You showed many of us the way to Our Lord, and guided others to continue on the right path. You took the initiative in encouraging home Bible studies, and we saw many newcomers attracted to St. John's as they became aware of our attempts to grow a biblically-based church.

Under your tutelage, St. John's worked to grow our mission and ministry. Our membership and outreach increased. You led us in the building of a new and beautiful worship space.

You taught us the importance of compassion to others, and worked with St. John's and other churches to provide a home for homeless youth, to support an orphanage for handicapped children in Haiti, to provide Christmas gifts for children of prisoners, to help victims of poverty and disaster all over the world. You took a leading role in promoting the diocese's Hispanic ministry. You helped us to understand that the Christian faith is truly Catholic, a faith that meets both the spiritual and physical needs of all peoples and nations, a lesson well-taught you by your missionary parents. You also taught us that to be an Anglican does not mean simply to be part of an American Protestant denomination, but to be part of a worldwide Communion.

During the time you were with us, your family became part of our church family. We saw your three sons grow from children to become young men. Your wife Ceil was for many years our hardworking parish administrator and youth leader. Your mother Mary became a loved member of our congregation, and we buried her ashes next to the church. We rejoiced and celebrated as you earned your Ph.D. at Columbia University, even as you worked hard as our pastor.

You shared with us the joys of your life, taking us on tours of your beloved New York City, organizing trips to sporting events, inviting some of us to share in your summer retreats to Star Island.

Above all, you taught us the importance of a biblically-centered and orthodox Christian faith. You preached repeatedly from the pulpit that the crisis in our national Church is not about sexuality, not about politics or intolerance or lack of inclusiveness toward or hatred of others different than ourselves, but about obedience to the authority of Holy Scripture.

You took every effort to help build and maintain St. John's as a biblically faithful parish. You led us to join the American Anglican Council in 1998. After the events of General Convention, under your leadership, St. John's affiliated with the Anglican Communion Network. St. John's joined with the other members of the Connecticut Six to request Delegated Episcopal Oversight from our bishop as provided by the House of Bishops. When this failed, we as a congregation appealed to the Panel of Reference, put forward by the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Primates of the Communion to provide protection for parishes like St. John's who faced opposition from bishops or dioceses hostile to our disagreement with the Episcopal Church's decision at General Convention to reject the appeals of the worldwide Anglican Communion. At every stage in these decisions, you made it emphatically clear that our intention was to be fait hful to Scripture and to the Anglican Communion, and the elected vestry and congregation voted overwhelmingly to follow your direction. The Windsor Report, the meetings of the Primates, and now the Anglican Consultative Council, have confirmed for us that St. John's decisions were the correct ones.

For all of this we are grateful. How can we thank you enough?

But you also warned us that faithfulness to the gospel has consequences, and we saw those consequences on July 13 as you were inhibited on the false charge of "abandoning the communion" and Bishop Smith seized our parish buildings and property. We are greatly saddened by these events, and we recognize them as consequences of your own and our commitment to biblical faith and to the unity of the Anglican Communion. We acknowledge and appreciate the sacrifices that you and your family have made to defend biblically faithful Christian orthodoxy. Despite the Bishop's "inhibition," we have continued to recognize you as the Rector of St. John's Church.

So it is with sadness that we say farewell, at least for now. Know that the vestry and people of St. John's love you dearly and will miss you terribly. Know that we will carry on the fight. We will work together toward those goals for which you have provided courageous leadership. We will retain our Scripture-based Anglican faith. We will be faithful to the triune God revealed in the Bible. We will be faithful to the Lord Jesus Christ to whom the Creeds bear witness. We will remain loyal to Christ's Church. To the best of our ability, we will be faithful members of the Anglican Communion, and we will not join with those who would abandon its faith or walk away from its fellowship.

May the Lord Jesus Christ be with you and yours. As our dear friend Mei-li recently said to us as a congregation, we now say to you: "Your company has been delightful" . . . and we hope to meet again. "But if we never have the pleasure I hope we'll meet on Canaan's land."

Faithfully yours in Christ,

The Vestry of St. John's Episcopal Church
Bristol, CT

INHIBITED CONNECTICUT PRIEST RESIGNS

From: The Rev. Dr. Mark H. Hansen, Rector
St. John's Episcopal Church
851 Stafford Avenue
Bristol, CT 06010

September 23, 2005

To: The Wardens and Vestry,
St. John’s Episcopal Church
Bristol, Connecticut

My Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Having inhibited me from performing my functions as a priest on July 13, 2005 by invoking a canon altogether inapplicable, The Bishop of Connecticut has now chosen not to respond to my good-faith Denial of Abandonment of July 27, 2005.

The same canonical grounds claimed by Bishop Smith as justification for my inhibition also provide that, upon receipt of such good-faith denial, it is his canonical duty to withdraw the inhibition. As the canons provide no ecclesiastical remedy for this unjust behavior on his part, and given the egregious manner in which he trampled upon the canons in order to seize control of our beloved church buildings, I have no reasonable expectation that he will restore the priestly privileges, honors and dignities that I rightfully possess as your Rector – a title which he himself has acknowledged that I still possess.

I have therefore reached the conclusion that it is in the best interests of the Parish for me to resign the title of Rector of St. John’s, Bristol, Connecticut effective immediately; thereby allowing you, the Vestry, to seek my appropriate successor immediately. In tendering this resignation, I am also communicating my intention to vacate the Rectory and restore its full use and control to you, the Vestry. I will be able to complete this move by October 1.

With unceasing prayer that the Lord’s protection be upon you as you continue to stand for Biblical truth;

I am, as ever, faithfully yours,

Mark H. Hansen