different than Chapter Two funds?
A: This money is in addition to the Chapter Two funds we are hoping to receive. As you remember, the Chapter Two Campaign will build our new space, help Bishop Godfrey complete his diocesan/seminary center, and pay off our debt. As mentioned earlier, our settlement with the Diocese is essentially a pre-payment of our assessment for the next three years. Our plan is to pay for the settlement over the next three years out of our operating fund. If we exceed our funds in Chapter Two, we will pay off the settlement ahead of time.

Q. Is Christ Church still a tax-exempt entity?
A. Yes, all contributions are fully tax-deductible, and we have made all necessary federal tax-exempt applications.

Q. Isn’t it unrealistic to think that gays will never serve in the church? Why can’t we just accept them?
A. Christ Church accepts all people and all people are invited and welcome to attend and worship at Christ Church. But the church cannot bless or condone what is not God’s best for people.

Further questions? Email us