As is probably the case with most of you, this step leaves me with mixed emotions: a sadness over a division, and a very public one, in the Body of Christ, as well as about leaving our facilities, but also-and I must confess this is the dominant one-a tremendous sense of relief and hopefulness about moving forward in ministry without the cloud of a continued identification with an apostate church.

What I want to stress at this time is that our separation from the Diocese of Florida is the final chapter in a long effort to chart a course of disassociation from the Episcopal Church, a course we were initially hopeful would not conclude in this particular way. From the beginning, our concern has been to balance two Biblical principles: the importance of the integrity of the witness of the Church on the one hand (1 Cor. 5:9-13), and the call to unity in the Church on the other (Eph. 4:3-6). Thus the "integrity" principle is why we decided as a congregation as far back as August of 2003 that we could not stay in the Episcopal Church unless it reversed its course of action in approving and elevating what the Bible clearly condemns as sin, namely sexual intimacy outside the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman (this, of course, was but the "presenting" issue: the underlying problem was and is the Episcopal Church's increasing surrender to an un-Christian philosophy which redefines the nature of sin, salvation, the authority of Scripture, the work of Christ, and God Himself).

On the other hand, the "unity" principle is why we did not simply walk away in August of 2003: our concern has been to work in concert with our many of our brothers and sisters who find themselves in the same situation and share the same convictions, here in our diocese, across the U.S., and abroad. I'm not claiming that we've been perfect in the way we've gone about doing this in the last 26 months, but I can say, on behalf of all of the leadership of Calvary (as well, I believe, as the others in our group of six churches), that seeking to faithfully honor both of these Biblical principles has been our prayerful aim all along, and I believe God has led us as a result. Concretely this has meant both taking certain steps along the way (such as withholding direct funding of the diocese, or appealing for alternative oversight), and restraining from taking other steps (such as, until now, leaving the diocese).

Until now the leadership of Calvary has not felt a release from God to take the step of formal separation, but now, having allowed over two years for a response from the larger Communion and having attempted to exercise the options available to us, we have come to a complete peace about the fact that there is nothing holding us back (following this letter is a brief chronology of events, recapping how we got to where we are today). In particular, while we were certainly hoping to be able to stay on our current property, we are not willing to allow it to be the determining issue, and we are certainly not willing to litigate for it, even if we thought we had a strong claim: we are ready and willing to fight for the Gospel; we are not willing to fight for our property.

As I mentioned earlier, it is a painful thing to take this step, especially as so many in our diocese are faithful, godly Christians whom we in some cases have known for years, and whom we continue to love and respect. That we are not formally part of the same denomination with them certainly does not mean we do not continue to enjoy Christian fellowship. At one level, it would be fair to say that our current action has mostly to do with the national Episcopal Church, and our relationship with the diocese is simply being affected as a result of it. But at another level it is also true that we have a profound disagreement with the current leadership of our diocese as to what the Biblical teaching is on the nature of the Christian life and Christian fellowship: we believe that while we all are sinners in need of grace, the hallmark of the Christian life is an acknowledgement of sin followed by repentance and transformation, and that the church has a duty to discipline its members when they refuse such repentance ("with such a man do not even eat," says Paul, 1 Cor. 5:11, and also "and such were some of you"). The reason that Anglicans far and wide have taken so seriously the actions of the Episcopal Church is not that Mr. Robinson is tempted to have sex with other men, or even that he has ever had sex with another man; it is because he wants to continue having sex with another man and wants to call it right and good; and because the Episcopal Church has agreed to let him do so and make him a bishop.

But the Episcopal Church is not the Church. And we know that God is continually building up and strengthening His Church, and that the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. In the midst of everything these last couple of years, one of the most exciting aspects for me has been to see a fresh demonstration of the true supernatural unity that we have in the Body of Christ. We have certainly experienced this at Calvary, through the wonderful oneness and peace God has given us. We have experienced it in our diocese in the relationships God has given us with like-minded churches, and, especially, with the five other churches we've worked so closely with these last several months: All Souls and Redeemer in Jacksonville, Grace in Orange Park, St Michael's in Gainesville, and Community of Life in Tallahassee. And we going to experience it increasingly, I believe, through the international partnership we will have with other Anglican believers. I'm looking forward to seeing how God is going to continue to strengthen all of these relationships.

As I mentioned earlier, I have a tremendous sense of God having guided us up to this very point, in His perfect timing. I believe we are right in the center of His will for us right now. I am particularly thankful for the unexpected way in which He allowed for us to bring things to a conclusion with the Bishop and the diocese; it is always so much better if one can leave in a cordial and cooperative way, especially within the Body of Christ, and that is just what God has granted us, by God's grace. We will certainly continue to pray for God's blessing and guidance for both this Bishop and this diocese.

Finally, I am thankful that we are not stepping into a void. We have already been received into an overseas Province of the Anglican Communion, and I will be at liberty to announce this in the near future. We will be strengthening our relationship with the new Anglican Alliance of North Florida in our area, and are looking forward to partnering together in both ministry and mission. But most of all we know that we continue, simply, to be one part of the One Holy and Apostolic Church, the mystical Body of Christ which God is preparing and purifying for that day when He presents her "before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy."

In our eternal Savior and Lord,
yours for His Kingdom,

David Sandifer, Vicar
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A CHRONOLOGY OF EVENTS RELATING TO CALVARY, THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH, AND THE DIOCESE OF FLORIDA

by David Sandifer
Vicar
Calvary Anglican Church

August 2003: the Episcopal Church approves of a non-celibate gay man, Gene Robinson, as the Bishop of New Hampshire

Fall 2003: we and other conservatives in our diocese are hopeful that our whole diocese will chart a course of disassociation from the Episcopal Church (ECUSA), a hope that seems well-founded when Bishop Jecko decides to hold in escrow all diocesan funding of ECUSA, and when the diocese votes to be in "impaired fellowship" with those in ECUSA who supported the approval of Robinson

October 2003: the diocese votes to send part of the escrowed funds to ECUSA, depending on the preference of each congregation; I join several other priests in meeting with Bishop Howard to let him know we would probably not be able to make our pledge for 2004 if any money goes from the diocese to support ECUSA

October 2003: the "primates" of the Anglican Communion meet to consider the situation of ECUSA, begging it not to proceed with the consecration of Robinson, and instituting a panel to study the problem and recommend solutions (what would become the Windsor Report)

November 2003: Gene Robinson is consecrated as Bishop of New Hampshire, over the objections and warnings of the rest of the Communion

January 2004: the Florida diocesan convention votes to continue sending support to ECUSA based on the choice of each congregation; seven churches eventually decide to suspend their financial support of the diocese as a result (including Calvary), though they each continue to support diocesan programs directly; the Anglican Communion Network of Florida is formed to bring together conservative churches affiliated with the Network in a common stance

Spring 2004: the leadership of Calvary, in consultation with other churches in the diocese, and in view of appeals to patience coming from orthodox bishops in the U.S. and overseas, decides to wait until the release of the Windsor report to take any further action

October 2004: the Windsor Report is released, acknowledging the error of ECUSA and the damage done to the Communion, calling for an expression of regret on its part, but stopping short of calling for clear repentance or recommending discipline failing that; we are urged on all sides to wait until the Primates's response to the Report in February

November 2005: Bishop Howard fires the Rev. Claudia Kalis, one of the priests from the seven churches withholding funding from the diocese; in a public letter the Bishop cites a number of reasons, including her refusal to receive communion from the Bishop; she starts the Anglican Fellowship of High Springs under the Diocese of Recife, Brazil

December 2004: the priests of several churches, including Calvary, begin meeting to plan steps for a formal process of disassociation from the Episcopal Church sometime after the recommendations of the Primates are issued at their February meeting

February 2005: the Primates Communiqué is issued, calling for ECUSA to reverse course and suspend future approval of practicing homosexual persons as Bishops; it also calls for the creation of a "Panel of Reference" to resolve questions of oversight and protection for church and groups in "serious theological dispute" with their bishop, diocese, or province (national church)

March 2005: the priests of the six churches meeting together to chart a common course decide, along with the leadership of their churches, to wait until after diocesan convention in May to take any further action

May 2005: the Annual Convention of the Diocese of Florida is held in Jacksonville; all of the resolutions presented by the Network-associated churches are defeated by an overwhelming margin, including one introduced by Calvary which would have declared the diocese to be in "serious theological dispute" with ECUSA, and would have appealed to the Panel of Reference for alternative oversight for the whole diocese (replacing the Presiding Bishop and aligning the diocese with another Province)

June 2005: six churches in the Diocese of Florida--Grace, Redeemer, All Souls, St Michael's, Community of Life, and Calvary--appeal to Bishop Howard for "alternative episcopal oversight" according to a process set in place by the Panel of Reference

August 2005: Bishop Howard denies the request for alternative oversight; agrees to discuss with parishes only (not Calvary or Community of Life) the possibility of a pastoral oversight only, not the full oversight requested; says will meet soon with vicars to discuss future of ministry

August 2005: the six churches make an "urgent appeal" to the Panel of Reference for protection and alternative oversight

October 2005: the Rector, associate priests, and most of the staff of St John's in Tallahassee, one of the largest congregations in our diocese, leave to begin St Peter's, which will come under overseas oversight in the Anglican Communion; the Anglican Alliance of North Florida is formed to bring together Biblically-committed Anglican churches in North Florida, both within ECUSA and without; twelve churches announce their membership in the AANF, including Calvary, the other five appealing churches, and the newly formed St Peter's

October 2005: the six appealing churches, having received no response from the Panel of Reference, agree with Bishop Howard to work through a process of separation in an "amicable and Christian way;" this includes the churches' commitment not to leave without consultation, and the Bishop's commitment not to take adverse action against priests for announcing their intention to leave, and the commitment on both sides to make every effort to avoid litigation

October 2005: our Senior Warden Betty Collins and I, along with representatives from the other five churches, meet in a cordial atmosphere and agree to a separation effective Nov. 1, 2005; Calvary announces that we will come under the oversight of an oversees Bishop to be announced, and that its first service at its new location at the UNF University will be Nov. 6

END