An independent congregation within the geographic boundaries of the Diocese of Arkansas has become in effect "a mission of the Diocese of Shyira in Rwanda," under the oversight of its bishop, the Rt. Rev. John Kabango Rucyahana. St. Andrew's Church, Little Rock, and its rector, the Rev. Thomas Johnston, was earlier denied mission status in the Diocese of Arkansas because its bishop, the Rt. Rev. Larry Maze, and the standing committee, told organizers "another congregation in Little Rock was not needed" [TLC, April 19]. In addition, it was felt St. Andrew's organization was politically based; many of its members see themselves as more conservative and orthodox than current Episcopal trends.

Fr. Johnston had answered a call from St. Andrew's while serving in the Diocese of South Carolina. He said he "walked away from my pension" by coming to a diocese without the permission of its bishop. He refused, however, to renounce his orders. An April 25 story in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette quotes him as saying, "The Episcopal Church still had authority over me because I remained a priest in good standing in the Diocese of South Carolina."

In a statement to all the churches of the dioceses, Bishop Maze wrote that the standing committee had been scheduled to meet April 14 "to discuss the likelihood that we would officially ask the Bishop of South Carolina [the Rt. Rev. Edward Salmon, Jr.] to recall or discipline this priest. To our utter amazement on April 13 we learned that the Bishop of South Carolina had earlier received a request to transfer Mr. Johnston to the Diocese of Shyira, Rwanda, Africa, and, on April 6 had complied with the request."

Neither Fr. Johnston nor Bishop Salmon was available for comment. Bishop Maze said he had spoken with Bishop Salmon, who had indicated that he had signed the letter dimissory "to try to keep Arkansas and South Carolina from being in dispute over this priest." Bishop Maze said he had written to Bishop Rucyahana but had not yet received a reply. He expects the actions to lead to discussions at this summer's Lambeth Conference. "In effect, what had been a national dispute involving the integrity of diocesan boundaries is now an issue transplanted to the larger Anglican Communion."

For his part, Fr. Johnston has denied any political motivation behind his actions. He was quoted as saying, "We are a mission of the Diocese of Shyira in Rwanda, and he [Bishop Rucyahana] will come here to confirm like any other bishop. We plan to go to the diocesan convention. When it's scheduled, we will attend."