ACNA Archbishop Steve Wood Takes Paid Leave Amid Accusations of Sexual Misconduct

The Washington Post reported that Archbishop Steve Wood faces allegations of sexual misconduct, harassment, and bullying. According to MinistryWatch’s April 2024 report, the accusations are contained in a formal complaint called a presentment and are signed by at least 10 individuals. Wood has been identified in the reporting as the Anglican Church in North America’s archbishop, and one report refers to him as Stephen Wood.

Earlier concerns were raised in 2019, when a rector in Wood’s diocese wrote to him questioning his moral authority to serve as bishop. The rector accused Wood of plagiarizing sermons, publicly cursing at colleagues, and using a $60,000 truck provided by the diocese for church visits, according to MinistryWatch.

A Washington Post investigative report, as described by ABC News 4, says the presentment alleges that Wood made other comments and acted in ways that made a woman uncomfortable beginning in 2021. Claire Buxton, a former children’s ministry director at St. Andrew’s Church in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, said Wood attempted to kiss her in his office in April 2024. The reports differ on how the 2024 conduct is described. MinistryWatch quotes Buxton directly, while ABC News 4 says the presentment reportedly includes allegations of inappropriate conduct toward a former children’s ministry director at his parish in 2024. The protection of a former ministry worker who raised concerns is a matter of protecting the vulnerable (Proverbs 31:8-9).

Buxton also claimed that Wood gave her more than $3,000 from church funds, according to MinistryWatch. The ABC News 4 report, citing the Washington Post, alleges that Wood made thousands of dollars in payments to the woman from church funds, bullied staff, and plagiarized sermons. Wood has responded to the allegations. He said, “I do not believe these allegations have any merit.” ABC News 4 reports that he denied the specific accusation of attempted physical contact.

MinistryWatch reported that Wood continued to serve as bishop of the Diocese of the Carolinas while the matter was under review. Later, the Anglican Church in North America announced on a Monday that Wood would take leave. He will remain on paid leave while he awaits the outcome of a church disciplinary process started by the presentment. His leave also marks his retirement as bishop of the Diocese of the Carolinas and rector of St. Andrew’s Church in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. Under ACNA rules, a board of inquiry will decide whether the presentment proceeds to an ecclesiastical trial, and no decision has been announced.