The presentment trial of the Rt. Rev. Walter C. Righter, originally scheduled for Chicago, then moved to Hartford, Conn., now is headed for Wilmington, Del. At a pre-trial hearing in Hartford, Dec. 8, it was announced that the Diocese of Connecticut's offer to be the site of the trial had been withdrawn.

The Rt. Rev. Clarence Coleridge, Bishop of Connecticut, said members of the diocese had complained strongly about Connecticut being the site of the trial, which had been scheduled for Feb. 27-29. He said the "pre-trial press hype" also was a factor.

"This was really drawing attention, in a negative way, to the trial and away from the real issues of the church," he said.

Bishop Righter, 72, retired Bishop of Iowa, has been charged with teaching doctrine contrary to that of the Episcopal Church and with violating his ordination vows when he ordained the Rev. Barry Stopfel, a non-celibate homosexual, to the diaconate in 1990. Ten diocesan bishops brought the charges against Bishop Righter, who at the time of the ordination was an assistant bishop in the Diocese of Newark. One-fourth of the House of Bishops consented to the trial.

Bishop Coleridge said he was surprised by the objections raised by members of his diocese, many of whom mentioned the cost of the trial. "A prevalent idea among callers was that the diocese was spending the money," he said. The cost of the trial will be borne by the national church and by Bishop Righter, who is being assisted by a defense fund.

The Very Rev. Richard Mansfield, provost of Christ Church Cathedral, Hartford, distributed a statement emphasizing the cathedral as "a ministry of open hospitality," but added, "Many of us felt that the trial is an unfortunate movement in our church's history."

As of mid-December, another hearing was scheduled for Feb. 27-29 at the Cathedral of St. John in Wilmington. Another trial date is March 26-28 in Wilmington.

At the Hartford hearing, held in a lounge of the cathedral, the court rejected motions by the prosecution that four judges of the nine-member court should resign. Church advocate (prosecuting attorney) Hugo Blankingship, Jr., former chancellor of the Diocese of Virginia, moved that Bishop Edward Jones of Indianapolis, the presiding judge, and Bishop Douglas Theuner of New Hampshire should resign from the court because they have ordained noncelibate homosexuals to the priesthood. The motion also called for the resignation from the court of Bishop Fred Borsch of Los Angeles and Bishop Arthur Walmsley, retired, of Connecticut, citing that those two, along with Bishops Jones and Theuner, had signed "A Statement of Koinonia," a document circulated at General Convention in 1994 which affirms gays and lesbians who live in committed same-sex relationships.

Bishop Borsch said that statement had been written in response to "An Affirmation," another document circulated at General Convention which originated with many of the bishops of Province 7, and reaffirms the church's traditional teachings on sexuality.

Michael Rehill, chancellor of the Diocese of Newark, who is representing Bishop Righter, said most bishops have signed documents that committed them to one side or the other in the sexuality debate. "I would ask: Which of you could sit on this court?" he said.

Mr. Rehill also apologized to two of the judges, Bishop Andrew Fairfield of North Dakota and Bishop Donis Patterson, retired, of Dallas, for having written that their consenting to the presentment was the equivalent of finding Bishop Righter guilty.

Other judges are Bishops Roger White of Milwaukee, Robert Johnson of North Carolina and Cabell Tennis of Delaware.

The court went into closed session to consider the motions, and when the judges returned 90 minutes later, Bishop Jones announced the motions were disqualified.

Mr. Blankingship also moved to disqualify lay assessor Sally Johnson, chancellor of the Diocese of Minnesota, because the canons which go into effect Jan. 1 prohibit chancellors from serving as lay assessors. The court decided to put aside the issue of Ms. Johnson's qualifications until it is determined which canons may apply.

Following the hearing, the court went into closed session to discuss how to deal with the two counts of the presentment. The two sides agreed that the issue of whether the ordination of noncelibate homosexuals is a matter of doctrine needs to be determined first.

In their presentations at the hearing, Mr. Blankingship and Mr. Rehill agreed that if the court rules that the issue is not a matter of doctrine, there is no need for the case to proceed.

"You must decide whether or not there is a doctrine in this church that it is wrong to ordain a non-celibate homosexual," Mr. Rehill said.

"The question of doctrine is the threshold issue that must be decided before you can proceed," said the Rt. Rev. William C. Wantland, Bishop of Eau Claire and author of the presentment.

It is anticipated that the court will issue a ruling on the matter before the end of the year.

Bishop Wantland addressed the court on several occasions. Mr. Rehill objected to the fact that a presenter was speaking. Bishop Wantland said a request had been made for him to "assist" Mr. Blankingship, and that because the court had not responded negatively, he assumed it would be permitted. Bishop Jones ruled Bishop Wantland could not assume his right to speak in the future.

The hearing was attended by Bishop Righter and his wife, Nancy, who reside in New Hampshire. Bishop Righter arrived after the hearing had begun, and introduced himself as "Walter Righter, the heretic." He sat at the table of his attorney; his wife sat at his side, knitting.

The proceeding is the second time a bishop has been tried. In 1924, Bishop William Montgomery Brown of Arkansas was tried for teaching false doctrine. Eventually he was convicted and deposed for his views on communism.

Episcopal News Service contributed to this article.