Orthodox Church in America v. Mikilak

A majority of the members of St. Basil’s Russian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church of Simpson, Pennsylvania, voted to transfer affiliation from the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Orthodox Church in America to that of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (Church Abroad). The Orthodox Church in America and the congregational minority, who are the appellees, commenced an action in equity in the Court of Common Pleas of Lackawanna County and obtained an injunction1 restoring possession of church property to them and preventing any future interference with their use of the property to…