西弗吉尼亚州最高法院叫停33间教会脱离联合卫理公会诉讼
西弗吉尼亚州最高上诉法院11月4日作出裁决，叫停33间教会试图脱离联合卫理公会并保留教会财产的诉讼，认定这起纠纷属于教会内部事务，世俗法院无权裁决。
法院批准了联合卫理公会西弗吉尼亚教区受托人提出的禁止令请求，阻止默瑟县（Mercer County）巡回法院重新审理这33间教会的诉讼。此前，巡回法院先以缺乏管辖权驳回诉讼，后又于2026年3月改判重开案件。查尔斯·S·特朗普四世（Charles S. Trump IV）大法官撰写了法院意见书。
案件源于联合卫理公会2024年修改教会法规，取消了对同性婚姻与同性恋者按立的禁令。此前，允许教会带财产脱离教派的条款已于2023年12月31日到期。这33间教会称，教区方面曾向它们作出可以脱离并保留财产的表示，因而提起诉讼，指控欺诈等行为。
州最高上诉法院在意见书中指出，裁决这些主张必须由法院解释教会法规，这将违反美国宪法第一修正案与西弗吉尼亚州宪法对宗教自由的保护；下级法院最初认定该争议为教会事务、自身无管辖权的判断是正确的。
联合卫理公会西弗吉尼亚教区表示，将继续支持这些教会。美国多州近年来均出现教会因同性婚姻议题脱离主流教派的诉讼，西弗吉尼亚州的裁决为同类案件提供了新的判例参考。
West Virginia Supreme Court Blocks Lawsuit by 33 Churches Seeking to Leave the United Methodist Church
The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia ruled on November 4 to block a lawsuit by 33 congregations seeking to leave the United Methodist Church and keep their church property, holding that the dispute is an ecclesiastical matter that civil courts may not decide.
The court granted a writ of prohibition sought by trustees of the United Methodist Church's West Virginia Conference, barring the Mercer County Circuit Court from reopening the 33 churches' lawsuit. The circuit court had first dismissed the suit for lack of jurisdiction, then reversed itself in March 2026 and reopened the case. Justice Charles S. Trump IV wrote the court's opinion.
The case stems from the United Methodist Church's 2024 changes to its Book of Discipline removing bans on same-sex marriage and gay clergy. A provision that had allowed congregations to disaffiliate with property expired on December 31, 2023. The 33 churches sued, alleging fraud and related claims, saying conference officials had indicated they could leave with their property.
In its opinion, the state supreme court held that deciding those claims would require courts to interpret church law, in violation of the religious-freedom protections of the U.S. First Amendment and the West Virginia Constitution, and that the circuit court's original determination — that the dispute was an ecclesiastical matter outside its jurisdiction — was correct.
The West Virginia Conference of the United Methodist Church said it remains committed to supporting the churches. Similar disaffiliation lawsuits have arisen in several U.S. states in recent years, and the West Virginia ruling offers a new precedent for such cases.
来源：西弗吉尼亚州最高上诉法院
发布：GSM·美国（发布链接）
图片来源：图：西弗吉尼亚州议会大厦。CC BY-SA 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: The West Virginia State Capitol in Charleston. CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
GSM Global · 本篇英文版 English edition of this story
