Doctrine or discipline? The question was asked frequently Feb. 27 during a hearing before the Court for the Trial of a Bishop at the Cathedral of St. John in Wilmington, Del.

At stake was whether Bishop Walter Righter taught doctrine contrary to that of the Episcopal Church when he ordained the Rev. Barry Stopfel to the diaconate in 1990, and whether he violated his ordination vows by the action.

Attorneys for Bishop Righter and the 10 bishops who brought presentment charges against him spent three hours apiece arguing the question of whether the Episcopal Church has a doctrine concerning the ordination of non-celibate homosexuals.

The hearing took place in the Great Hall of the cathedral before nearly 100 members of the media and perhaps another 150 persons who filled the hall and spilled over into the nave of the cathedral, where the sound from the hearing could be heard.

The court, composed of nine bishops, went into closed session following the one-day hearing and was not expected to issue a judgment for some time.

"We will announce a time and place and how the decision will be promulgated," said the Rt. Rev. Edward W. Jones, Bishop of Indianapolis and presiding judge of the court.

Bishop Righter, retired Bishop of Iowa, was Assistant Bishop of Newark when he performed the ordination in 1990. Ten bishops brought presentment charges in 1995 before the five-year statute of limitations was to expire.

Bishop Righter, who spent the day seated at a table with the five diocesan chancellors who represent him, seemed unfazed by the proceedings.

"I was more nervous when I took my driver's test in New Hampshire" (where he now resides), he said afterward.

Fr. Stopfel, now rector of St. George's Church, Maplewood, N.J., sat in the second row of the gallery, whispering frequently to persons on each side of him.

Under the format for the hearing, Hugo Blankingship, counsel for the presenters, had 21/2 hours to plead his case, then Michael Rehill, counsel for Bishop Righter, had 21/2 hours. Then each attorney had 30 minutes to present a rebuttal. Both attorneys were asked questions frequently by the judges.

Mr. Blankingship is former chancellor of the Diocese of Virginia. Facing the judges, who were seated in a semi-circle, he reminded the court of the two charges of the presentment.

"This case first and foremost is about authority," he said. He added it is also about order, doctrine, Christian marriage, faithfulness and redemption.

Throughout his presentation, Mr. Blankingship spoke frequently of a 1979 resolution of General Convention which reaffirmed "the traditional teaching of the church" and said every ordained person is expected to lead a life which is "a wholesome example to all people.

"It's up to this court to decide if it's enforceable," he said of the resolution. "There's no one left."

Mr. Blankingship spoke of the catechism as found in the Book of Common Prayer as "getting to the doctrine of the church.

"This is not a supreme court that can take the legislation of General Convention and change it," he said. "I think the place where this will end up is back on the steps of General Convention."

Mr. Rehill, chancellor of the Diocese of Newark, opened the afternoon session by challenging Mr. Blankingship's statement of what the case was about.

"We seemed to have forgotten the presentment," he said. "This case is about whether there is a doctrine in the Episcopal Church over whether a non-celibate homosexual living in a monogamous relationship can be ordained.

"What we have here is a very simple issue. Is the matter one of discipline or doctrine?"

Mr. Rehill said he could not find the word "doctrine" in the 1979 resolution.

"The reason we're here is because the presenters don't understand doctrine," he said. "They don't understand the canon under which they brought these charges. They're dealing with an issue of discipline."

The Rt. Rev. Arthur E. Walmsley, retired Bishop of Connecticut, was concerned about the lack of a "middle ground."

"In neither presentation is there a middle ground," he said. "You're not addressing the middle ground."

"The middle ground is where the church really is," Mr. Rehill responded. "I'm dealing with a narrow issue."

Mr. Rehill spoke further about the 1979 resolution. "At best it is a recommendation," he said.

While the judges brought forth a variety of topics, the principal topic throughout the day centered on whether a matter was doctrine or discipline.

According to Mr. Blankingship, doctrine is "that which is taught."

Mr. Rehill called it "the fundamental nature of our faith." He said, "If it isn't in the Book of Common Prayer, it isn't doctrine."

Mr. Blankingship said, "It must be in accord with scripture."

The majority of the judges' questions centered on doctrine.

"Is everything the church teaches doctrine?" asked the Rt. Rev. Frederick Borsch, Bishop of Los Angeles.

"If it's found in scripture, it's close," Mr. Blankingship replied.

Bishop Cabell Tennis of Delaware asked whether the ordination of women was doctrine. Mr. Rehill said it was not.

Other judges asked whether priesthood, marriage and adultery were doctrine.

Bishop Jones questioned whether there might be areas of common ground for the court to explore.

"That's always the right thing for persons in authority to do," Mr. Blankingship said. "The common ground has to be what is best for the church. That's what those in the pews hope for. That would be for the church to say we have a moral doctrine on which to stand."

Mr. Rehill called Fr. Stopfel "an outstanding priest," and said "Bishop Righter didn't ordain a homosexual man, he ordained a man who happens to be a homosexual."

He added he felt the church does not have a sexual morality. Rather it has a morality which addresses sexuality.

Bishop Jones announced that a motion by Bishop Righter's counsel to remove a paper filed by the presenters was rejected, and that a motion by the presenters to disqualify Bishop Borsch as a judge because his suffragan bishop had ordained a practicing homosexual [TLC, Feb. 11] would be taken "under advisement" by the court.

Following conclusion of the hearing, Bishop Righter and Fr. Stopfel met with members of the media.

"My hope is that they can find some way to have a middle way," Bishop Righter said. "We need to talk about this. It's going to take a long time.

"I'm a retired bishop. Let me go home and play with my dog."

"The horrible thing to do would be to draw more absolutes out of this," Fr. Stopfel said. "I'm going to go and exercise my priesthood."

If the judges rule that the church does have doctrine concerning ordination of non-celibate homosexuals, a trial could be held in May.