ECUSA Dissenter, Refusing to Compromise, Resigns
by Jim Brown
July 20, 2004
(AgapePress) - A conservative lay leader in Arizona, who recently chose to leave her church position rather than compromise biblical truth, says the Episcopal Church USA has become a place were dissenters are no longer welcome.
Linda Radosevich decided to resign her position as a lay chaplain for the Episcopal Canterbury Fellowship at Northern Arizona University after a meeting she had with the bishop of Arizona, Kirk Smith. The bishop was angry that Radosevich had been protesting the Episcopal Church's support for homosexuality by giving financially to her local parish, instead of to the diocese and national church.
According to Radosevich, Smith insisted she "modify her position" because it was "an embarrassment" to him. The former lay chaplain feels this is out of alignment with an Episcopal Church that "has always prided itself on being so very inclusive."
Normally, Radosevich says her denomination exhibits tremendous respect for diversity. "We have lots of different opinions in the Episcopal Church," she notes. "We have a huge spectrum of belief, and we welcome that and encourage that." But in her meeting with Bishop Smith, she says was "really startled" to encounter such intolerance of her point of view.
Nevertheless, Radosevich says she will never compromise scriptural truth -- something she believes was undermined at the denomination's convention last year, when the church confirmed its first openly homosexual bishop.
"I did not agree with that," the laywoman says. "I felt it was not scriptural. I felt like, even though as Episcopalians we [claim to] rely on scripture, tradition and reason, that we didn't do that. And my protest against the actions of General Convention and against the actions of my own diocese was to withhold funding from my diocese and my national church."
Radosevich is still a member of her local Episcopal parish in Flagstaff, but she has been worshipping with a small group of Anglicans who have left the Episcopal Church. She says she is praying the denomination will "repent and see the error of its ways."
