Group calls for peace amid Anglican church dispute

The Concerned Anglican Diocese of the Trinity (ADOTT) Elders’ Forum has appealed to the Primate of the Church of Nigeria and the head of the Anglican Communion in Nigeria (CoN), Henry Ndukuba, to resolve the conflict resulting from the dissolution of ADOTT in North America.

He urged the authorities of the communion in Nigeria to embrace a path of peace and honour and seeks to make amends to restore the unity of the body.

This was contained in a statement issued on Monday and signed by Jacob Olupona, a professor, Dorcas Imasuen, and Festus Obafemi-Ajayi on behalf of the Concerned ADOTT Elders’ Forum.

The group disclosed that there had been an ongoing conflict in the church caused by the dissolution of the entire Anglican mission in North America by the leadership of the communion in Nigeria in September 2023.
“The mission was shut down because of the ill-conceived plan to dissolve our Diocese ADOTT – a full-fledged diocese that had been self-sufficient, self-sustaining, and self-propagating for over a decade,” he said.

The group said that the dissolution was conducted hastily, ignoring due process, which should involve the Bishop of the diocese and the Board of Trustees who incorporated and still provided necessary oversight for the diocese.

“In utter bewilderment, the entire mission was paralysed, which had adversely traumatised and impacted many of our members,” the group said.

It also mentioned the dire situation of the conflict and the lack of access to the leadership of CoN, the Board of Trustees made it mandatory to seek redress at the Marion Superior Court in Indiana.

Court rulings

The Marion Superior Court in Indiana was a last resort for members of ADOTT, according to members of the elders forum. The church achieved a series of significant legal victories in its ongoing conflict with the CoN over the dissolution of its North American diocese.

The elders’ forum stated that the court first ordered ADOTT to return to its previous status, halting the diocese’s dissolution through a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO).

In a subsequent ruling, ADOTT and the primates of the church of Nigeria agreed, and the court ordered that no further action would be taken to implement the dissolution with the Indiana Secretary of State.

The Marion Superior Court in Indiana has also denied a motion to dismiss the case, affirming its jurisdiction over the matter due to the ongoing dispute over property rights.
Despite these legal victories, Professor Olupona and the Concerned Elders of the diocese express deep concern over the continued resistance from the Church’s leadership.

They emphasised that the litigation path was taken only after attempts at dialogue were rebuffed and warned that further escalation could lead to significant damages and penalties.

“As if that was not enough, two clergy wives who had since renounced their membership with the ADOTT, but now with CONNAM and ACR the parallel organizations created by the Primate designed to transfer all the ADOTT assets to CONNAM, withdrew $32k plus from ADOTT Women account illegally without authorisation from the President of the Women Organisation on 15 July 2024.

“However, before the matter was reported to Indiana State Police, the Diocesan Bishop of ADOTT notified the Primate in writing about the incident, but he has not responded,” they further disclosed.

The group further emphasised the need for church leadership and members of the ADOTT to reconcile, rather than worsen the tension which seems to be weakening the diocese.

“We want to appeal to the House of Bishops to do something about this situation and not to allow the Primate to drag the name of CoN to further disrepute.

“Barring efforts to reconcile, the Concerned ADOTT Elders’ Forum is constrained to now pursue full litigation that could result in prohibitive damages and penalties.
“Let it be on record that there will be no going back on this issue until justice is served,” the statement read.