May 18, 2008
Dear
Diocesan Family,
I am writing to you on the afternoon of Trinity Sunday,
May 18, 2008. Exactly seven months ago today nine of our clergy and
their wardens came to see me and announce they were planning to
“disaffiliate” from The Episcopal Church and therefore from the
Diocese of Central Florida.
I wrote you in November that a “season of separations”
had come upon us. And I have tried to keep you apprized of the way
events have unfolded since then.
Today I write you with the greatest thanksgiving. This
terrible time of separations is coming to an end. Two weeks ago all
of the parties concerned agreed to a Mediation Settlement at
Trinity, Vero Beach, which was the last of the nine congregations
involved.
To recap, very quickly: the two tiny church “plants”
(neither of which had yet become an organized mission) have left The
Episcopal Church. One Rector changed his mind, entirely, and he and
his congregation remain very much part of the Diocese. One parish
has become an independent community church, and they are renting the
facilities from the Diocese. And the other five congregations have
seen their clergy, and a portion of their membership leave, but
there remains a continuing congregation in each of those five
places.
By the grace of God we have been able to navigate these
very troubled waters in a way that is different from what has
happened anywhere else in this country. We have had NO
litigation, there has been NO inhibition or deposition of clergy,
and there has been NO transfer of real estate.
Perhaps even more importantly, we have been able to
continue seeing and treating each other as brothers and sisters in
Christ. Those who are staying have been able to say to those who
are leaving, “Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.”
I wrote this to you back in November:
“As
Bishop of the Diocese of Central Florida, I remain committed to
provide pastoral care both to those who wish to leave and to
those who wish to remain. Individuals who wish to leave the
Diocese of Central Florida and form another congregation are to
be honored as brothers and sisters in Christ. The Diocese will
do everything in its power to make their departure from the
Diocese of Central Florida and The Episcopal Church a peaceful
one without rancor or recrimination.
“At
the same time the Diocese is bound to work within the
Constitution and Canons of The Episcopal Church which state that
a Parish holds in trust all real and personal property for the
benefit of the Diocese and The Episcopal Church. We have a
solemn responsibility to protect the interests of the Diocese
and the larger church. We cannot and will not abandon those who
wish to remain as members of The Episcopal Church and we will
work diligently to determine whether in fact there is a
sufficient number of Episcopalians in a given congregation to
constitute a viable continuing congregation able to meet and
worship in its own current facilities.”
As this “season of separations” draws to a close we move
into a season of rebuilding. We have extraordinarily dedicated
Interim Rectors and new vestries in each of the affected
congregations. And one of them, Grace, Ocala, has “recovered”
sufficiently to ask their Interim Rector to become their full-time
Rector, Fr. Jonathan French - and he has accepted!
So, I pause to give thanks to every one of you who has
prayed. I give thanks to God for every person who has found himself
or herself called into new and unexpected responsibilities. And I
particularly want to thank our Chancellor, Butch Wooten, and
Vice-Chancellor, Bill Grimm, both of whom have given of themselves
with extraordinary generosity. We simply could not have done this
without them.
“Now to him who is able to keep you from falling, and to
make you stand without blemish in the presence of his glory with
rejoicing, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our
Lord, be glory, majesty, power and authority, before all time and
now and forever. Amen.” (Jude 24, 25)
My love to you in him,
+ John
