Leader of conservative Anglican denomination suspended while facing misconduct claims

The top leader of the Anglican Church in North America has been suspended from ministry after facing allegations of sexual and other misconduct.

The suspension of Archbishop Stephen Wood took effect Sunday and was announced Monday by the new dean and acting leader of the denomination, who took office after his predecessor resigned over the weekend in yet another upheaval in the denomination’s hierarchy. The ACNA was formed in 2009 by conservatives who split from the U.S. Episcopal Church and its Canadian counterpart over liberalizing trends in those churches.

Wood’s suspension, approved by other senior bishops, doesn’t imply guilt or innocence of any charges against Wood, said Bishop Julian Dobbs, the ACNA’s new dean.

A minister can be suspended when “it is determined to be in the best interests of the Church,” Dobbs said in a statement.

Wood was accused last month in a presentment, or a list of charges compiled by church members. The presentment has not yet been made public, but an investigative report by The Washington Post said the complaint alleged sexual misconduct by Wood before he became archbishop last year, in his roles as a pastor and regional bishop.

The presentment also includes allegations that he bullied staffers and plagiarized sermons, according to the Post, which later reported that a second woman has formally accused Wood of sexual harassment.

Wood, a married father of four, has denied any misconduct. He previously took a voluntary leave of absence with pay. He will continue to receive his salary while suspended, according to ACNA spokeswoman Kate Harris.

Under the ANCA’s rules, when church members bring a presentment against a cleric, a board of inquiry determines whether to send the matter on to an ecclesiastical trial.

A board has since been impaneled, but it will take some time to determine if there are grounds for a church trial, Harris said.

Wood recused himself from appointing the board in his own case, delegating it to the then-dean of the denomination, Bishop Ray Sutton, who later recused himself from that task. Sutton had also been named to assume Wood’s duties as archbishop during his leave.

However, Sutton resigned as dean on Saturday, saying it would be “unwise” to continue in multiple roles, including as a regional bishop, while also dealing with back problems following surgery.

In a statement released by the church, Sutton also apologized for having previously denied that he “took part in a conversation about the appointment of a bishop-friendly Board of Inquiry. My intent was to express that I could not recall such a conversation ever taking place, and I apologize for stating that incorrectly.”

Wood is also bishop of the Diocese of the Carolinas. During his suspension, that diocese will be led by Acting Bishop David Bryan.

The ACNA reports that it has about 130,000 members in about 1,000 congregations in the U.S. and Canada.

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.