First Congregational Church v. Evangelical & R. Ch.
| Decision Date | 28 March 1958 |
| Parties | FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH AND SOCIETY OF BURLINGTON, IOWA, First Congregational Church of Pontiac, Michigan, First Congregational Church of Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, Mayfair Congregational Church of Toledo, Ohio, Malcolm K. Burton, Bruce H. Masselink, Angus MacDonald, Harry R. Butman, Gladys T. Kennedy, Norman S. McKendrick, Roy W. Abel, Richard H. Plock, John G. Pryor and Frederick Grabow, suing on behalf of themselves and all others similarly situated, Plaintiffs, v. EVANGELICAL AND REFORMED CHURCH, John T. Beach, as Treasurer and a member of The General Council of the Congregational Christian Churches of the United States, The Board of Home Missions of the Congregational and Christian Churches, The American Missionary Association, The Congregational Home Missionary Society, The Congregational Church Building Society, The Congregational Sunday School Extension Society, The Congregational Board of Ministerial Relief, Congregational Education Society, Congregational Publishing Society, The Annuity Fund for Congregational Ministers, Retirement Fund for Lay Workers, The Corporation for the General Council of the Congregational Christian Churches of the United States, and American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Southern District of New York |
COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED
Davies, Hardy & Schenck, New York City, McCobb, Heaney & Dunn, Grand Rapids, Mich., for plaintiffs. Kenneth W. Greenawalt, New York City, Robert C. C. Heaney, Grand Rapids, Mich., Thomas T. Adams, New York City, of counsel.
Wood, Werner, France & Tully, New York City, for defendants other than Evangelical and Reformed Church and American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. Charles H. Tuttle, Loren N. Wood, Loren T. Wood, Stuart H. Johnson, Jr., New York City, of counsel.
Mudge, Stern, Baldwin & Todd, New York City, John W. Mueller, St. Louis, Mo., for defendant Evangelical and Reformed Church. Paul D. Miller, Bernard Nemtzow, New York City, of counsel.
Goldstein, Judd & Gurfein, New York City, for defendant American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. Orrin G. Judd, Theodore Miller, New York City, of counsel.
These are three motions brought by defendants in the above-entitled action.
1. Defendant General Council of the Congregational Christian Churches and defendants Congregational boards, corporations and funds move to dismiss the complaint under Rules 12 and 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, 28 U.S. C.A. on the grounds that this Court lacks jurisdiction or that its jurisdiction has been improperly contrived, and on grounds of res judicata, or, alternatively, that the Court should exercise its discretion not to accept jurisdiction over the action.
2. Defendant Evangelical and Reformed Church moves for judgment dismissing the complaint pursuant to Rules 12 and 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure on the grounds that the Court is without jurisdiction of the subject matter and that the complaint fails to state a claim on which relief can be granted.
3. Defendant American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions moves to dismiss the action as against it for failure of jurisdiction over the defendant in that the defendant is not doing business within the Southern District of New York, or, alternatively, that the Court should decline jurisdiction over a matter dealing with the internal affairs of a foreign corporation.
The action is brought as a representative action, seeking a declaratory judgment, by a number of Congregational Christian Churches and ministers and members of Congregational Christian Churches who also are, or were, members of the General Council of the Congregational Christian Churches of the United States, and by corporate members of The Board of Home Missions of the Congregational Christian Churches and of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, and members of The Annuity Fund for Congregational Ministers. The action is brought to determine questions of the validity, interpretation and construction of a purported written agreement entitled "The Basis of Union of the Congregational Christian Churches and The Evangelical and Reformed Church" and "The Interpretations" and to determine questions in respect of the rights and other legal relations of plaintiffs and those similarly situated arising out of and in connection with said agreement, and their rights as affected by the proposed or existing merger of the Congregational Christian Churches and the Evangelical and Reformed Church into the United Church of Christ. Plaintiffs say that they and a large number of Congregational Christian Churches and members thereof are opposed to the union of the Congregational Christian Churches and the Evangelical and Reformed Church, and plaintiffs seek a declaratory judgment that the various agreements for the merger of the churches and establishing the proposed new United Church of Christ are invalid as to themselves and invalid to change or affect the status, income, assets or functions of defendant Council, boards, funds and corporations. They seek to have their rights in said boards, funds and corporations declared.
The two motions brought on by the Congregational defendants and by the Evangelical and Reformed Church raise principally the issue of the effect of a prior litigation in the New York State courts, which was entitled, "Cadman Memorial Congregational Society of Brooklyn and The Cadman Memorial Church, suing on behalf of themselves and other Congregational Christian Churches similarly situated, against Helen Kenyon, as Moderator of the General Council of the Congregational Christian Churches of the United States." See Sup.Ct.Kings Co., 1950, 197 Misc. 124, 95 N.Y.S.2d 133, reversed App.Div.2d Dept., 1952, 279 App.Div. 1015, 1074, 111 N.Y.S. 2d 808, affirmed 1953, 306 N.Y. 151, 116 N.E.2d 481. Movants contend that the above litigation was a representative action which determined adversely to the present plaintiffs the issues which have been raised by the complaint in this suit. Plaintiffs counter that this is not the case, that the issues in the present suit are different from those in the New York suit; that the parties are different, and that the New York court did not, in fact, enter a declaratory judgment which would have a binding effect on the parties here. Plaintiffs also contend that the facts have changed since the time the New York State court adjudicated the matter and, additionally, that admissions and concessions of the defendants in that case have been breached and are not binding upon the additional parties defendant in this litigation.
Since the prior New York litigation presents the principal issue here, it is necessary to present a brief review of conceded and apparent facts of the litigation and of the history of the litigation in the New York State courts. The controversy in the New York courts, as here, was concerned with the plan of union under which the Congregational Christian Churches of the United States and the Evangelical and Reformed Church proposed to unite, or have united, under the name of The United Church of Christ. The Congregational Christian Churches approximate 5,800 churches in America, which by tradition and usage are independent, self-governing fellowships without any central ecclesiastical control. These churches were or are organized in district associations, State conferences and conventions and a General Council national in scope. The membership in this group numbers over 1,300,000.
The Evangelical and Reformed Church is or was a Protestant denomination of national scope consisting of congregations, synodical units and an ecclesiastical governing body having jurisdiction over such congregations and their members, ministers and organizations. At the time of the Cadman suit this church consisted of approximately 2,800 churches having a membership of over 700,000 persons.
The Cadman Church, which was the plaintiff in the New York State court action, is one of the oldest and largest of Congregational Christian Churches, and is located in Brooklyn, New York. The General Council of the Congregational Christian Churches, which was the defendant in the New York State court action, is a voluntary association of Congregational Christian Churches, national in scope, having a constitution, by-laws and standing rules. According to its constitution its membership is made up of both laity and clergy representing individual Congregational Churches, local associations and district conferences or conventions and affiliated colleges and theological seminaries, as well as certain other designated groups or classes of persons, such as ex-officio members of the conferences or conventions, representatives of home and foreign missions, honorary members, ecumenical members and certain others, by invitation, the latter enjoying the privilege of the floor but having no vote.
A Commission on Interchurch Relations and Christian Unity, representing the General Council and a committee representing the Evangelical and Reformed Church, after several years of study and negotiations, developed the document called "The Basis of Union of the Congregational Christian Churches and the Evangelical and Reformed Church" with "Interpretations," and adopted the final form of this document in January of 1947. The document was submitted to the individual Congregational Christian Churches and State conferences who voted upon it, and it appears that about 72% of those voting approved the Basis of Union, as did 90% of the associations and district conferences. The General Council, at a meeting held in February 1949, voted (757 for and 172 against) to consummate the plan and so advised the Evangelical and Reformed Church, which itself approved the plan.
It appears that a group of Congregational ministers and members of...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Arrowsmith v. United Press International
...Ostow & Jacobs, Inc. v. Morgan-Jones, Inc., 178 F.Supp. 150, 154 (S.D.N.Y.1959); First Congregational Church v. Evangelical & Reformed Church, 160 F.Supp. 651, 662-663 (S.D. N.Y.1958). But see Polizzi v. Cowles Magazines, Inc., 345 U.S. 663, 73 S.Ct. 900, 97 L.Ed. 1331 (1953); Remington Ran......
-
Ferrara v. Philadelphia Laboratories, Inc.
...Allstate Ins. Co. v. Lumbermens Mut. Cas. Co., 204 F.Supp. 83 (D.Conn.1962); First Congregational Church and Soc. of Burlington, Iowa v. Evangelical and Reformed Church, 160 F.Supp. 651 (S.D.N.Y.1958). But a distinction has been drawn between such cases and one where the plaintiff first acq......
-
Allstate Insurance Co. v. Lumbermens Mutual Casualty Co.
...1958, 23 F.R.D. 64, 83-84, rev'd on other grounds 2 Cir., 270 F.2d 365; First Congregational Church & Soc. of Burlington, Iowa v. Evangelical & Reformed Church, S.D.N.Y., 1958, 160 F.Supp. 651, 661-662; compare, American Motorists Ins. Co. v. Weir, 132 Conn. 557-562, 46 A.2d 7 (1946). There......
-
Mechanical Contractors Ass'n v. Mechanical Con. A. of N. Cal.
...its asserted rights. The order is affirmed. 1 Compare the following cases, cited by the Local: First Congregational Church v. Evangelical & R. Ch., S.D.N.Y., 1958, 160 F.Supp. 651, 663; B. K. Bruce Lodge, Inc. v. Subcommittee of Management of Grand United Order of Odd Fellows, 1924, 208 App......