The priests have said they and a majority of their congregations are "disassociating" from the American denomination because of what they see as its long slide away from biblical tradition. The final straw for them came in November 2003 when the national church elected an openly gay bishop in New Hampshire.

Thursday, some of the priests described Howard's words and actions as unnecessary and unbiblical, and they said they are still considering their response to the bishop's warning of "collective and individual legal peril" for priests and vestries, or lay leaders, who do not hand over parish property. "I think it's unfortunate that the bishop is using terms like 'legal peril,' and I would just say we are exploring all our options," said the Rev. Sam Pascoe, rector at Grace Church in Orange Park, which is now part of the Anglican Diocese of Rwanda.

Officially, what Howard did was to "inhibit" the seven priests: Pascoe; the Revs. Neil Lebhar of Church of the Redeemer, Jim McCaslin of All Souls, Robert Sanders of the Jacksonville Anglican Fellowship and David Sandifer of Calvary Church, all in Jacksonville; C. Alexander Farmer of Servants of Christ in Gainesville; and James Needham of St. Luke's Community of Life in Tallahassee. In his letter to North Florida Episcopalians, Howard said, "These individuals have been inhibited from performance of priestly duties in the Episcopal Church."

In letters informing the priests of the action, Howard said the ministers had been inhibited because they have "abandoned the Communion of this Church."

Lebhar described that language as ironic because these parishes and much of the worldwide Anglican Communion believe it is the Episcopal Church that has abandoned communion with its global partner.

While the move may be seen as meaningless because these priests have already quit the diocese and the denomination, the action was taken because three of the priests and their vestries -- All Souls, Church of the Redeemer and Grace -- continue to occupy church buildings that Howard considers to be diocesan property, said the Rev. Canon Kurt Dunkle, Howard's chief of staff. "Everyone is welcome to come sit in our pews, but we only allow Episcopal priests to conduct worship services and we only allow Episcopalians to serve as vestry members," Dunkle said. "And those are the two groups that control the day-to-day possession" of the parishes.

Parishes that refuse to allow Episcopal priests to lead worship will be taken to court, Dunkle said. In his letter, Howard said Florida law supports the diocese's claim to the property.

Jacksonville attorney David Dearing, who represents the parishes, disagreed. Florida case law does not specifically deal with the Episcopal Church, which claims to own church property even though it is the local parish in most cases that pays for all construction, expansion, maintenance and insurance of property.

"The courts are going to have to look at the equity involved -- who paid for it, who maintained it, et cetera," said Dearing, a parishioner at Grace Church.

But the parishes may have a tough time arguing their case if the past is any indication, said Michael Allan Wolf, a law professor at the Levin College of Law at the University of Florida in Gainesville. Wolf said American courts have traditionally shied away from getting involved in internal church disputes, and when they do they tend to rule in favor of the parent church organization, such as a diocese or denomination.

He said the law also favors whoever has possession of the deeds or titles to the property. Dunkle said the diocese has the titles to all the parishes.

The situation is expected to intensify next week when Howard holds a meeting to consider changing the three churches' status from parishes to missions. Dunkle said that meeting is scheduled for 9 a.m. Tuesday.

Changing their status to missions -- which the bishop can do by church law because the parishes have not supported the diocese financially for two years -- "means that all the resources, financial and otherwise, come under his direct control and in the process he essentially fires the vestries that have been elected," Lebhar said.

Lebhar said such a move would violate diocesan rules that say giving to the diocese is voluntary.

END