What does Resolution 6 at the Pittsburgh September Special Convention do?
It tries to reverse national and diocesan canon law by denying that the Episcopal Church, USA has an interest in property owned by the diocese and parishes. The Board of Trustees of the Diocese of Pittsburgh has also voted to adopt this resolution. Since 1979 the ECUSA has had a canon (I.7.4, commonly called the Dennis Canon) that explicitly stated that the national church has an interest in all property held by a parish or diocese, but that it would not exercise that interest as long as the parish remained “a part of, and subject to” the constitution and canons of the ECUSA. Courts have ruled many times at both state and national levels that the Episcopal Church is a hierarchical church, and that therefore property stays with the ECUSA when a group leaves. According to legal documents filed as part of a lawsuit, the Diocesan Board of Trustees has rescinded their support of Resolution 6, but the convention vote remains on record.
