Anglican Watch previously covered the allegations of financial crimes involving the Rev. Edward Monk. While we are glad that the Diocese of Dallas is taking the matter seriously, we note that it has ignored the sexual harassment of an adult woman connected to St. James church in Texarkana and the roles of St. James rector David Halt and Bishop George Sumner’s roles in the covering up the case.
Additionally, unconfirmed reports continue to swirl of financial improprieties within the St. James parish. It is imperative that George Sumner and the Diocese act decisively and with transparency to address these issues if they do not want St. James parish to close.
We further note that Cory Floyd, the diocesan chancellor, is a member of St. James, and appears to be confused as to who his client is; as chancellor, he represents the Diocese, not George Sumner, neither in his individual capacity, nor in his role as bishop. This conflict is reflected in Floyd’s inappropriate involvement in the Title IV case against David Halt, which was sandbagged by the Diocese. While the chancellor has an important role in advising the bishop, s/he has not official role in a Title IV case and should not be involved in any decisions made by the intake officer or reference panel. Moreover, we note that neither the intake officer nor the reference panel has the authority under church canons to dismiss a Title IV complaint when, as in the case of David Halt, the allegations involve illegal conduct that is, by definition, of weighty and material importance to the ministry of the church.
Thus, Floyd needs to resign, and a Title IV complaint is active against George Sumner.
Finally, Anglican Watch estimates that almost one-third of all Episcopal church annual revenue goes to governance or, in many cases, bean counters counting bean counters.
We therefore are distressed to learn that Monk’s alleged embezzlement may extend back more than a decade, thus underscoring the importance of true annual audits for all Episcopal churches and entities.
We remind all involved that a compilation or agreed-upon procedures (AUP), which are allowed in many dioceses, are NOT audits, have no attestation value, and have no role in detecting fraud. Moreover, in many parishes, the de facto outcome is that only the rector sees the engagement letter and any report from the auditors, which often is misrepresented.
In order to prevent these issues, all parishes must have a true annual audit, with the engagement letter and any audit report made available to the vestry and publicly available online. Further, the denomination does itself no favors with opaque blended budgets broken down by program area. Any financial reporting that does not show line-item details of salaries and other budgetary specifics is useless and a waste of time for all involved.
[Episcopal News Service] A priest in the Diocese of Dallas has been charged with three felonies in a criminal investigation into allegations that he stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from his parish, including by fraudulently obtaining a credit card under a parishioner’s identity.
The Rev. Edward Monk is on leave from his position as rector of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Corsicana, Texas, while he fights the charges. He has served at St. John’s since 2003. Monk also was chair of the Nashotah House Theological Seminary’s board of directors until he resigned in August, after church leaders and police began investigating the theft allegations.
On Dec. 18, a grand jury in Navarro County indicted Monk on three charges: theft of more than $300,000, fraudulent use of an elderly person’s identity and credit card abuse of an elderly person. The total amount Monk is suspected of stealing was not immediately available. Monk was arrested Dec. 21 and released after posting bail, according to a statement from the Corsicana Police Department.
Court officials told Episcopal News Service that Monk does not yet have a court appearance scheduled.
“Investigators continue to review thousands of pages of financial records from dozens of accounts spanning more than a decade,” said Corsicana Police Chief Robert Johnson. “We appreciate the ongoing cooperation of the local parishioners and the diocese and the assistance provided by the District Attorney and Attorney General’s Office.”
Police initiated their criminal investigation in July 2024, when St. John’s members reported suspicious financial activity. The Navarro County District Attorney also requested the assistance of the Texas Attorney General’s financial crimes unit.
The Diocese of Dallas also launched an investigation into the matter. The diocesan investigator reported finding that Monk had opened unauthorized bank accounts and routed money to other accounts, obtained a credit card under a church treasurer’s Social Security number and “used this card to conduct a multi-year spending spree that included personal trips.” The investigator questioned Monk about these discoveries but “did not find Fr. Monk’s explanations, or lack of, to be satisfactory.”
A church attorney filed a written complaint against Monk accusing him of six canonical violations under The Episcopal Church’s Title IV disciplinary canons, including “failing to safeguard the property and funds of the church” and “conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation.”
Monk has denied any wrongdoing. A Title IV hearing could be scheduled as soon as February 2025, according to the hearing panel’s timeline of future activity in the case.
Nashotah House, an Episcopal seminary in Wisconsin, issued a brief statement after Monk’s arrest. “We have not been contacted by law enforcement or otherwise involved in this investigation,” the seminary said. “The offenses charged by local law enforcement at the time of Canon Monk’s arrest appear to be unrelated to Nashotah House. We continue to pray for all involved.”
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