News media nationwide have recently given extensive coverage to bad behavior by the Ocean City, MD city government involving the latter’s opposition to a new, low-barrier shelter program operated by St. Paul’s-by-the-Sea Episcopal Church. But one thing the stories in other outlets omit — and it’s an important point — is that St. Paul’s is…
Earlier, we posted a piece sharing our concerns about possible sexual harassment by Bastrop, Texas-based Episcopal priest Amy Moehnke and the Diocese’s dismal response to the concerns raised by parishioner Amy Nelsen about Moehnke’s interactions with Nelsen and her children. This post provides an update on this situation and extends our cautionary message about Moehnke’s…
In August 2025, San Diego-based Episcopal priest Roger Haenke was captured on video by a social media content provider allegedly soliciting what he thought was a 14-year-old boy for sex. And while we believe Haenke subsequently resigned from holy orders, some digging by Anglican Watch reveals that Haenke is apparently still holding himself forth as an Episcopal…
One of the sad indictments of the Episcopal Church is that every Easter and Christmas, thousands of so-called “C&E Christians” turn out for services. And while many parishes pull out all the stops (pun intended) to make a good impression, the experience is not adequate to draw worshipers in on a regular basis. That said,…
Former Archbishop of Canterbury, the Rt. Rev. Justin Welby, was recently invited by Bishop Diocesan Rob Wright to preach at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Decatur, Georgia. Wright did so despite Welby facing damning criticism in the Makin Report, which named Welby as complicit in decades of sadomasochistic child sex abuse by the late John…
In a ruling issued last week, the Episcopal Court of Review overturned a hearing panel decision that recommended that Dallas priest Ed Monk, now facing felony criminal charges after allegedly embezzling more than $300,000 from his parish, be defrocked as an Episcopal priest. Among the Court’s concerns were: The failure to allow Monk’s attorney to…
Anglican Watch is now calling on Episcopal priest Matthew Machowski to resign from holy orders. Machowski, openly gay, allegedly engaged in dozens of instances of extramarital sexual conduct with random partners while married to another man. The call for Machowski’s resignation follows the receipt of additional allegations about Machowski’s inappropriate conduct. Machowski is the rector…
Watchdog group Anglican Watch today announced an ongoing investigation into several leading organizations within the Reform Judaism Movement in North America following receipt of credible allegations of abuse, cover-up, criminal conduct, retaliation against whistleblowers, and the failure to comply with mandatory child abuse reporting laws. The investigation extends to a number of prominent faith leaders,…
The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP), one of the earliest organizations to fight for victims of abuse, appears poised to implode after the resignation of more than 27 long-time leaders and advocates. The news follows months of internal turmoil over integrity, accountability, transparency, fiduciary matters, board member conduct, and more. Like many…
Disclosure: Machowski was ordained while serving at Grace Episcopal Alexandria, a parish previously attended by Anglican Watch editor Eric Bonetti and his husband. Bonetti has not been involved in production of this post. A source within the Episcopal Diocese of Southeast Florida tells Anglican Watch that openly gay Episcopal priest Matthew Machowski, rector of St….
Anglican Watch editor Eric Bonetti, who took medical leave several weeks ago in order to donate a kidney to his husband, has returned to work. Bonetti’s husband, Mike, is a previous heart transplant recipient following a heart attack in 2023. During the procedure, Mike went into end-stage renal failure and has been on home hemodialysis…
NEWS PROVIDED BY Anglican Watch March 21, 2026 ALEXANDRIA, Va., March 21, 2026 /Standard Newswire/ — Anglican Watch, the unofficial watchdog of the Episcopal Church, today blasted the Episcopal Diocese of New York and Title IV intake officer the Rev. Alison Quin, for refusing to follow the express provisions of the Title IV clergy disciplinary canons…
NEWS PROVIDED BY Anglican Watch March 19, 2026 ALEXANDRIA, Va., March 19, 2026 /Christian Newswire/ — Anglican Watch, the unofficial watchdog of the Episcopal Church, is calling for a boycott of Christ Episcopal Church, located in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. The recommendation comes after a series of incidents involving allegations of spiritual, emotional, and relational abuse…
The recent arrest of the Very Rev. Aidan Everett Smith, dean of Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in downtown Pittsburgh, underscores the importance of proactively identifying possible clergy disciplinary problems and potential mental health issues before issues explode into the public view. Smith, already on administrative leave for allegedly attempting to sell cathedral artifacts via online platforms,…
Anglican Watch has been following the long-simmering conflict in the Episcopal Diocese of Florida for several years. And while we haven’t had much to say on this topic because much of what has happened hasn’t been actionable, we’d like to share our reflections on the so-called reconciliation process in the Diocese. In a nutshell, like…
Above this post is a screenshot of a defamatory comment from a member of Saint Thomas Church Fifth Avenue and our communication with Bishops Heyd and Shin about these issues. To be clear, the sort of fabrications set forth in this comment have their genesis in the lies told by Saint Thomas Church, with its…
Church watchdog Anglican Watch recently contacted New York Episcopal bishops Matthew Heyd and Alan Shin to publicly rescind Heyd’s written direction barring the alleged victim of sexual assault at St. Thomas Church Fifth Avenue (STC) from attending services anywhere in the Episcopal Diocese of New York. True to form, Heyd and Shin ignored our request….
Hello everyone. As always, I’m woefully far behind on all things Anglican Watch. That said, I’m delighted to be able to offer an update on Mike and Eric. As many of you know, Mike got a heart transplant from a deceased donor a little over two years ago following a massive heart attack. Although otherwise…
Anglican Watch recently received a response from Michigan Bishop Bonnie Perry to our letter to her, in which we shared our deep reservations about Christ Church Cranbrook (CCC) rector Bill Danaher and his suitability for parish ministry. We have a decidedly mixed reaction to Perry’s correspondence, which we provide at the end of this post….
Note: On March 4, 2026, we updated this post to correct our error, in which we stated that Levy was ordained. Lisa Levy, the Community Care Minister at Trinity, New Haven, has been charged with multiple accounts of animal cruelty and has been suspended from ministry. According to local news sources, Levy is facing five…
Hi everyone. A quick update on Mike and Eric. As many know, Eric donated a kidney to Mike this morning. Mike, a prior heart transplant patient, went into end-stage renal failure during the heart transplant operation and has been getting hemodialysis at home ever since. Surgery went well, and both are back in their rooms,…
As things wind down in the sexual assault/defamation case out of St. Thomas Church Fifth Avenue (STC), there is a pressing need for transparency and accountability from parish leadership. Because we see no sign that the parish or the Diocese of New York is taking these issues seriously, Anglican Watch is pushing hard, insisting that…
One of the givens of change management is that conflict is inevitable in a declining organization. With the Episcopal church now in a state of precipitous decline in almost every aspect of its fortunes, it seems that there is a rapidly increasing level of infighting, bad behavior, bullying, and more at every level of the…
The Rev. Bobby Smith, a priest canonically resident in the Diocese of Chicago, pleaded guilty on February 19, 2026 to federal wire fraud charges. The move is the culmination of an investigation into allegations that Smith embezzled from Saint Francis Ministries, a non-profit foster care agency, where Smith served as executive director from 2014 to…
Earlier today, Anglican Watch sent a letter to Diocese of Michigan Bishop The Rt. Rev. Dr. Bonnie Perry, urging her and the Diocese to address the various allegations concerning Christ Church Cranbrook (CCC) rector Bill Danaher, including whether Danaher is suited to ministry. Among the concerns we raised: The possibility that Danaher meets the clinical definition of…
There’s been an appeal filed by the plaintiff in the ongoing litigation resulting from the perjurious claims made by Episcopal priest Will Bouvel against former parishioner and retired attorney David Duggan in order to secure an Emergency No-Stalking Order of Protection (“ENSOP”). The suit, filed pro se, names the following defendants: Will Bouvel, who at…
Hi everyone. As usual, I’m woefully far behind on Anglican Watch stuff, but I wanted to share an update on Mike and Eric. They had their pre-operative clearances today. Their blood work and other issues look really good — or, in Mike’s case, about as good as possible with end-stage renal disease. So, absent the…
Earlier, we reported the results of our investigation into the allegations against Episcopal priest Bill Danaher of Christ Church Cranbrook (CCC). Now, in response to questions about this situation, we’re releasing a redacted version of the original Title IV complaint against Danaher, provided below in PDF. Why did we redact it? We did so in…
The Episcopal Diocese of Virginia recently released an updated statement of alleged offenses against Episcopal priest Cayce Ramey, reflecting additional potential misconduct. Ramey briefly gained notoriety after refusing to participate in Holy Communion to object, he claimed, to the denomination’s refusal to repent for its role in slavery. Among the additional charges against Ramey are…
A common theme for this publication is the challenges that LGBTQ+ persons face in the ostensibly inclusive Episcopal Church. Indeed, we are aware of countless situations in which such persons are tokenized, shunned, bullied, abused, and silenced, often with zero recourse via the church’s deeply flawed Title IV clergy disciplinary system. Thus, we were excited…