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In Canada, Fired Minister of Historic Church No Longer In Contempt of Earlier Order

By Howard M. Friedman

In British Methodist Episcopal Church v. Davis, (ON Ct. App., Jan. 8, 2010), an Ontario (Canada) Court of Appeal held that the former minister of the historic British Methodist Episcopal Church in Guelph (ON) was no longer in contempt of a prior lower court order requiring her to deliver all documents, records and property of the church in her possession, not interfere with any religious services and not attend the church without consent of church officials. According to yesterday's Guelph Mercury, the dispute began in July 2008 when Rev. Erica Davis was not reappointed pastor of the church that was built in 1880 by former slaves who had fled to Canada via the underground railroad. Davis claimed that the church had failed to pay her an agreed $248,000 in compensation. She also contended that church trustees had passed a resolution to transfer title to the church property to her-- a claim that the court rejected.

Full post as published by Religion Clause on January 09, 2010 (boomark / email).