The Rev. Robert H. Schuller and his wife, Arvella, announced “with great sadness” their resignations Saturday from the Crystal Cathedral board of directors.

“We cannot continue to serve on the Board in what has become an adversarial and negative atmosphere, especially since it now seems that it will not be ending anytime soon,” Arvella Schuller was quoted as saying in a news release.

Robert Schuller grew the ministry from a congregation that met in a drive-in theater in Orange in 1955 to a thriving megachurch that attracted thousands to its striking building in Garden Grove. Schuller’s “Hour of Power” television show drew millions of viewers from across the world.

But a series of financial setbacks led to the cathedral’s filing for bankruptcy in October 2010 and the forced sale last month of its 40-acre campus to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange. Turmoil in the ministry included resignations and firings of family members, including three in the past week. For at least the next several weeks, the once popular television program is going into reruns.

“(Robert and Arvella Schuller are) removing themselves from the governance of the ministry,” Carol Schuller Milner, their daughter, said in an interview Saturday. “They’re not cutting all ties. They’re still planning on worshipping in the congregation.”

Another daughter, Sheila Schuller Coleman, remains the cathedral’s senior pastor and is expected to deliver the sermon Sunday, but she was recently removed from her position as chief executive officer and president of the ministries. Schuller Coleman’s husband, Jim Coleman, was fired from his job earlier this week as director of creative services, and her sister and brother-in-law – Gretchen and Jim Penner – were fired from their jobs with the Hour of Power.

Cathedral representatives could not be reached for comment Saturday.

The elder Schullers have been embroiled in a legal battle with the board of directors regarding intellectual property and copyright infringement claims as well as back payment for services rendered, Schuller Milner said.

The exact figure for how much is claimed was not available Saturday. Attorneys for the Schullers have made almost weekly offers to the Cathedral’s board to settle the claim, which includes a $120,000 annual housing allowance, a $198,000 annual payment in license fees and additional medical benefits, according to Schuller Milner.

Last Tuesday, “the board said we’re ending all negotiations. We don’t want to negotiate any further and want to go to court,” according to Schuller Milner.

“Particularly in these difficult times for the ministry, the ministry’s decision to spend its money on attorneys and court proceedings is bewildering to us,” Arvella Schuller wrote in the statement. “We cannot continue to serve on the board in what has become an adversarial and negative atmosphere especially since it now seems that it will not be ending anytime soon.”

The pending claims by the Schullers have been cited as the reason creditors in the bankruptcy case have not been paid by the church. Schuller Milner disputed that complaint, saying her family “made an offer that would have allowed (the creditors) to be paid in full” but the board rejected the Schullers’ offer.

“Our proposals have always been structured in a way that would allow full payment to creditors to go forward without delay while leaving the ministry with more operating capital than originally contemplated in the court approved bankruptcy plan,” Schuller family attorney Carl Grumer said in the news release. “We were optimistic that a solution was close at hand which would be mutually beneficial to the Schullers and the ministry. What motivated the board’s decision to make a sudden shift after it had seemed that we were so close to a positive conclusion, we do not know.”

The news release concludes with a message the founder of Crystal Cathedral posted on his Facebook page: “No matter what, God is still God. No matter what, God is still a good God. God loves you and so do I.”

For congregants, the latest development is another painful reminder that the church is on its way out of the cathedral Schuller built. Congregants can lease back the building from the Catholic Diocese for up to three years.

“We truly have lost our church and we know that. Most of us are in mourning,” said Anne Waltz, a member since 1956 who still attends a Sunday morning bible study class with other seniors. “A lot of my friends still can’t believe it’s happening.”

Ken Waltz, Anne’s husband, said the Schullers’ resignation was unavoidable.

“It was inevitable because they lost control,” Ken Waltz said Saturday. “The whole thing was controlled by Robert and Arvella. For some reason, they allowed the kids to get in there and reorganize it poorly. The thing was managed so badly financially and spiritually that it fell apart.”

Contact the writer: rkopetman@ocregister.com