Fallen Angel

The decision was put to a vote, but congregants had to sign their names, in violation of MCC procedures. Piazza told the press he was following instructions, but MCC said it informed him more than once that the procedure was breaking custom.

The majority of the congregation stood by Piazza and voted 977-140 to withdraw from the denomination. Success in hand, Piazza took a three-month sabbatical to recover.

Meanwhile, half of those who voted to remain affiliated with the denomination formed their own church, MCC of Greater Dallas. The new church's membership now tops more than 100 and is growing every week, says its pastor, the Reverend Cindi Love.

MCC bylaws state that when the congregation splinters, whatever percent of members wish to remain with the denomination are entitled to that percent of the church's assets. MCC of Greater Dallas believes it is due about 12 percent of the cathedral's holdings, though Love says she doesn't know the cash equivalent of that percentage. But members can't shake a dime out of the cathedral's pockets, even though many of the new church's members have tithed for years.

"Any congregation owns the church they attend," says the Reverend Diane Fisher, who oversees MCC's division of assets. "The church is not owned by the pastor or the board of directors."

According to the Voice, Love received a copy of the letter sent by the cathedral in care of MCC saying that the provision is not valid under Texas law.

Members haven't decided whether they are willing to pursue the money. It means more time, more energy and, for some, more wounding, Love says.

Epilogue

The Observer made repeated attempts by phone and e-mail to speak with cathedral staff and board members, but they declined to be interviewed.

Cathedral spokeswoman Kris Martin said in October that she would arrange an interview with Piazza when he returned in November. Three weeks later, she said it was her decision not to tell Piazza about the request. Furthermore, she said Piazza was available to discuss his new book only and even then not for a few weeks. She agreed to ask Upton and other senior leaders to speak. Martin called back that afternoon to say that no interviews would be granted until after the first of the year.

The Observer e-mailed requests for an interview to Piazza and Upton, but those requests went unanswered.

During the course of writing the article, the Reverend Mona West, the newly appointed senior pastor who filled Piazza's position when he resigned his MCC credentials and became the cathedral's dean, went on a three-month sabbatical amid rumors of the board holding closed-door meetings and calling Piazza back from his sojourn.

Following West's departure, associate pastor Sharon Bezner tendered her resignation. Neither returned phone calls nor responded to e-mailed requests for interviews.

Martin initially said Bezner's resignation had been made public. When pressed for a date and the reasons, she said the pastor's resignation would be made public at the next Sunday service and promptly ended the conversation.

To date, no information about what happened to Bezner has been posted online. Her biography has been removed from the church's Web site.