TITLE IV - ECCLESIASTICAL DISCIPLINE
CANON 51 - Of Offenses for which Bishops, Presbyters, or Deacons May Be Tried
Section 51.1
A Bishop, Presbyter, or Deacon of this Church shall be liable to presentment
and trial for the following offenses, viz:
(1) Crime or immorality.
(2) Holding and teaching publicly or privately and advisedly, any doctrine contrary to that held by this Church.
(3) Violation of the Rubrics of the Book of Common Prayer.
(4) Violation of the Constitution and Canons of this Church.
(5) Violation of the Constitution or Canons of the Diocese or Missionary District to which he belongs.
(6) Any act which involves a violation of his Ordination vows.
(7) Habitual neglect of the exercise of his Ministerial Office, without cause; or habitual neglect of Public Worship, and of the Holy Communion, according to the order and use of this Church.
(8) Conduct unbecoming a Clergymen.
(9) Abandonment of the communion of this Church.
Provided, however, that in the case of a Presbyter or Deacon charged with this offense, before proceeding to a presentment, the consent of three‑fourths of all the members of the Standing Committee or Council of Advice of the Diocese or Missionary District in which the Presbyter or Deacon is canonically resident shall be required.
Upon a Presbyter or Deacon being found guilty, such Presbyter or Deacon shall be admonished, or shall be suspended or deposed from the Sacred Ministry, as shall be adjudged by the Trial Court, except as provided in Canon 62, Section 3.
Section 51.2
In the
case of a Bishop, Presbyter, or Deacon convicted in a Court of Record of any
crime or misdemeanor involving immorality, or against whom a judgment
has been entered in a Court of Record in a cause involving immorality, it
shall be the duty of the Primate, in the case of a Bishop, and in the case
of a Presbyter or Deacon, of the Standing Committee of the Diocese or of the
Council of Advice of the Missionary District in which he is canonically
resident, to institute an inquiry into the matter. If in the judgment
of either there is sufficient reason for further proceedings, it shall be
their duty to present him, or to cause that he be presented, for trial.
Section 51.3
No presentment shall be made or conviction had for any offense, unless
the offense shall have been committed within five years immediately
preceding the time of the presentment, except that in a case of a conviction
in a Court of Record exercising criminal jurisdiction as aforesaid, a
presentment may be made at any time within one year after such conviction
notwithstanding five years may have elapsed since the commission of the
offense.
Section 51.4
If any presentment or allegations brought forward under the provisions of
this Canon involves allegations of sexual misconduct, the matter shall be
handled in accordance with the Policy and Procedure on such allegations
adopted by the 1996 General Synod of this Church.
CANON 52 - Of Amenability, Citation and Attendance
Section 52.1
Bishops, Presbyters, and Deacons are amenable for offenses committed by
them; a Bishop to a Court of Bishops, and a Presbyter or Deacon to the
Ecclesiastical Authority of the Diocese, or the Missionary District, in
which he is canonically resident at the time the charge is made.
Section 52.2
A notice or citation required by any law of this Church to any Bishop,
Presbyter, or Deacon to appear, at a certain time and place for the trial of
an offense, shall be deemed to be duly served upon him if a copy thereof be
given him personally or be left at his last usual place of abode within the
United States, sixty days before the day of appearance named therein; and in
case such Bishop, Presbyter, or Deacon has departed from the United States,
if a copy of such citation be also published once a week for six successive
weeks in such newspaper printed in the Diocese or Missionary District in
which the Bishop, Presbyter, or Deacon is cited to appear as the
Ecclesiastical Authority shall designate, the last publication to be six
months before the said day of appearance. Acceptance of service will
render unnecessary any further process of citation.
Section 52.3
A notice or citation, other than those above mentioned, required by any law
of this Church, when no other mode of service is provided, may be served
personally, or by registered mail, addressed to the person to be served, at
his last known place of residence, or by leaving a copy at his last usual
place of abode within the United States.
Section 52.4
It is hereby declared to be the duty of all members of this Church to attend
and give evidence, when duly cited in any Ecclesiastical trial or
investigation under the authority of this Church.
CANON 53 - Of Courts, Their Membership and Procedure
(a) Diocesan Courts for the Trial of a Presbyter or Deacon
Section 53.1
In each Diocese and Missionary District there shall be an Ecclesiastical
Court for the trial of any Presbyter or Deacon thereof, and it shall be the
duty of each Diocese and Missionary District to provide by Canon for the
establishment of such Court and the mode of conducting trials in the same.
Section 53.2
In each Ecclesiastical Court required to be established in Section 1 of this
Canon, each Diocese and Missionary District shall provide in each Court as
established an individual learned in the law who shall be required to advise
the Court on all legal issues which shall be raised during any trial before
the said Court.
(b) Courts of Review of the Trial of a Presbyter or Deacon
Section 53.3
In case of conviction by the Trial Court, the Bishop shall not proceed to
sentence the accused before the expiration of thirty days after he shall
have been served with notice of the decision of the Court in the manner
specified in Canon 52, Section 3, nor in case an appeal is taken
shall sentence be pronounced pending the hearing and determination thereof.
Section 53.4
There shall be a Court of Review of the trial of a Presbyter or Deacon,
which shall be composed of a Bishop, Three Presbyters and three Lay
communicants of the Church; two at least of said Lay communicants to be
learned in the law.
Section 53.5
The General Synod shall triennially elect the Judges of the Court of Review.
The Synod shall prescribe the manner in which said Judges shall be elected.
The persons so elected, except in case of death, resignation, refusal, or
inability to serve, shall continue to be members of the Court for the term
of three years and until their successors shall be elected. The Bishop
elected by the Synod shall be the Presiding Officer of the Court.
Section 53.6
The Court of Review is vested with jurisdiction to hear and determine
appeals from decisions of Trial Courts in Dioceses and Missionary Districts,
on the trial of a Presbyter or Deacon.
Section 53.7
An appeal to the Court of Review may be taken by the accused from a decision
of the Trial Court which sustains in whole or in part a charge of any
canonical offense. Upon the written request of at least two Bishops of
other jurisdictions within the Church, the Bishop or the Standing Committee
of the Diocese or the Council of Advice of the Missionary District within
which a trial was had shall appeal from a decision of the Trial Court
acquitting the accused of a charge involving a question of doctrine, faith,
or worship; Provided, however, that such appeal shall be on the
question of the Church's doctrine, faith, or worship only, and the decision
shall not be held to reverse the acquittal of the accused on other charges
than these. But such an appeal by the Standing Committee or Council of
Advice can be taken only where there is a vacancy in the office of Bishop or
in case the Bishop is unable to act. The Bishop of the jurisdiction
within which a trial was held, or (in case of his inability to act) the
Standing Committee or Council of Advice, shall cause to be served on the
accused against whom an adverse decision has been made by the Trial Court,
written notice thereof.
Within thirty days after the service of such notice the accused may appeal to the Court of Review by serving a written notice of appeal on the Bishop or Standing Committee or Council of Advice of said jurisdiction and a duplicate on the President of the Court. Such notice shall be subscribed by the appellant and shall briefly set forth the decision from which the appeal is taken and the grounds of the appeal. An appeal by the Bishop or Standing Committee or Council of Advice may be taken by the service by the appellant of a written notice of appeal upon the accused, and also upon the President of the Court within thirty days after the decision from which appeal is taken.
Section 53.8
An appeal shall be heard upon the record of the Trial Court. When an
appeal shall have been taken, the Bishop, or in case of his inability to
act, the Standing Committee of the Diocese or Council of Advice of the
Missionary District wherein the trial was had, within thirty days after
receiving notice of the appeal, shall transmit to the President of the Court
of Review, a full and correct transcript of the record, proceedings, and
decision of the Trial Court, including all the evidence taken upon the
trial, duly certified by the Presiding Officer or Clerk of such Court.
Except for the purpose of correcting the record, if defective, no new
evidence shall be taken by the Court of Review.
Section 53.9
The President of the Court of Review, within ninety days after the record
shall have been received by him, shall appoint a time and place for the
hearing of the appeal. At least thirty days prior to the day
appointed, written notice of such time and place shall be given by him to
the other members of the Court, and also to the accused, and to the Bishop
and Standing Committee of the Diocese or Council of Advice of the Missionary
District in which the trial was had. When the appeal is from the
decision of a Trial Court in any Missionary District such notice shall be
served at least three months prior to the day appointed for the hearing and
the appellant shall have four months after the appeal is taken within which
to serve and deliver copies of the record.
Section 53.10
It shall be the duty of the appellant to procure a certified copy of the
record of the trial, including the charges, evidence, decision, or judgment,
together with the notice of appeal, to be printed. Within sixty days
after the appeal shall have been taken he shall serve two printed copies of
the record and notice of appeal upon the opposite party, and shall deliver
seven printed copies to the President of the Court for the use of the
Judges. The Church Advocate shall be deemed to be the opposite party for the
purposes of this and the succeeding Canons.
Section 53.11
At the time and place appointed, the Court shall organize, and proceed to
hear the appeal; Provided, however, that at least six judges, of whom
the President of the Court shall be one, shall participate in the hearing.
But the members present, if less than that number, may adjourn the Court
from time to time, until the attendance of the requisite number shall be
secured.
Section 53.12
The Court may reverse or affirm, in whole or in part, the decision of the
Trial Court, or, if in its opinion justice shall so require, it may grant a
new trial. If after having been duly notified, the appellant fail to
appear, and no sufficient excuse be shown, the Court, in its discretion, may
dismiss the appeal for want of prosecution, or may proceed to hear and
determine the appeal in his absence.
Section 53.13
The concurrence of a majority of the members of a Court present shall be
necessary to pronounce a judgment. The judgment or decision of the
Court shall be in writing, signed by the members of the Court uniting
therein, and shall distinctly specify the grounds of the decision and shall
be attached to the record. If the concurrence of a majority of the
members cannot be obtained as provided, that fact shall be stated in the
record, and the decision of the Trial Court shall stand as affirmed.
Immediately after the determination of the appeal the President of the Court
shall give notice thereof in writing to the accused and to the Bishop and
the Standing Committee of the Diocese or Council of Advice of the Missionary
District in which the trial was had.
Upon the determination of the appeal, the original record upon which the appeal was heard, together with the record of the Court of Review, certified by the President and the Secretary or Clerk, shall be remitted to the Bishop or the Standing Committee of the jurisdiction in which the trial was had. All records remitted as herein provided shall be deposited and be preserved among the archives of the jurisdiction to which they are sent.
Section 53.14
The Court of Review for the trial of a Presbyter or Deacon shall not
pronounce sentence on the affirmation of a conviction. When the appeal
is so determined, upon receipt of the record by the Bishop or Standing
Committee or Council of Advice of the jurisdiction of the Trial Court, the
accused shall be sentenced in accordance with Canon 62, the provisions of
which shall be complied with.
(c) Court for the Trial of a Bishop
Section 53.15
(a) There shall be a Court for the trial of a Bishop constituted as follows: The House of Bishops shall choose one Bishop to serve as Judge of said court for a term of three years, one Bishop to serve as aforesaid for a term of six years, and one Bishop to serve as aforesaid for a term of nine years, and thereafter at each General Synod the House of Bishops shall choose one Bishop to serve as aforesaid for the term of nine years, in place of those whose term of office shall then have expired.
(b) In the Court established in Section 15(a) of this Canon, there shall be appointed an individual, by the members of said Court, learned in the law to advise the Court on all legal issues which shall be raised during any trial before the said Court.
(c) The Court is vested with jurisdiction to try a Bishop who is duly charged with any one or more of the offenses specified in Canon 51.
(d) Not less that two of said judges shall constitute a quorum, but any less number may adjourn the Court from time to time.
(d) Of Membership in Courts
Section 53.16
(a) No person shall sit as a member of any Court who is a presenter of charges or is related to the accused or either of them by affinity or consanguinity in a direct ascending or descending line, or as a brother, uncle, nephew, or first cousin, nor shall any Bishop, nor any Presbyter, nor any Layman of the Diocese or Missionary District in which the trial was had be competent to sit on an appeal from the decision on such trial, nor shall any Bishop, Presbyter, or Laymen who for any reason upon objection made
(b) The death, permanent disability, resignation, or refusal to serve as a member of any Court or Board of Inquiry shall constitute a vacancy in the Court or Board of Inquiry. Notices of resignation or refusals to serve shall be given as follows:
(1) By any Bishop chosen to serve as a member of the Court for the Trial of a Bishop; written notice sent to the Primate.
(2) By the President of the Court of Review of the Trial of a Presbyter or Deacon; written notice sent to the Primate.
(3) By a Presbyter or Layman of such Court; written notice sent to the President of said Court.
(4) By a Presbyter or Layman appointed to a Board of Inquiry; written notice sent to the Primate.
(c) If any Presbyter appointed to a Board of Inquiry or to any of the Courts shall become a Bishop, or any Layman appointed to a Board of Inquiry or to any of the Courts shall become a Deacon or a Presbyter before the final disposition of the charge, he shall thereby vacate his place as a member of the Board or Court.
Section 53.17
Vacancies occurring in any of the Courts or Boards may be filled as
follows:
(1) In the case of disqualification of any Judge of any Court, the remaining Judges of the said Court shall appoint a Judge to take the place of the one so disqualified in that particular case.
(2) In the case of a vacancy in the Court for the Trial of a Bishop the remaining Judges thereafter shall have power to fill such vacancy until the next General Synod when the House of Bishops shall choose a Bishop to fill such vacancy. The Bishop so chosen shall serve during the remainder of the term.
(3) In the case of death, permanent disability, resignation, or refusal to serve, or the removal from this Church of the Bishop appointed as a member of the Court of Review of the Trial of a Presbyter or Deacon, the Primate shall give written notice thereof to the Bishop with jurisdiction senior by consecration. Thereupon the Bishop so notified shall become a member of the Court until a new appointment shall be made. If in a particular case the Bishop so appointed is unable or unwilling to serve as a member of the Court he shall notify the Primate of this fact, who shall thereupon appoint the Bishop with jurisdiction next senior by consecration.
(4) In case a vacancy shall exist in the membership of the Court of Review among the clerical or lay members originally chosen, or in case any of them shall be disqualified or unable to sit in a particular case, the President of the Court shall appoint other Presbyters or Laymen to fill such vacancy and to sit as members of said Court.
(5) In the case of a vacancy for any cause in the Board of Inquiry the Primate shall appoint another Presbyter or another layman, as the case may be, to act as a member of the Board, who, upon acceptance of appointment, shall become a member of the Board.
All of the provisions of the Canons relating to persons originally appointed as members of the several Courts or Boards of Inquiry or commissions, shall apply to those persons appointed in succession to the persons originally appointed, and all proceedings which may have been taken on any cause pending at or prior to such appointment, shall have the same force and effect as if the appointee had been a member of the Court, Board, or commission, when such cause was commenced, and such appointee may participate in the continuing hearing and determination of the said cause.
If the term for which a member of a Court, Board, or Commission was chosen shall have expired during the course of a hearing or trial, said member shall notwithstanding be competent to act in the cause until the termination of the trial or hearing.
(e) Of Procedure
Section 53.18
(a) The procedure in Diocesan Courts shall be as provided by the Canons of the respective Dioceses or Missionary Districts.
(b) The Court for the Trial of a Bishop shall from time to time elect from its own membership a Presiding Judge who shall hold office until the expiration of the term for which he was chosen Judge. If in any proceeding before said Courts the Presiding Judge is disqualified or is for any cause unable to act, the Court shall elect a Bishop as Presiding Judge Pro tempore.
(c) The several Courts shall appoint clerks and if necessary assistant clerks, who shall be Presbyters of this Church, to serve during the pleasure of the Court.
The several Courts may appoint not less than two nor more than three lay communicants of this Church, learned in the law, as assessors. They shall have no vote. It shall be their duty to give the Court and opinion on any question, not theological, upon which the Court or any member thereof, or either party, shall desire an opinion. If a question shall arise as to whether any question is theological, it shall be decided by the Court by a majority of the votes. The several Courts may adopt rules of procedure not inconsistent with the Constitution and Canons of this Church, with power to alter or rescind the same from time to time.
Section 53.19
In the conduct of investigations preliminary to presentments, as well as in
all trials, the laws of the civil jurisdiction in which such investigation
or trial is had, so far as they relate to evidence, shall be adopted and
taken as the rules by which said Board of Inquiry, Commission, or Court,
shall be governed, and trials shall be conducted according to the principles
of the common law as the same is generally administered in the United
States, including the requirement that the accused shall be entitled to the
right to due process as said term is defined in the Constitution of this
Church, except in those Dioceses where Ecclesiastical Courts are provided
for by Constitution or Statute, in which case the same shall govern.
No determination or judgment of any Court shall be disturbed for technical errors not going to the merits of the cause.
The Several Courts shall keep a record of all their proceedings. All trials shall be public, and open to anyone who wishes to observe the same.
Section 53.20
The various Courts shall permit the accused to be heard in person or by
counsel of his own selection, provided every such counsel shall be a
communicant of this Church.
The President, or any other member of the several Courts, shall, upon application of either the Church Advocate or the accused, issue subpoenas for witnesses.
When the several Courts are not in session, if there is a vacancy in the office of the President, the Bishop who is senior by consecration shall perform the duties of the office of President.
If in the course of a trial it becomes necessary to take the testimony of absent witnesses, it may be taken upon a commission as such commissions are authorized by the common law in the jurisdiction in which the trial takes place, and in case there is ground to suppose that the attendance of a witness at the forthcoming trial cannot be obtained, it shall be lawful for either party to apply to the Court if in session, or, if not, to any member thereof, who shall thereupon appoint a Commissioner to take the deposition of such witness; and such party desiring to take such depositions shall give the opposite party reasonable notice of the time and place of taking depositions, accompanying such notice with the interrogatories to be propounded to the witness, whereupon it shall be lawful for the other party within six days after such notice to propound cross‑interrogatories and such interrogatories and cross‑interrogatories, if any be propounded, shall be sent to the Commissioner, who shall thereupon proceed to take the testimony of such witness and transmit it under seal to the Court. Such testimony shall be preceded by a written declaration of the witness similar to that of a witness testifying in person before the court for the Trial of a Bishop.
In any Diocese in which the Civil Government shall have authorized the Ecclesiastical Courts therein to issue subpoenas for witnesses or to administer an oath, the Court shall act in conformity to such law.
Section 53.21
Where a presentment of a Bishop is made by any two Bishops of this Church
exercising jurisdiction, they may select a Church Advocate as legal adviser.
The Primate upon the receipt of written charges or written demand under the
provisions of Section 3 or 4 of Canon 54 shall at the same time that the
Board of Inquiry is appointed as provided in Section 5 of said Canon 54
appoint a Church Advocate to act as the legal adviser of the Board.
In all trials and upon all appeals the several Courts may appoint a Church Advocate with or without assistants, all of whom shall be of the profession of the law, and communicants of the Church, to appear in behalf of the Church upon such trial or appeal. The Church Advocate shall then be considered the party on one side, and the accused the party on the other. No one in Holy Orders, nor any Chancellor of any Diocese or of the General Synod may accept appointment as Church Advocate.
Section 53.22
The necessary charges and expenses of the Court of Review of the Trial of a
Presbyter or Deacon, including the necessary expenses of the Church Advocate
and lay Assessors, shall be a charge upon the Church and shall be paid by
the Treasurer of the General Synod of such upon the order of the Primate.
Similar charges in the case of the trial of a Bishop shall be paid by the
Treasurer of the General Synod upon the order of the President of such
Courts.
The necessary expenses of Boards of Inquiry or Commissions appointed under the Canons of this Church to make preliminary investigation and to report upon charges presented, including therein the necessary expenses of Church Advocates appointed to assist such Boards or Commissions, shall be a charge upon the General Synod, or the Diocese or Missionary District, as the case may be. They shall be paid by the respective Treasurers of the General Synod, or of the Diocese or of the Missionary District, upon the order of the President of the several Courts.
(a) Of a Presbyter or Deacon
Section 54.1
The mode of presentment of a Presbyter or Deacon shall be that provided by
the Canons of the Diocese or Missionary District wherein the accused is
canonically resident.
(b) Of a Bishop
Section 54.2
A Bishop may be presented by any Bishop of this Church exercising
jurisdiction, for holding and teaching publicly or privately and advisedly,
doctrine contrary to that held by this Church. Such presentment shall
be in writing, signed and verified by the Bishop presenting, and shall be
delivered to the Primate.
Section 54.3
A Bishop may be charged with any one or more of the offenses specified in
Canon 51, other than that of holding and teaching doctrine contrary to that
held by this Church by two Bishops or ten or more male communicants of this
Church in good standing, of whom at least two shall be Presbyters; one
Presbyter and not less than six communicants shall belong to the Diocese or
Missionary District of the accused, or, in case the accused have no
jurisdiction, to the Diocese or District in which he has domicile. Such
charges shall be in writing, signed by all the accusers, sworn to by two or
more of them, and shall be presented to the Primate of the Church. The
ground of accusation must be set forth with reasonable certainty of time,
place, and circumstance.
Section 54.4
Whenever a Bishop shall have reason to believe that there are in circulation
rumors, reports, or allegations affecting his personal or official
character, he may, acting in conformity with the written advice and consent
of any two Bishops of this Church, demand in writing of the Primate that
investigation of said rumors, report, and allegations be made.
Section 54.5
The Primate, upon the receipt of such written charges or such written
demand, shall summon not less than three nor more than seven Bishops, and,
unless a majority of them shall determine that such charges, if proved,
would constitute no canonical offense, they shall select a Board of Inquiry
of not more than five Presbyters and five Laymen, none of whom shall belong
to the Diocese of the accused, of whom a majority shall form a quorum.
The Board of Inquiry shall investigate such charges, or the said rumors or reports, as the case may be. In conducting the investigation, the Board shall hear the accusations and such proof as the accusers may produce and shall determine whether, upon matters of law and of fact, as presented to them, there is sufficient ground to put the accused Bishop on his trial. The testimony shall be stenographically reported, and shall be preserved in the custody of the Primate or in the archives of the House of Bishops. The proceedings of the Board of Inquiry shall be private.
Section 54.6
If in the judgment of the majority of the whole Board of Inquiry, there is
sufficient ground to put the said Bishop upon trial, they shall cause the
Church Advocate to prepare a presentment, which shall be signed by such of
the Board as shall agree thereto, and which shall be transmitted with the
certificate of the determination of the Board to the Primate. If a
majority of the whole Board shall determine that there is not sufficient
ground to present the accused Bishop for trial, it shall forward the charges
and a certificate of the finding thereon to the Primate. He shall send the
same to the Secretary of the House of Bishops, by him to be deposited in the
archives of the House; and a true copy of these papers shall be given to the
accused Bishop. No further proceeding shall be had by way of
presentment on such charges, except that any communicant of this Church in
good standing may make and present to the Primate his affidavit alleging the
discovery of new evidence as to the facts charged and setting forth what
such evidence is; and upon the receipt thereof the Primate shall decide
whether the affidavit does or does not state grounds which in his opinion
are sufficient for reopening the case. If the Primate shall be of
opinion that the affidavit states grounds sufficient to justify reopening
the case, he shall reconvene the Board, which shall determine, first,
whether as a matter of fact the evidence set forth in such affidavit is
really new evidence and not merely cumulative; and if the Board shall find
that the evidence so tendered is new, it shall proceed to receive and to
consider such evidence, and any further evidence that it may deem
proper to receive; and in the light of all the evidence the Board shall
determine whether there are sufficient grounds for presentment. If the
Board, by a majority of its members, shall decide that there is any such
sufficient ground, it shall certify its decision as in this Canon heretofore
provided.
Section 54.7
In case a majority of the whole Board shall fail to find either that there
is, or that there is not, sufficient ground to present the accused Bishop
for trial, it shall certify the fact of its inability to agree upon any such
finding to the Primate, who, at the request of the accused Bishop, may
select a new Board in the manner provided in Section 5, who shall consider
the case De Novo.
Section 54.8
In case any presentment shall be made to the Primate as hereinbefore
provided, he shall at once transmit the same to the President of the Court
for the Trial of a Bishop, and shall cause a true copy of the presentment to
be served upon the accused Bishop, in the manner provided in Canon 52.
Section 54.9
In case the Primate shall be either an accuser or the accused, or shall
otherwise be disabled, his duties under this Canon shall be performed by the
Bishop, who, according to the Constitution shall act as Primate in case of
the disability of the Primate of the Church.
CANON 55 - Of the Trial of a Bishop
Section 55.1
(a) When the President of the Court for the Trial of a Bishop shall receive a presentment, he shall call the Court to meet at a certain time and place, said time not to be less than two nor more than six calendar months from the day of mailing such notice, and at a place within the Diocese or Missionary District of the accused Bishop, unless the same be of such difficult access, in the judgment of the President of the Court, that reasonable convenience requires the appointment of another place; and in case the accused have no jurisdiction, at a place within the Diocese or Missionary District in which he has his domicile. With said notice, he shall send to each member of the Court a copy of the presentment.
(b) He shall also summon the accused to appear at the same time and place to answer the said presentment, and shall also give notice of the said time and place to the Church Advocate.
Section 55.2
(a) At the time and place appointed, a quorum of the Court being present, the President shall declare the Court open for hearing the case; and when thus open, he shall direct the clerk to call the names of the Church Advocate and the accused; and if both appear, he shall then cause the Clerk to read the presentment.
(b) The accused shall then be called upon by the Court to plead to the presentment and his pleas shall be duly recorded; and on his neglect or refusal to plead, the plea of not guilty shall be entered for him, and the trial shall proceed; Provided, that for sufficient cause the Court may adjourn from time to time: Provided, also, that the accused shall, at all times during the trial, have liberty to be present, and in due time and order to produce his testimony and to make his defense.
(c) If the accused fail or refuse to appear in person, according to the notice served on him as aforesaid, except for reasonable cause to be allowed by the Court, it shall pronounce him in contumacy, and give him notice that sentence of suspension or deposition will be pronounced against him by the Court at the expiration of three months, unless at that time he shall appear and take his trial upon the presentment. If he do not so tender himself for trial, sentence or suspension, or of deposition from the Ministry, may be pronounced upon him by the Court.
Section 55.3
The accused being present and the trial proceeding, it shall be conducted in
accordance with Sections 20, 21, and 22 of Canon 53. The accused shall
in all cases have the right to be a witness on his own behalf, subject to
cross‑examination in the same manner as any other witness. No
testimony shall be received at the trial, except from witnesses who have
signed a declaration in the following words, to be read aloud before the
witness testifies and to be filed with the records of the Court:
"I, A.B., a witness on the trial of a presentment against the Right Reverend ____, a Bishop of the Anglican Church in America, now pending, do most solemnly call God to witness that the evidence I am about to give shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help me God."
Section 55.4
All witnesses shall be examined orally, both on direct and cross‑examination
and by the Court.
Section 55.5
The Court, having fully heard the allegations and proofs of the parties, and
having deliberately considered the same after the parties have withdrawn,
every member of the Court sitting in the cause shall declare whether in his
opinion the accused is guilty or not guilty, and with respect to each
particular charge and specification contained in the presentment; and the
accused shall be deemed not guilty upon every charge and specification upon
which he shall not be pronounced guilty by a majority of the members of the
Court sitting in the cause.
Section 55.6
The decision of the Court as to all the charges and specifications shall be
reduced to writing, and signed by those who assent to it, and the Court
shall also, if the accused is found guilty of any charge or specification,
determine and embody in the written decision the penalty which it shall
adjudge should be imposed upon the accused, which penalty may be admonition
or suspension or deposition from the ministry, as shall be by the Court
adjudged; and the decision so signed shall be recorded as the judgment of
the Court, and shall be judgment nisi until it becomes final as
hereinafter stated.
Section 55.7
A Bishop found guilty upon a presentment for crime or immorality shall not,
after the rendering of such judgment, and while the same continues
un-reversed, perform any episcopal or ministerial functions, except such as
relate to the administration of the temporal affairs of his Diocese or
Missionary District.
Section 55.8
If the accused shall be found guilty of any charge or specification, he may
file a motion for a new trial and for a modification of penalty. Any
such motion or motions shall be filed within 30 days from the date of the
filing of the decision, and the motion shall set forth all the reasons
therefor, and no other shall be relied on at the hearing of the motion
without the consent of the Court. The President of the Court shall set
a place and time for hearing the motion and shall reconvene the Court to
hear and determine the same.
The Court may in the interest of justice grant a new trial or modify the penalty. If the motion for a new trial is granted the President of the Court shall set a time and place for the new trial, and notify the parties and the members of the Court of such time and place. If the motion for a new trial is overruled, the judgment nisi as to the guilt of the accused shall become final, but the Court in the exercise of its discretion may modify or change the penalty, and shall in writing signed by a majority of the Court direct what penalty is to be incorporated in the final judgment to be recorded by the Clerk. If no motion for a new trial or for modification of sentence shall be filed within the time limited for filing such motions, the Clerk of the Court shall on the next secular day enter, as final, the judgment. of a Court for the Trial of a Bishop.
After the entry of final judgment, the President of the Court shall appoint a time and place not less than 60 days thereafter for pronouncing sentence. At the time and place appointed, the President of the Court or a member thereof designated in writing by a majority of the members thereof to do so, shall in the presence of the accused, if he shall see fit to attend, pronounce the sentence which has been adjudged by the Court, and direct the same to be recorded by the Clerk.
Section 55.9
(a) During the trial, exceptions in writing may be taken by either side to the admission or exclusion of evidence, or to any ruling of the Court, and such exceptions shall form part of the record of the case.
(b) Such record shall be kept by the Clerk, and inserted in a book to be attested by the signature of the President and Clerk. The record shall be in the custody of the Clerk and kept in the depository of the Registrar of the General Synod, and shall be open to the inspection of every member of this Church.
CANON 56 - Of a Minister in any Diocese or Missionary District
Chargeable with Offense in Another
Section 56.1
If a Minister belonging to any Diocese or Missionary District shall have
conducted himself in any other Diocese or Missionary District in such a way
as to be liable to presentment under the provisions of Canon 51, the
Ecclesiastical Authority thereof shall give notice of the same to the
Ecclesiastical Authority where he is canonically resident, exhibiting, with
the information given, reasonable ground for presuming its truth. If
the Ecclesiastical Authority, after due notice given, shall omit, for the
space of three months, to proceed against the offending Minister, or shall
request the Ecclesiastical Authority of the Diocese or Missionary District
in which the offense or offenses are alleged to have been committed, to
proceed against him, it shall be within the power of the Ecclesiastical
Authority of the Diocese or Missionary District, within which the offense or
offenses are alleged to have been committed, to institute proceedings
according to the mode provided by the said Diocese or Missionary District.
Section 56.2
If a Minister shall come temporarily into any Diocese or Missionary
District, under the imputation of having elsewhere been guilty of any of the
offenses within the provisions of Canon 51, or if any Minister, while
sojourning in any Diocese or Missionary District, shall so offend, the
Bishop, upon probable cause, may admonish such Minister and inhibit him from
officiating in said Diocese or Missionary District. And if, after such
inhibition, the said Minister so officiate, the Bishop shall give notice to
all the Ministers and Congregations in said Diocese or Missionary District,
that the officiating of said Minister is inhibited; and like notice shall be
given to the Ecclesiastical Authority of the Diocese or Missionary District
to which the said Minister belongs, and to the Recorder. And
such inhibition shall continue in force until the Bishop of the first‑named
Diocese or Missionary District be satisfied of the innocence of the said
Minister, or until he be acquitted on trial.
Section 56.3
The provisions of the last Section shall apply to Ministers ordained in
foreign lands by Bishops in communion with this Church; but in such case
notice of the inhibition shall be given to the Bishop from whose
jurisdiction the Minister shall appear to have come, and also to all the
Bishops exercising jurisdiction in this Church, and to the Recorder.
CANON 57 - Of Renunciation of the Ministry
Section 57.1
(a) If any Minister of this Church in good standing shall declare, in writing, to the Ecclesiastical Authority of the Diocese or Missionary District in which he is canonically resident, his renunciation of the Ministry of this Church, and his desire to be removed therefrom, it shall be the duty of the Ecclesiastical Authority to record the declaration and request so made. The Bishop, being satisfied that the person so declaring is not amenable for any canonical offense, and that his renunciation of the Ministry is not occasioned by foregoing misconduct or irregularity, but is voluntary and for causes, assigned or known, which do not affect his moral character, shall defer formal action upon the declaration for three months, and meanwhile shall lay the matter before the clerical members of his Standing Committee (or Council of Advice), and with their advice and consent he may pronounce that such renunciation is accepted, and that the Minister is released from the obligation of the Ministerial office, and that he is deprived of the right in this church to exercise in this church the gifts and spiritual authority as a Minister of God's Word and Sacraments conferred on him in his Ordination.
(b) In this case, the Bishop or Ecclesiastical Authority shall also declare in pronouncing and recording such action that it was for causes which do not affect the man's moral character, and shall, if desired, give a certificate to this effect to the person so removed from the Ministry.
Section 57.2
In all other cases of Renunciation of the Ministry, where there may be a
bona fide question of foregoing misconduct or irregularity, but no
presentment has been made, the Bishop shall not pronounce sentence of
Deposition save with the advice and consent of the Standing Committee of the
Diocese or of the Council of Advice of the Missionary District. The Bishop
shall give due notice of every such Removal or Deposition from the Ministry,
in the form in which the same is recorded, and in accordance with the
provisions of Canon 61, Section 3(b).
(a) Where the Bishop or Ecclesiastical Authority to whom such declaration shall have been made finds it appropriate, and with the advice and consent of his Standing Committee or Council of Advice, a Presbyter or Deacon in this Church not under presentment may be removed simply from the rolls of the Clergy therein and his resignation accepted. The Bishop or Ecclesiastical Authority shall thereupon pronounce that the Minister is released from the obligation of the Ministerial office, and that he is deprived of the right to exercise in this Church the gifts and spiritual authority as a Minister of God’s Word and Sacraments conferred on him in his Ordination. The Secretary of the General Synod and of the affected Diocese shall remove his name from the rolls of the Ministers of this Church.
In this case, the Declaration and Certificate referred to in Section 1(b) herein above shall not be made nor issued.
The standard for determining the appropriateness of such acceptance and simple removal shall be whether or not there is a reason to suppose that simple removal of the cleric making the declaration would cause scandal among the faithful, or otherwise jeopardize the good order and well being of the Church.
(b) If the Bishop or Ecclesiastical Authority to whom such declaration is made shall have ground to suppose that the cleric making the same is liable to presentment for any canonical offense such that simple removal from the rolls of the clergy of this Church could scandalize the faithful or otherwise place in jeopardy the good order and well being of the Church , such cleric may, at the discretion of the said Ecclesiastical Authority, be placed upon trial for such offense notwithstanding his declaration of renunciation of the Ministry.
Section 57.3
If a Minister making the aforesaid declaration of renunciation of his
Ministry be under presentment for any canonical offense, or if he shall have
been placed on trial for the same, the Ecclesiastical Authority to whom such
declaration is made, shall not consider or act upon such declaration until
after the said presentment shall have been dismissed, or the said trial
shall have been concluded and sentence, if any, pronounced.
CANON 58 - Of the Abandonment of the Communion of this Church by a Bishop
Section 58.1
If a Bishop abandon the communion of this Church, either by an open
renunciation of the Doctrine, Discipline, or Worship of the Church, or by
formal admission into any religious body not in communion with the same, or
in any other manner, it shall be the duty of the Standing Committee of the
Diocese or the Council of Advice of the Missionary District of said Bishop
to certify the fact to the Primate, and with certificate to send a statement
of the acts or declarations which show such abandonment, which certificate
and statement shall be recorded by the Primate.
The Primate, with the consent of the two senior Bishops having jurisdiction in the United States, shall then suspend the said Bishop from the exercise of his Office and Ministry until such time as the House of Bishops shall investigate the matter.
Section 58.2
The Primate shall forthwith give notice to the said Bishop of such
suspension, and that unless he shall, within six months, make declaration
that the facts alleged in said certificate are false, and shall demand a
trial, he will be liable to deposition from the Ministry. And if such
declaration be not made within six months, as aforesaid, it shall be the
duty of the Primate to convene the House of Bishops to consider the case;
and if the said House, by a majority of the whole number of Bishops entitled
to vote, shall give their consent, the Primate shall depose the said Bishop
from the Ministry, and pronounce and record in the presence of two or more
Bishops, that he has been so deposed.
CANON 59 - Of the Abandonment of the Communion of this Church by a Presbyter or Deacon
Section 59.1
If any Presbyter or Deacon shall, without availing himself of the provisions
of Canon 57, abandon the communion of this Church by an open renunciation of
the Doctrine, Discipline, or Worship of this Church, or by a formal
admission into any religious body not in communion with the same, or in any
other way, it shall be the duty of the Standing Committee of the Diocese or
the Council of Advice of the Missionary District in which said Presbyter or
Deacon is canonically resident to certify the fact to the Bishop, or, if
there be no Bishop, to the Bishop of an adjacent Diocese or Missionary
District, and with such certificate to send a statement of the acts or
declaration which show such abandonment; which certificate and statement
shall be recorded, and shall be taken and deemed by the Ecclesiastical
Authority as an equivalent to a renunciation of the Ministry by the Minister
himself; and the said Bishop shall then suspend the said Minister for six
months. Notice shall then be given by the said Bishop to the Minister
so suspended that, unless he shall within six months transmit to the Bishop
a retraction of such acts, or make declaration that the facts alleged in
said certificate are false, he will be deposed from the Ministry.
Section 59.2
If such retraction or declaration be not made within six months, as
aforesaid, it shall be the duty of the Bishop to depose the said Minister
from the Ministry, and to pronounce and record, in the presence of two or
more Presbyters, that he has been so deposed.
Section 59.3
A Priest or Deacon charged under this Canon shall retain the right to trial
under Canon 51.
CANON
60 - Of a Minister Absenting Himself from His
Diocese,
or Abandoning the Work of the Ministry
Section 60.1
If a Minister shall have been absent for more than two years from the
Diocese or Missionary District in which he is canonically resident without
having given reasons satisfactory to the Bishop thereof; or if he shall
engage in any secular calling or business without the consent of such
Bishop, and shall refuse to engage in the work of the Ministry at the call
of his Bishop, coupled with reasonable provision for his support, it shall
be the duty of the Standing Committee of the Diocese or the Council of
Advice of the Missionary District, or of any two Presbyters of the same
jurisdiction, the case being brought to their attention by the written
statement of the Bishop, to present the offending Minister for trial for
violation of his Ordination vows.
Section 60.2
Whenever a Minister of this Church shall have been absent from the Diocese
or Missionary District for a period of more than one year, so that his
whereabouts are unknown, or has failed to report in writing, annually, to
the Bishop his occasional services and other ministerial actions or
services, or if there have been none, the reasons which have prevented the
same, such minister shall be deemed no longer in good standing and the
Bishop must send the name of such Minister to the Secretary of the House of
Bishops of the Church, who shall keep a list of such Ministers; but upon
application of either the Bishop or the Minister himself, or at the
discretion of the Primate, he shall be placed again upon the Diocesan list.
While the Minister's name remains upon the list of the Secretary of the
House of Bishops he shall not be considered as canonically connected with
the Diocese.
Section 60.3
Any Minister who desires to have his name removed from the roles of the
Clergy in good standing of this said Church, shall be permitted to do so,
upon a voluntary renunciation or resignation from the ministry of this
Church, should the Bishop Ordinary of the Diocese of which the said Minister
is a member, approve the said action.
Section 61.1
Whenever the penalty of suspension shall be inflicted on a Bishop,
Presbyter, or Deacon, in this Church, the sentence shall specify on what
terms and on what conditions and at what time the penalty shall cease.
Section 61.2
Whenever a Minister is deposed from the Sacred Ministry, he is deposed therefrom entirely, and not from a higher to a lower Order in the same.
Section 61.3
(a) If a Presbyter or Deacon is liable to sentence upon conviction by a Trial Court or upon affirmance of such conviction by a Court of Review, sentence shall be imposed by the Bishop of the jurisdiction in which the original trial of the accused was had, or in case such Bishop is disqualified or there be no Bishop of that jurisdiction, by another Bishop by the request of its Standing Committee or Council of Advice, and it shall be lawful for the Bishop of the jurisdiction or for such other Bishop in his discretion to pronounce a lesser sentence that adjudged by the Court. The Bishop to act shall appoint a time and place for the pronouncing such sentence and shall cause notice thereof in writing to be served upon the accused in the manner provided in Canon 52 at least thirty days before the time appointed.
(b) In the case of renunciation of the Ministry by a Minister as provided in Canon 57, and in case of the abandonment of the communion of this Church by a Presbyter or Deacon as provided in Canon 59, sentence of Removal or Deposition shall be pronounced in the presence of two or more Presbyters, and shall be entered in the official records of the Diocese or Missionary District in which the Presbyter or Deacon being removed or deposed is canonically resident. The Bishop who pronounces sentence of Removal or Deposition as provided in Canon 57 or Canon 59 shall give notice thereof in writing to the Primate, the Recorder, the Secretary of the House of Bishops, and the Secretaries of the Houses of Clergy and Laity. In giving such notice the Bishop who pronounces sentence of Removal or Deposition may request, for reason to be stated by him, that the sentence be held in confidence until the regular date of the next ensuing publication of the list of ordained Clergy of this Church. Unless the Primate shall disapprove in writing, within thirty days, of the granting of the request that the sentence be held in confidence, those notified as above provided of the sentence of Removal or Deposition shall not publish or give notice of the same, but shall record the sentence in confidence in the official records kept by each of those to whom notice is sent as above provided.
(c) If the sentence to be pronounced upon a Presbyter or Deacon be deposition, the Bishop acting in the matter shall pronounce and record the same in the presence of two or more Presbyters.
(d) In case an accused Presbyter or Deacon confesses the truth of the charges made against him, and in writing waives the right to a trial and submits himself to disciplinary action, the Bishop may in his discretion proceed at once to pronounce sentence.
(e) After a Presbyter or Deacon shall have been convicted by a Trial Court of a crime or immorality rendering him liable to canonical sentence, the Bishop of the Diocese or Missionary District shall have the right to suspend him from all public ministrations. Such suspension shall continue until a final judgment upon the case. When the sentence is of a suspension or deposition, the Bishop who pronounces the same shall without delay give notice thereof in writing to every Minister and Vestry in the Diocese or Missionary District in which the accused was canonically resident; to all the Bishops of the Church, and where there is no Bishop, to the Standing Committee of the Diocese or to the Council of Advice of the Missionary District as the case may be; to the Recorder; and to the Secretary of the House of Bishops, who shall deposit and preserve such notice among the archives of the House. The notice shall specify under what Canon the said Minister has been suspended or deposed.
Section 61.4
No sentence shall be pronounced until an opportunity shall have been given
to the accused either on conviction or on confession to show cause, if any,
why sentence should not be pronounced, and to offer any matter in excuse or
palliation for the consideration of the Bishop to pronounce sentence.
Section 61.5
When a Bishop is liable to sentence under a judgment of a Trial Court or
under a judgment of a Court of Review of the Trial of a Bishop on an appeal
to said Court of Review, the sentence to be imposed, the Bishop to pronounce
the same, and the procedure to be followed in imposing sentence shall be as
provided in the several Canons governing the procedure of said Courts.
Section 61.6
In the case of the suspension or deposition of a Bishop it shall be the duty
of the Primate to give notice of the same to the Ecclesiastical Authority of
every Diocese and Missionary District of this Church, and to the Recorder
and the Secretary of the House of Bishops, and to all Archbishops and
Metropolitans, and all Presiding Bishops of Churches in communion with this
Church.
Section 61.7
A Bishop found guilty upon a presentment for a crime or immorality shall
not, on the rendering of such judgment, and while the same continues
unreversed, perform any episcopal or ministerial functions, except such as
relate to the administration of the temporal affairs of his Diocese or
Missionary District.
CANON 62 - Of the Remission or Modification of Judicial Sentences
Section 62.1
The House of Bishops may remit and terminate any judicial sentence which may
have been imposed upon a Bishop, or modify the same so far as to designate a
precise period of time, or other specific contingency, on the occurrence of
which such sentence shall utterly cease, and be of no further force or
effect; Provided, that no such remission or modification shall be
made except at a meeting of the House of Bishops, during the session of some
General Synod, or at special meeting of the said house, which shall be
convened by the Primate on the application of any three Bishops, three
months' notice, in writing, of the time, place and object of the meeting
being given to each Bishop; Provided, also, that such remission or
modification be assented to by not less than a majority of the whole number
entitled at the time to seats in the House of Bishops; and Provided,
that nothing herein shall be construed to repeal or alter the provisions of
Canon 61
Section 62.2
A Bishop of this Church may, for reasons which he shall deem sufficient,
remit and terminate any sentence of deposition or removal pronounced in his
jurisdiction upon a Minister; but he shall exercise this power only upon the
following conditions:
(1) That he shall act with the advice and consent of two‑thirds of all the members of the Standing Committee.
(2) That he shall submit his proposed action, with his reasons therefor, to the judgment of three of the Bishops of this Church, whose Dioceses or Missionary Districts are nearest to his own, and shall receive in writing, from at least two of the said Bishops, their approval of the said remission, and their consent thereto.
(3) That before remitting such sentence, he shall require the person to be restored to the Ministry to subscribe to the declaration required in Article VIII of the Constitution.
Section 62.3
In case such person was deposed for abandoning the communion of this Church,
or, having been deposed by reason of his renunciation of the Ministry of
this Church, or for other cause, he have also abandoned its communion, the
Bishop, before granting such remission, shall be satisfied that such person
has lived in lay communion with this Church for three years next preceding
his application for such remission.
Section 62.4
In case the person applying for such remission shall be domiciled beyond the
Diocese or Missionary District in which he was deposed, the Bishop, before
granting such remission, shall be furnished with written evidence of the
approval of such application by the Bishop of the Diocese or Missionary
District in which such person is domiciled.
Section 62.5
Whenever a Bishop shall remit and terminate any sentence of deposition, he
shall, without delay, give due notice thereof under his own hand, sending
said notice in a sealed envelope to the Ecclesiastical Authority of every
Diocese and Missionary District of this Church and to the Recorder, giving,
with the full name of the person restored, the date of the deposition and
the Order of the Ministry to which he is restored.