Episcopalians reach resolution
Hundreds at W.Va. convention settle on compromise over national church
By JEAN TARBETT - The Herald-Dispatch

HUNTINGTON -- West Virginia Episcopalians came to a compromise Sunday on financial support for the national church, an issue in question since an openly gay clergyman was ordained a bishop last year in New Hampshire.

Hundreds of Episcopalians from throughout West Virginia gathered for the 127th Annual Convention this weekend at Marshall University. It culminated Sunday with give-and-take from more conservative and more liberal representatives of the church for a compromised diocesan resolution.

The resolution says churches can redirect a portion of their giving from the budget of the national church to a ministry of the national church.

"It allows people in some congregations to feel that they have an act of protest against the action of the church last summer," said the Rev. Donald Vinson, rector at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Huntington. But it also caters to those who want the church to stay together, regardless of last year’s controversy, he said.