Clergy - Part 3

• What authority does a civil court have to intervene in a church controversy regarding the ouster of a pastor? A Texas state appeals court recently addressed this issue. In January of 1988, four members of a local Baptist church sought a court order enforcing the church's ouster of its pastor. A trial court ordered another church meeting to vote on the pastor because of controversy surrounding the eligibility of certain members who had voted in the original election. The court ordered two church members to assist him in determining which members were eligible to vote. Following the second election, the court issued a permanent injunction prohibiting the pastor from acting as pastor, interfering with the normal workings of the church, going onto or near church property, withdrawing funds from church accounts, spending church funds, or engaging in any act "calculated to embarrass, harass, ...