Legal Opinion
St. Mary of Egypt Orthodox Church, Inc. v. Townsend
Court of Appeals of Georgia
Decided March 28, 2000No. A99A1838PublishedCited by 5 opinions
1Opinion of the Court
Smith, Judge.
In this case, transferred from the Supreme Court of Georgia, we revisit the perennial question of the extent to which the courts of this state may address matters in dispute within a church or ecclesiastical body. Here, doctrinal disputes led an archbishop of the Orthodox Church in America (“OCA”) to suspend Father John Townsend, the rector of St. Mary of Egypt Orthodox Church of the Diocese of the South of the Orthodox Church in America, Inc. (“St. Mary’s”), from his priestly duties. Townsend and some members of the parish then attempted to affiliate the parish with the Russian…
2Cases cited8 opinions
- Serbian Eastern Orthodox Diocese for United States and Canada v. MilivojevichSupreme Court of the United States · 1976
- Bishop and Diocese of Colorado v. MoteSupreme Court of Colorado · 1986
- Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp. v. Stovall Nissan, Inc.Court of Appeals of Georgia · 1997
- First Born Church of Living God, Inc. v. HillSupreme Court of Georgia · 1997
- Orthodox Church of America v. PavukCommonwealth Court of Pennsylvania · 1988
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3Cited by5 opinions
- Kim v. LimCourt of Appeals of Georgia · 2002
- Timberridge Presbyterian Church, Inc. v. Presbytery of Greater Atlanta, Inc.Court of Appeals of Georgia · 2010
- Kemp v. NealSupreme Court of Georgia · 2010
- Kemp v. NealSupreme Court of Georgia · 2010
- Kim v. LimCourt of Appeals of Georgia · 2002