But then he got a surprise. "On Thursday, Feb. 5, I was told I could stay and preach the following Sunday. Then at 4pm on Thursday I got a call from the bishop's assistant saying that I could not preach on Sunday someone else would, but I could address the congregation at the "peace" and that a pre-arranged plan to have a vote on whether to stay or leave was now cancelled."

I was officially inhibited, he told Virtuosity.

"I thought about it and then decided I didn't need to be at the service on Sunday. The people already know and six of the vestry are leaving, and they are ready to leave the parish even if I didn't leave the ECUSA. I also believe the majority of the church is ready to go. They have been ready for a year to leaving ECUSA."

Ackerson says that the vast majority of the 155-member congregation will go with him to start another Anglican parish down the road at a Baptist Church who have offered him sanctuary till he can find more permanent headquarters.

They had wanted him to start a new church within the Tallahassee community. Although the new church will not be aligned with any denomination initially, it intends to unite with a different Anglican group shortly. "One outreach that will continue in the new congregation is Subject to Change Ministries, a program for people seeking to change their homosexual attractions and behavior through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ," said Ackerson.

Asked if he was ready to join the Anglican Mission in America (AMIA), Ackerson said "not necessarily", but he was weighing several options including coming under an orthodox Anglican Primate from the Global South.

For Ackerson the central issue and why he left the Episcopal Church was the authority of Holy Scripture. "The Episcopal Church has failed to stand for Biblical authority, he told Virtuosity. "It is the ongoing dilution of God's Word within the hierarchy of ECUSA."

Ackerson has aggressively sought to encourage the diocese to withdraw its fellowship from ECUSA, for failure to uphold the Bible as the ultimate authority of God.

Ackerson said his parish co-sponsored a proposal to amend the Diocese's Articles of Re-incorporation to begin the process of separation from ECUSA.

The proposal was submitted at the Diocese's Annual Convention held last month in Jacksonville, FL. "The proposal was ruled out of order by Bishop John Howard during a convened session of the convention and, therefore, did not receive a formal vote by the delegates," he said.

Ackerson advised his parish of his resignation on February 1st and said, "I cannot commit to fighting ECUSA anymore. My charge as a priest is to focus my time and energy to fulfilling the Great Commission, and this effort has distracted me from that purpose."

According to Ackerson and other members of the denomination, ECUSA interprets the Bible as a mere guideline for modern day living. The most recent result of this mindset was the consecration and ordination of a non-celibate homosexual priest, V. G. Robinson, as Bishop of New Hampshire in the fall of 2003.

Jim Hampton, a convention delegate said, "Ackerson has been preparing his congregation for this outcome for several years by encouraging active participation in the American Anglican Council, a network that affirms Biblical authority. He also has called the parish to prayer, and provided biblical teaching on how to address false teachers within the Church."

Ackerson, who has been an Episcopal priest for twelve years told Virtuosity, "I am anxious to continue his mission to win the lost and make disciples of Jesus Christ".

END

The Rev. Dennis Ackerson can be reached at: theackersons@cs.com