Church Street Methodist Church of Selma in Alabama filed the complaint on Monday in the Dallas County Circuit Court against the UMC Alabama-West Florida Conference. The Church is seeking a court order to affirm its ownership of the historic property.
James McNeil, an attorney with Hobbs & Hain PC of Selma and a member of Church Street UMC, submitted the complaint on behalf of the congregation. McNeil explained to The Christian Post that the church seeks legal confirmation of its property ownership before considering any potential disaffiliation vote.
“The trustees of the church initiated this process and I was delegated by them and the church membership to go forward with preparing a complaint seeking a declaratory judgment as it relates to who has ultimate control over the church property,” he stated.
According to the UMC Book of Discipline, all church properties within the denomination are held in trust “for the benefit of the entire denomination, and ownership and usage of church property is subject to the Discipline.”
The provision outlines that “the trust is and always has been irrevocable, except as provided in the Discipline. Property can be released from the trust, transferred free of trust or subordinated to the interests of creditors and other third parties only to the extent authority is given by the Discipline,”
However, McNeil disputes the assertion that the UMC and Alabama-West Florida conferences possess “ultimate control over the property,” citing “neutral principles” of state law.
He remarked, “The trust clause that the Methodist Church is using does not comply with the Alabama law as it relates to the creation of trust. The main issue here is that in order to have a valid trust that relates to real property, there has to be a written document that is signed by all of the parties.”
McNeil maintained that “there is no such document of that type creating a trust as it relates to the property,” adding that “full title to the property should be free and clear of any trust claims by the United Methodist Church.”
UMC Alabama-West Florida Conference spokesperson emailed a statement in response to the lawsuit, expressing, “We were saddened to receive the lawsuit from Church Street United Methodist Church. We are praying for all involved.”
The UMC has faced a long-standing and divisive debate over its rules regarding the blessing of same-sex unions and the ordination of noncelibate homosexuals. Earlier this year, the UMC General Conference voted overwhelmingly to remove prohibitions against gay marriage and the ordination of openly gay ministers, as well as to lift a ban on funding LGBT advocacy groups.
