The Anglican Church in North America’s court for the trial of a bishop has unanimously acquitted Bishop Stewart Ruch III of the Diocese of the Upper Midwest on all charges of misconduct, concluding a tumultuous trial by blaming social media and advocacy groups for creating a “toxic public circus.”
The 71-page final order, released Dec. 16, cleared Ruch of “habitual neglect of duty” and “violation of ordination vows.” The charges stemmed from his handling of sexual abuse allegations against former lay catechist Mark Rivera and other alleged safeguarding failures.
Stewart Ruch III
While the court acknowledged the “grievous criminal misconduct” of Rivera, it ultimately portrayed Ruch not as a negligent leader but as a victim of “narrative capture” — a situation where facts were allegedly displaced by online hysteria.
In its ruling, the seven-member court — comprising three bishops, two priests and two laypeople — argued the prosecution failed to meet the standard of “clear and convincing evidence.” Instead, the judges offered a sharp rebuke of the allegations, suggesting they were fueled by a “shifting online narrative” driven by hysterical #ChurchToo and #ACNAToo activists rather than reality.
“The record demonstrates that any ‘scandal’ perceived within the province arose from misinformation, shifting online narratives, procedural irregularities and public statements made by others — not from episcopal misconduct,” the verdict states.
The court explicitly criticized the influence of the advocacy group ACNAtoo, using the term “narrative capture” to describe how “unverified narratives increasingly displaced firsthand evidence.” The judges painted a picture of a bishop who did “all he could” under the circumstances, noting Ruch contacted law enforcement immediately after the abuse was disclosed in May 2019 and “cooperated fully” with authorities.
“The evidence demonstrated a pattern of leadership marked by a shepherd’s heart,” the court wrote, emphasizing Ruch’s “humility” and “posture of learning.” The order characterized the diocese’s failures not as personal misconduct by the bishop, but as structural ‘growing pains’ of a young, missionally oriented diocese — or church network.
Abuse survivors and advocates immediately disputed the verdict, pointing to the trial’s chaotic procedural history as evidence of a broken system.
Abuse survivors and advocates immediately disputed the verdict.
Earlier in the year, the trial saw the resignation of two prosecutors who stepped down mid-trial while alleging “judicial misconduct” and a rigged process.
The court’s final order addressed these resignations by attacking the former prosecutors, accusing one of them of “abandoning his duties” and violating confidentiality orders.
For the alleged victims, the acquittal serves as proof that the ACNA’s internal justice system is designed to protect power rather than the vulnerable.
“This verdict mocks the One who raises up the lowly and fills the hungry with good things,” said the advocacy group ACNAtoo in a statement. Describing the denomination as a “black box of self-protecting authoritarianism,” the group argued the verdict “confirms survivors’ fears that the ACNA will give bishops a free pass.”
The verdict comes at a time of immense instability for the denomination. As previously reported by BNG, Archbishop Steve Wood, the ACNA’s top leader, is currently on a leave of absence while facing his own allegations of sexual misconduct, bullying and plagiarism. He since has been inhibited (temporarily barred from exercising ordained ministry) while an investigation is under way. His trial is expected to commence sometime in early- to mid-2026.
Simultaneously, the church is facing a $1 million lawsuit and schism involving its former chaplaincy bishop, Derek Jones. As previously reported by BNG, Jones was inhibited by Archbishop Wood over “credible complaints” of abuse of power, leading Jones to disaffiliate his jurisdiction from the denomination entirely.
With the crisis deepening across multiple fronts — from the archbishop’s office to the chaplaincy and now the acquittal of Bishop Ruch — critics argue the ACNA faces a systemic collapse of accountability.
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