Episode 17: Due Diligence? Reactions to the Ruch Verdict Part 1

Описание: On December 16, 2025 the Anglican Church in North America's Court for Trial of a Bishop released their verdict for the presentments against Bishop Stewart Ruch: acquitted on all charges. In this episode members of ACNAtoo (Abbi Nye, Audrey Luhmann, Heather Griffin, and Whitney Harrison) discuss their reactions to the verdict and the 71 page trial order the court released. Did the members of the court follow basic due diligence in the process they followed to reach their verdict? Though not comprehensive, this episode hopes to answer that in part, while continuing to point those seeking understanding to the two presentments against Ruch, the detailed timeline of events put together by ACNAtoo, and other documents directing us to Bishop Ruch's actions and demonstrating why there was so very little "firsthand" testimony given in the trial by abuse survivors and whistleblowers in the Diocese of the Upper Midwest. Provided below are links to a number of those sources.


You can read a transcript of this episode here (https://www.acnatoo.org/episode-17) .


Links and resources referred to in the episode:


The ACNA's landing page for Bishop Ruch's trial can be found here (https://anglicanchurch.net/updates-on...) , and the full text of the trial order can be found here (https://anglicanchurch.net/wp-content...) .


ACNAtoo's response on the Ruch Verdict (https://www.acnatoo.org/acnatoo-news/...)


Ruch Acquitted on All Charges (https://livingchurch.org/news/ruch-ac...) —article by Arlie Coles from The Living Church


ACNAtoo's comprehensive timeline of events (https://www.acnatoo.org/acna-witnesse...) —Piecing It All Together: Part 01, An Accusation and Arrest (Part 1 of 5)


The texts for the lay presentment against Ruch (https://www.acnatoo.org/presentment) and the bishops' presentment (https://www.acnatoo.org/bishops-prese...) , and a general page (https://www.acnatoo.org/ruch-trial) about the presentments from ACNAtoo. Please see the footnotes as the bottom of the lay presentment page for full citations of firsthand sources.


Article by Helen Keuning detailing her accounts of Ruch's leave of absence. (https://www.acnatoo.org/acna-witnesse...)


Washington Post article about Bishop Julian Dobbs: "He suspended the archbishop, but faced his own probes — financial ones" (https://www.washingtonpost.com/invest...)


Suspended ACNA Bishop Founds Breakaway Church—article about Bishop Derek Jones and his break away Anglican denomination by Arlie Coles from The Living Church (https://livingchurch.org/news/suspend...)