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Irregular News for 10.23.06
Allentown, PA -- A United Church of Christ minister and his wife were charged with swiping an antique set of leather-bound books of the Bible from their former Montgomery County church and selling them on eBay.
The Rev. William Shrout Jr., 30, and Carla Shrout, 33, were charged with theft, receiving stolen property and conspiracy stemming from the theft of about 30 books from the First United Church of Christ in Royersford, where Shrout served as pastor from June 2003 until July 2005.
"When something like this happens to a church, it does feel like a betrayal and a sacred trust broken," the Rev. Daniel Hinkle, interim pastor of First UCC, said yesterday. "But I am confident the church is handling this well and appropriately, that we are moving ahead and healing."
Hinkle said Shrout will undergo a church review of his pastoral fitness. A woman who answered the phone at Trinity United Church of Christ in Mount Bethel, Northampton County, where Shrout now serves as interim pastor, refused comment yesterday and hung up.
Royersford police are working with experts to establish the value of the circa-1920s books and the small cedar chest in which they were stored, which was also stolen, according to Chief Kevin Schurr.
Hinkle said members of the congregation had known the cedar chest and the individually bound books of the Bible were missing. One church member subsequently saw them for sale on eBay and notified the Rev. Linda Gruber, who heads a committee that oversees clergy in the UCC's Pennsylvania Southeast Conference.
Gruber's secretary logged onto the Internet auction site and submitted a winning bid of about $115, police said. When the books arrived, Gruber took them to Hinkle, who confirmed them as the ones that were stolen.
Royersford Officer Thomas Godin wrote in an affidavit that when he asked Shrout about his eBay account, he said he didn't use the account. Shrout said his wife "works on the computer but the account information is in his name," according to the court papers.
The Shrouts were mailed a summons and face a preliminary hearing in November.
source
Allentown, PA -- A United Church of Christ minister and his wife were charged with swiping an antique set of leather-bound books of the Bible from their former Montgomery County church and selling them on eBay.
The Rev. William Shrout Jr., 30, and Carla Shrout, 33, were charged with theft, receiving stolen property and conspiracy stemming from the theft of about 30 books from the First United Church of Christ in Royersford, where Shrout served as pastor from June 2003 until July 2005.
"When something like this happens to a church, it does feel like a betrayal and a sacred trust broken," the Rev. Daniel Hinkle, interim pastor of First UCC, said yesterday. "But I am confident the church is handling this well and appropriately, that we are moving ahead and healing."
Hinkle said Shrout will undergo a church review of his pastoral fitness. A woman who answered the phone at Trinity United Church of Christ in Mount Bethel, Northampton County, where Shrout now serves as interim pastor, refused comment yesterday and hung up.
Royersford police are working with experts to establish the value of the circa-1920s books and the small cedar chest in which they were stored, which was also stolen, according to Chief Kevin Schurr.
Hinkle said members of the congregation had known the cedar chest and the individually bound books of the Bible were missing. One church member subsequently saw them for sale on eBay and notified the Rev. Linda Gruber, who heads a committee that oversees clergy in the UCC's Pennsylvania Southeast Conference.
Gruber's secretary logged onto the Internet auction site and submitted a winning bid of about $115, police said. When the books arrived, Gruber took them to Hinkle, who confirmed them as the ones that were stolen.
Royersford Officer Thomas Godin wrote in an affidavit that when he asked Shrout about his eBay account, he said he didn't use the account. Shrout said his wife "works on the computer but the account information is in his name," according to the court papers.
The Shrouts were mailed a summons and face a preliminary hearing in November.
source
