(Staff) By its own admission, The Episcopal Church is losing the equivalent of one diocese per year. On March 28^th the House of Deputies Committee on the State of the Church issued a report which describes a church riven with dispute and undermined by a skewed age structure and “dire” attendance rates (p.62).

To quote Committee member Dr. Kirk Hadaway: “The age structure of The Episcopal Church suggests an average of forty thousand deaths and twenty-one thousand births, or a natural decline of 19,000 members per year, a population larger than most dioceses. The advanced—and still advancing—age of our membership, combined with our low birth rate, means that we lose the equivalent of one diocese per year.”

The Report states: “The increase in parishes experiencing financial difficulty between 2000 and 2005 is alarming, jumping from 44% to 68%. While that does not worsen between 2005 and 2008, the rate is far too high to allow a rosy picture to be painted (p.64).

“It should be noted that with the departure of members of congregations, and now leaders of certain dioceses, from our fellowship additional legal expenses have been incurred by The Episcopal Church at all levels, not to mention the expenditure of time, talent and energy. What has, thus far, remained unstated is that as a consequence of this strife substantial funds have been diverted from the mission and ministry of many congregations and dioceses, adding to our financial burden” (p.65).

Anglican journalist David Virtue commented in March: “The effects of the economic downturn are reaching into the collection plates and endowment funds of America's Episcopal churches at alarming levels. Bishops and parish priests are watching with horror as donations dwindle and investments decline. Unemployment is beginning to hit the collection plate hard. Usually when times are tough, more people go to church. That does not seem to be happening in the Episcopal Church.”