A Benedictine monastic order has acquired a former convent in Jay with plans to convert it into a refuge for people who have been expelled from their religious orders because of their sexual orientation.

The Rev. Brother Stephen Bernard, who founded The Community of All Angels in 1992, said he came across the former convent on eBay, the Internet auction site. He said his nonprofit organization, which is based in Florida, bought the building in March for $180,000.

The property will serve as a place of ministry for gays and lesbians who have been exiled from their orders, Bernard said. It will be called Benedictines in Exile, Our Lady Queen of All Angels Priory.

In time, Bernard added, he hopes to relocate his organization from Florida to Jay.

“The church has to learn that there are bigger concerns than someone’s sexuality,” Bernard said Tuesday. “Sexuality doesn’t dictate one’s behavior.”

The Community of All Angels is a monastic religious order for the gays and lesbians, with special consideration given to persons living with AIDS and those who have been excluded from religious life. It operates as a house of hospitality and an institute for the study of gay and lesbian spirituality.

Bernard said he chose the former convent in the Franklin County town of Jay because it was the right size – it can sleep 14 people – and was reasonably priced.

“We wanted a place where we could look after one another,” Bernard said.

When the building was constructed in 1928, it served as a mission home of the Ursuline Sisters. From 1945 until 1985, the convent was occupied by the Sisters of St. Joseph. It was recently used as a rooming house.

The building is located across the street from the Saint Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church. The Rev. Richard Senghas said Saint Rose of Lima used to own the convent but sold it a number of years ago.

“I just hope people don’t get confused. They are not a Roman Catholic institution,” Senghas said.

AP-ES-05-05-04 0216EDT