The Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) was founded in 2009 by Episcopalians who were horrified that the US Episcopal Church was ordaining gays, installing women as bishops, and blessing LGBTQ unions. Jesus may have spoken favorably of DEI. But these traditionalists believe the Son of God did Christianity wrong.
If asked, these dissenters would claim moral superiority over the church they left behind. However, yet again, claims of ethical purity by the sanctimonious proved premature. The current leader of the breakaway sect has allegedly been sinning.
The Washington Post obtained a 'church presentment' — a document outlining accusations by Clair Buxton, 42, a church official. WaPo reports that:
The denomination's senior-most official, Archbishop Stephen Wood, 62, has been accused by a former children's ministry director of putting his hand against the back of her head and trying to kiss her in his office in April 2024.
The incident allegedly occurred two months before he was elected to the helm, according to a new church presentment, which The Washington Post obtained in advance of its Monday submission.
Taken by itself, some might dismiss this as small potatoes. However, workplace harassment is anguishing for its victims. Sexual abuse by a moral leader is hypocritical. And it wasn't an isolated incident. The presentment accuses Wood of violating his ordination vows, committing sexual immorality, and bringing "scandal and offense" upon his office.
Wood faces complaints from priests that he plagiarized sermons and bullied and disparaged church staffers in the years before he became Archbishop. In addition, there were questions about a $60,000 truck provided by the diocese for Wood's church visits, which Wood seemed to have used solely for hunting.
As long as six years ago, people thought the current Archbishop lacked the fiber for the job. In a 2019 letter to Wood, the Rev. Hamilton Smith, the rector of St. Thomas' Church in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, wrote: "I do not feel you have moral authority required to hold the office of Bishop."
Buxton granted an interview to WaPo. In it, she said that the alleged advance came after numerous church employees remarked upon Wood's "excessive praise and fondness" for her.
Praise was not all Wood gave Buxton. In November 2022, he handed her a folded check for $1,500, made out to her, from a church account, labeled "St. Andrews Church Rector's Mercy Fund. Then, in July 2023, a church official deposited $500 into Buxton's bank account, telling her that Wood said she needed it. He also gave her cash — $1,500 in November 2023.
Buxton, a divorced mother of three sons, added that her issues with Wood are symptomatic of the denomination's wider problems.
"I was in shock. It's just bizarre to me how far we — the Anglican Church in North America and its leadership — have gotten away from basic morals and principles."
I respect Buxton's shock. We all find it hard, or are unwilling, to imagine bad things will happen to us. However, given the record of crime and sin perpetrated by religious officials on underlings and congregants, it is hardly a surprise that a pervert appeared in holy robes.
Wood isn't alone. In July, one of the church's rectors, Austin Becton, resigned after he was admonished for social media posts saying church authorities should repent for excluding LGBTQ+ Christians. In his resignation announcement, he wrote:
"I have grown increasingly troubled by broader patterns within the Anglican Church in North America. These are not simply lapses in judgment or isolated failures in leadership. They are symptoms of a structure designed, often unknowingly, to protect itself at all costs."
He detailed his frustration with a church that proved a haven for abusers. He told of "courageous survivors of sexual, emotional, and spiritual abuse," who "have stepped forward—risking everything to speak the truth."
Becton says that instead of compassion and action, these victims received "Delay. Defensiveness. Silencing. Retaliation." He added they were dismissed as "angry," "divisive," or "wounded." And "instead of being shepherded, they were scrutinized."
He identified one particular case:
"One of the most egregious examples is in the Diocese of the Upper Midwest, where reports of sexual abuse by lay leaders and clergy, including against a 9-year-old child, were known by diocesan and provincial authorities for years, yet went unaddressed.
Survivors and whistleblowers alike were met not with protection and care, but with pressure and hostilities. When the story finally became public, no one in leadership was removed. No public repentance was made. No transparent restitution process was enacted. Many of these leaders remain in positions of authority today."
There's more:
- Parishioners and clergy have accused Stewart Ruch III, an Anglican bishop who oversees a diocese of 18 churches in the Midwest, of allowing men with histories of violence or sexual misconduct to worship or hold staff or leadership roles in his diocese.
- In June 2020, one Anglican bishop was removed from ministry after pleading guilty to ecclesiastical charges of "sexual immorality" and "conduct giving just cause for scandal" for his use of pornography.
- Another bishop was defrocked in May 2024 after sending more than 11,000 text messages to a married woman, among other accusations.
- Also in 2024, the current and former rectors of the Falls Church Anglican were issued "Godly admonitions" for mishandling sex abuse allegations against a former youth minister.
Andrew Gross, an Anglican priest who was the Anglican Church's communications director from 2013 until early this year, states the obvious:
"Unfortunately, the problems at the highest levels of the ACNA are deeper, wider and more entrenched than many of its own parishioners realize.
The ACNA has never before had to deal with serious allegations of misconduct by the Archbishop. This is a crisis without precedent, and how these concerns are handled will determine the future trajectory of the denomination and its credibility."
Perhaps the ACNA will clean house and establish policies that protect workers, parishioners, and bystanders. But why has it taken so long? Why are religious institutions, which present themselves as good stewards of their flock, seemingly so slow to root out the ravening sinners in their ranks? They preach compassion, but treat people like shit. And they demand moral behavior, which they often do not model.
Will religious hypocrisy ever end?
