An Allegheny County court awarded the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh more than $15 million in endowments, bank accounts and other assets that a secessionist diocese had sought to retain.

Judge Joseph James of the Court of Common Pleas in Allegheny County ruled yesterday that the assets -- although not necessarily buildings and land titled in the name of the parishes that seceded -- belong to the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh of the Episcopal Church of the United States of America.

The secessionist church, the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh (Anglican), is in violation of its October 2005 agreement with the Episcopal Church of America, Judge James ruled.

Many pages of the parties' briefs, he noted, were spent explaining the meaning of Paragraph One of the agreement, which describes what must be done with the diocese's centrally owned assets.

"However, I find that the language is clear and unambiguous and, therefore, requires no further explanation," the order states. "The property is to be held or administered by the Episcopal Diocese of the Episcopal Church of the United States of America. Regardless of what name defendants now call themselves, they are not the Episcopal Diocese of the Episcopal Church of the United States of America."

Assets must be detailed within 30 days and transferred within 20 days after that, the order states.

The Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh (Anglican) withdrew in October 2008 with 58 parishes, or about 60 percent of the parishes in the diocese before the split. Members of the seceding group voted to leave the Episcopal Church for what they considered failure to uphold biblical doctrine.

The Anglican diocese now is affiliated with the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone in South America and the new Anglican Church in North America.

Archbishop Robert Duncan, of the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh (Anglican), said he had not seen the ruling and that members of the diocese would be disappointed if the court had awarded the assets to the Episcopal Diocese. But regardless, members of the seceding diocese are confident about their new life together, he said.

"We have managed the last year without any income from our assets," he said. "We are doing well."

Rich Creehan, communications director for the Episcopal Diocese, said after the assets are transferred, the diocese will begin working on how to transfer buildings and land to the seceding parishes that want them.

"Anyone who wants to come back to the Episcopal Church is welcome, and we hope to find a way to proceed with those who don't [want to return] in a spirit of reconciliation," he said.

Looking for more from the Post-Gazette? Join PG+, our members-only web site. You'll get exclusive sports content, opinion, financial information, discounts from retailers and restaurants, and more. Our introduction to PG+ gives you all the details.