Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints v. Thomas, WD

• Decision Date: 18 October 1988
• Docket Number: No. WD,WD
• Citation: 758 S.W.2d 726
• Parties: REORGANIZED CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER DAY SAINTS, A Missouri Not-For-Profit Corporation and The Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, an International Unincorporated Association, Plaintiffs/Respondents, v. Rennald Perry THOMAS, Defendant/Appellant. 40292.
• Court: Missouri Court of Appeals

Page 726

758 S.W.2d 726

REORGANIZED CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER DAY SAINTS, A Missouri Not-For-Profit Corporation and The Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, an International Unincorporated Association, Plaintiffs/Respondents, v. Rennald Perry THOMAS, Defendant/Appellant.

No. WD 40292.

Missouri Court of Appeals Western District.

Oct. 18, 1988.

Kevin E. Glynn, Kansas City, for defendant-appellant.

Stephen J. Owens, Julie M. Cheslik, Kansas City, for plaintiffs-respondents.

Before CLARK, P.J., and LOWENSTEIN and FENNER, JJ.

FENNER, Judge.

In this case the plaintiffs at trial and respondents on appeal are the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, an International Unincorporated Association (hereinafter RLDS World Church) and the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, a Missouri not-for-profit corporation (hereinafter RLDS Mo. Corp.) The defendant at trial and appellant herein is Rennald Perry Thomas. Thomas was the Presiding Elder or pastor of a congregation of the RLDS World Church located in Buckner, Missouri.

RLDS World Church and RLDS Mo. Corp. brought suit against Thomas seeking a permanent injunction to prevent Thomas and his followers in the Buckner congregation from entering and worshipping in the Buckner church property. Thomas filed a counterclaim seeking a declaration from the court that the Buckner congregation owned the church property or in the alternative damages in the amount of the value of the property. After hearing, the trial court entered an injunction in favor of RLDS World Church and RLDS Mo. Corp. and against Thomas, also denying Thomas' counterclaim on both points. Thomas appeals.

Some general information about the RLDS World Church is necessary to understand the issues presented herein. The RLDS World Church is a hierarchical religious society wherein power and authority flow from the top down to the subordinate local congregation. The congregation is the basic, grass roots level of the RLDS World Church. In ascending order of authority within the RLDS World Church are the congregation; the "stake"; the "region"; the "field"; and at the top, the "First Presidency", which is made up of the top officials who are responsible for the direction and control of the entire RLDS World Church.

The basis for the church structure is divine revelation to the Church President which is recorded in one of the standard books of the RLDS World Church, the Doctrine and Covenants. The other standard books used to guide the church spiritually are the Book of Mormon and the Bible. The Rules and Resolutions sets out the governing rules or procedures of the RLDS World Church, which are approved by the Church's highest legislative body, the World Conference.

The congregation leader is called the "Presiding Elder." Each stake is usually comprised of several congregations and a stake is under the guidance of a Stake President and a Stake Bishop. The Buckner, Missouri, congregation of the RLDS World Church has been one of 14 congregations comprising the Blue Valley Stake since the formation of that stake in 1963 by resolution of the World Church. Before that, the Buckner congregation was part of the Central Missouri Stake. The President of the Blue Valley Stake is William Barnhard. The Stake Bishop for the stake in which the Buckner congregation was assigned from 1949 to 1975 was Willard Becker.

At the field level, a group of twelve people called the "Council of Twelve Apostles", each of whom is assigned to a geographic region, works with regional administrators and Stake Presidents to direct their activities. The apostle in charge of the Central Field, of which the Blue Valley Stake is a member, is William T. Higdon.

At the highest level of the RLDS World Church are the President, Wallace Smith, and the Presiding Bishop, Francis E. Hansen. The Presiding Bishop of the RLDS World Church and two counselors comprise the "Presiding Bishopric". The members of the Presiding Bishopric act as the chief financial officers of the RLDS World Church and are the administrators of the temporal affairs of the RLDS World Church. The RLDS World Church holds title to property in one of two ways. Property can be held in the name of a presiding bishop as trustee in trust for the RLDS World Church for the use and benefit of the RLDS World Church or, in those states where it is allowed, title can be held in the name of one of the RLDS World Church not-for-profit corporations that are formed by the Presiding Bishopric and in which the Presiding Bishopric serve as trustees.

In 1952 the RLDS World Church adopted a directive in the Rules and Resolutions instructing the Presiding Bishop to form not-for-profit corporations where possible, and specifically in the State of Missouri, to hold land for the RLDS World Church. This directive was accomplished in Missouri with the formation by the RLDS World Church Presiding Bishopric of a Missouri not-for-profit corporation entitled the "Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints". RLDS Mo. Corp. is the land-owning affiliate of the World Church in Missouri and a respondent herein.

The Buckner, Missouri RLDS congregation was founded in 1945. The property in relation to which the dispute in the case at hand arises was purchased in 1952. Willard Becker, who was then the Stake Bishop of the stake in which the Buckner church property is located, and Myrle Smith, a member of the Buckner congregation, negotiated the purchase of the property with Mildred F. Wallace who was the owner of the property.

The deed from Wallace conveyed the land on which the Buckner church is now located to "G. Leslie De Lapp, Presiding Bishop as Trustee in Trust for the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and his successor in office for the use and benefit of said church." In the following year, 1953, Mildred F. Wallace conveyed a contiguous strip of land in the same manner to "G. Leslie De Lapp, Presiding Bishop as Trustee in Trust for the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and his successors in office for the use and benefit of said church." These two parcels of land comprise the church property at issue in this case.

In 1963, title to the RLDS Church property at Buckner was transferred by the Presiding Bishop to the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, a Missouri not-for-profit corporation.

Differences of opinion arose between the RLDS World Church and the Presiding Elder of the Buckner congregation, Rennald Perry Thomas, (hereinafter Thomas), and his followers within the congregation.

In 1984, the RLDS World Church adopted Section 156 of the Doctrine and Covenants, which permits the ordination of women into the priesthood. Thomas and his followers refused to support the ordination of women. After efforts to work out their differences had failed, the RLDS World Church decided that Thomas should no longer be allowed to act as Presiding Elder of the Buckner congregation. This decision was made after the relationship of the RLDS World Church with Thomas and his followers had deteriorated as a result of their continued disputes and the unwillingness of Thomas and his followers to accept the directives of the RLDS World Church leadership.

On September 21, 1987, the President of the Blue Valley Stake, William Barnhard, asked Thomas to resign as Presiding Elder of the Buckner congregation. Thomas refused and he was "silenced" for insubordination to higher church authority. Barnhard then appointed Sterling Barlow to take Thomas' place as Presiding Elder.

On Sunday, September 27, 1987, Barnhard and Barlow went to the Buckner church to install Barlow as Presiding Elder. The congregation voted to refuse to accept Barlow and to retain Thomas as their Presiding Elder.

On September 28, 1987, Barnhard reported the occurrences of the previous day to William T. Higdon, the Apostle for the Central Field, which includes the Blue Valley Stake and the Buckner congregation. Higdon directed Barnhard to find that there was a state of disorder in the Buckner congregation and to temporarily suspend their activities. On September 30, 1987, Barnhard and Higdon had the locks on the Buckner church property changed, barricades erected and notices posted to keep people off the property. On the same day as these measures were taken, Thomas and his followers had keys made to the new locks, removed the barricades, held services in the church and conducted interviews with radio and television media representatives.

On October 1, 1987, the respondents herein filed their petition for preliminary and permanent injunctive relief against Thomas and those acting in concert with him. After a hearing at which all parties appeared on October 2, 1987, a temporary restraining order was entered enjoining Thomas and those acting in concert with him from among other things, entering or remaining on the church property in Buckner and from disrupting or in any way interfering with worship services or other activities held on the premises. A consolidated preliminary injunction hearing and trial on the merits was conducted on January 7 and 8, 1988.

On January 11, 1988, the Honorable Jon R. Gray entered his Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law and Judgment entering a Permanent Injunction against Thomas and certain others from which Thomas appeals.

I. CHURCH PROPERTY

On appeal, Thomas argues that the trial court erred in finding that the RLDS World Church is the legal owner of the Buckner church property and that the RLDS World Church holds the property in trust for the entire membership of the World Church. Thomas argues that the trial court erred in finding that the original 1952 and 1953 deeds were valid trust instruments which simultaneously created trusts in favor of the RLDS World Church and conveyed land to the trustees. Thomas contends that the RLDS World Church holds the property in question in trust for...