The announcement earlier this month by a group of conservative Episcopalians that they are moving ahead with plans to form a U.S.-based branch of the Anglican Communion separate from the Episcopal Church seemed to signal a major realignment of the U.S. denominational system.

But does it, really?

At a time when denominations are floundering — even the Southern Baptist Convention is losing members — the formation of another denominational-like structure runs counter to all the congregational trends of the past 40 years.

Study after study — the latest by Mark Chaves of Duke University — confirms that increasing numbers of churches choose not to affiliate with any denomination. Yet in a New York Times story, leaders of this breakaway faction insisted “the need to provide a home for disaffected conservatives is too urgent to wait.”

That may be the case for the four dioceses that want to break away from the Episcopal Church: Pittsburgh; Fort Worth, Texas; Quincy, Ill.; and San Joaquin, Calif. But in other parts of the country, there are questions about the strength of the calls for absorbing churches that had left the Episcopal fold as long as a decade ago, or formed as Anglican churches independently of the crisis in the denomination. How invested are they in this new plan?

For a list of these other Anglican churches, go to the Common Cause Partnership, and look up your state. While some newer churches may welcome a denominational structure, many others have gotten used to flying solo and may be wary of joining up. Among their reasons:

Leaders of these churches don’t want to get caught up in politics. It tends to drive away newcomers.

They’ve dropped many of the trappings of the Anglican Communion, such as vestments and formal Anglican titles (rector, vestry, senior warden, etc.) 

They’re used to giving away money for specific projects and are unlikely to welcome a superstructure that demands monetary commitments.

They’d rather avoid fresh battles over the role of women or the use of the Book of Common Prayer.

Ask these church leaders to weigh the pros and cons. Talk to leaders in other denominations. Go beyond the hype that accompanied the bishop’s announcement and tell readers about the fragmentation of the old-style denominational framework.