Shaeffer v. Klee

• Decision Date: 13 January 1905
• Citation: 59 A. 850,100 Md. 264
• Parties: SHAEFFER v. KLEE et al.
• Court: Maryland Court of Appeals

59 A. 850

100 Md. 264

SHAEFFER v. KLEE et al.

Court of Appeals of Maryland

January 13, 1905

Appeal from Circuit Court, Carroll County, in Equity; I. Thomas Jones and Wm. H. Thomas, Judges.

Suit by John Shaeffer against John Klee and others, trustees of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. From a judgment for defendants plaintiff appeals. Affirmed.

McSherry C.J., dissenting.

Argued before McSHERRY, C.J., and FOWLER, BOYD, PAGE, PEARCE, and SCHMUCKER, JJ.

Jas A.C. Bond and F. Neal Parke, for appellant.

Benjamin F. Crouse, for appellees.

PAGE J.

The questions presented by this appeal arise upon the decree of the lower court sustaining the demurrer to the bill filed by John Shaeffer, who, it is alleged, is a member in good standing of the corporate body therein mentioned.

The German Evangelical Church at Deer Park Road, in Carroll county, was incorporated under the general laws of the state in 1866, and in 1879 its charter was amended, also under the general laws of the state. The articles of incorporation show that the purpose of the incorporation was to "organize a German Evangelical Lutheran Church at Deer Park Road, for holding public religious worship in a Christianlike manner," "in accordance with the pure Lutheran doctrine, the preaching of the Word of God, and the proper administration of the Holy Sacraments, and in conformity with the fundamental doctrines of the unaltered Augsburg Confession, and assure to themselves and to their children the Lutheran catechism in the German language." Article 2 of the incorporation of 1866 provides that the "worship of God by said church or congregation shall always be conducted in strict conformity with the established custom of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, and the said worship of God and service of said church or congregation shall always be conducted in the German language, as long as the said congregation numbers one male member, and said member shall so desire it, and said services of said church or congregation shall be conducted only by ministers who are members in good standing in an Evangelical Lutheran Synod and who, besides the Word of God, hold the unaltered Augsburg Confession as the rule of their faith." By the amendment of the charter in 1873 this article was amended so as to require the services to be conducted "only by ministers in an Evangelical Lutheran Synod," and who, besides the Word of God, hold as their rule and word of faith "the Symbolical Books of the year 1580." It is further alleged that, after the incorporation of the church in 1866, Elizabeth Bitzel, a member of the congregation, together with her husband, in consideration of the high estimation entertained by her for the German Evangelical Lutheran Trinity Church at Deer Park Road, conveyed "and accordingly gave" a lot of ground "to the said body corporate," for the purpose of the erection of a church thereon, and for the use and occupation thereof as a burial ground for the said church and congregation; and that in 1873 a certain John Nelson and others conveyed a certain other lot of ground, in fee simple, for a consideration of $98.91. It is further alleged that in February, 1903, the trustees "deliberately forsook and abandoned the established and fundamental form of worship of said body corporate or congregation," and took possession of said church, parsonage, and all other corporate property, for the purpose of ending, and did end, the worship of said congregation for many years established and practiced, and ever since have "prevented and denied to said body corporate and its members the right to hold, as theretofore, the devotions and services of said congregation in accordance with the said articles of incorporation and the Augsburg Confession and the Symbolical Books of the year 1580"; that the said trustees have used the property for worship and devotions other than those contemplated by the articles of incorporation, and have had, and do now have, the said worship conducted by "ministers of the Gospel who only acknowledge the Augsburg Confession as the symbol or declaration of faith, and who deny the validity, integrity, and binding force, sanctity, and absolute authority of the said Symbolical Books of the year 1580," etc., and that said trustees have undertaken to abolish and have terminated the use of the German language "in the catechetical instructions, the devotions, ritual, forms of worship, and preaching," etc. It is charged that such action on the part of the trustees is illegal, in defiance of the rights of the complainant and other members, and contrary to and in violation of the trust reposed in them by the Bitzels and Nelson and others (that the said property should be devoted to the purposes set forth in the articles of incorporation), and that a discontinuance of the use of the German language would work a forfeiture of said property and cause the same to revert to the original owners, etc.; that the trustees "have no power to act in opposition to the terms and conditions and limitations contained in the articles of incorporation and the amendment thereof," and no warrant to use the property as has been shown, and, unless restrained, the "congregation or body corporate will suffer irremediable and irreparable loss," etc. The prayer of the bill is for an injunction restraining the trustees from holding services such as are objected to, and the ministers who have and are yet officiating from conducting such services, and any other relief his case may require. A demurrer having been sustained, the complainant appealed.

The grounds of the appellant's grievances, as appears from the allegations of the bill, are that the trustees permit the services to be held in a language other than the German, and also that they do not forbid and prevent ministers who do not accept the Symbolical Books of 1580 as of binding force and absolute rule of faith, but acknowledge the Augsburg Confession only, from preaching and conducting services in the Deer Park church. It is not alleged in the bill, and it does not anywhere appear, that according to the usages and customs of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, or by the principles of the Augsburg Confession or of the Symbolical Books of 1580, there is any ecclesiastical requirement or rule of practice, or form of worship, as to the use of...