Furthermore, O'Neill is only allowing rectors into the diocese as priests-in-charge. The only new rectors are, by and large, lesbians, VOL was told. For the record, this is reminiscent of the late Bishop of Washington, Ronald H. Haines who hired any number of gays and lesbians as priests, but in his eight-year tenure hired no heterosexual white males.

The long and torturous ordeal for Grace and St. Stephens Church, the formation of St. George's Anglican Church and the impact it has had on the wider Christian Community has been enormous. Newspaper and Internet accounts of O'Neill's dealings with Fr. Armstrong, the loss of some 27 parishes to the Anglican Church in North America, (ACNA) AMiA, the Diocese of the Holy Spirit and several smaller Anglican jurisdictions has demoralized the clergy and thousands of Episcopalians. An orthodox rector who meets with several Episcopal pastors told VOL, "They are really down and they don't believe O'Neill is providing any leadership. He just reacts," they told him.

The loss of 36 parishes also includes the Diocese of the Missouri Valley ACA/TAC with three parishes in Colorado and seven Forward in Faith congregations in Colorado.

An astute observer of diocesan politics told VOL that basically Rob O'Neill has killed the Diocese of Colorado.

"Colorado Springs had seven Episcopal churches when O'Neill ascended his throne in Denver on October 4, 2003, and now there are three: The Chapel of our Savior, the Archangel Michael, and whatever is left of Grace and St. Stephens (a rump congregation of Armstrong haters that ranges between 80 and 120 max)," he said.

"Statewide, the Diocese is in even worse shape. The orthodox congregation of St. Andrews Episcopal Church in historic downtown Ft. Collins closed and left over two years ago. No one has reoccupied it, and the place is boarded up." A priest told VOL that the bishop has been unsuccessful in selling the building. It has been on the market since November 2007. The church is free and clear of any encumbrances.

The large Broomfield congregation of Holy Comforter under The Rev. Chuck Reeder abandoned their church home and left behind their million-dollar plus mortgage on the hapless Bishop. It is now Holy Spirit Church (Anglican) with the AMiA. "We are glad that it is behind us. We are glad to be focusing on the gospel and not church politics. We are beginning to see miracles of people being saved and being healed. It took a long time to get out of TEC and to get TEC out of us and to identify what the gospel is," Reeder told VOL.

In Sedalia, Colorado, the Rev. Theron Walker has a slightly better view of O'Neill when his congregation, St. Philips decided they did not want to grow. In Feb. of this year, Walker took half the congregation and with the Great Commission in hand left the Diocese to form the Emmaus Anglican Church. "The parting was amicable enough. We left the building and we now meet in a call center. The small country chapel of 55 could not grow and half the congregation was not willing to move forward. We didn't try and take the building so O'Neill had no beef with us," he told VOL.

Commented another priest, "When Rob O'Neill is finished, he will have left the largely gay funded cathedral in Denver, and a handful of declining congregations around the state. The Episcopal Church in Colorado, in other words, is dead."

While O'Neill was successful in getting the property of Grace and St. Stephens back, the toll financially on the diocese has been enormous.

According to figures released by Fr. Armstrong, St. George's Anglican Church spent $1 million defending itself against O'Neill's grab for Grace and St. Stephen's, with the diocese spending some $3 million. The Episcopal Church spent even more on the property case flying attorneys in and out, not including what they got the police and prosecution to defend. Armstrong estimates the total cost to be in excess of $5 million. (According to Presiding Bishop Jefferts Schori, the cost to rehabilitate the Diocese of Haiti following the earthquake was $10 million.)

The loss of close to 30 parishes in the diocese has been debilitating on those who have remained. A source close to O'Neill stated, "With O'Neill, the issue is property. The Diocese is dying. Grace and St. Stephens Church under Fr. Armstrong was euphemistically called "Grace Cathedral" and was the wealthiest congregation in the state. Rob O'Neill destroyed that. The present congregation is run on a shoestring, and of course, the real money of that congregation is now at St. George's. The Sedalia and Broomfield and Ft. Collins Congregations walked away from their properties. The Diocese of Colorado's only hope for fiduciary integrity is to be able to sell off these properties and live off the assets. "I predict that in time, the historic Grace and St. Stephens complex at 601 North Tejon will be sold by the Bishop for either a new hotel or a high-end condo development."

From 1992 till 2008, the population of the state of Colorado rose by nearly 1.5 million. During that time the Diocese of Colorado declined by 41.6% from a high of 14,201 to 10,772.

Membership in 2007 and 2008 was 30,101 and 28,300 respectively with average Sunday attendance dropping from 11,392 to 10,772.

END