Today, Saturday June 24 we, your elected Standing Committee have together reread our own identity and intention as it is expressed in the Preamble to the Constitution of the Diocese of Quincy. The Constitution of the Diocese of Quincy, approved prior to Bishop Ackerman's election and subsequent consecration, is quite clear in terms of its intent:

We declare this Diocese historically to have been, and desire that it shall continue to be, in full communion with the See of Canterbury and the Anglican Churches throughout the world, as being an integral portion of the one body of Christ composed of Churches which, united under the One Divine Head in the fellowship of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, hold the one Faith revealed by God and defined in the Creeds of the undivided primitive Church in the undisputed Ecumenical Councils; receive the same Canonical Scriptures of the Old and New Testament as containing all things necessary to salvation; teach the same Word of God; partake of the same Divinely ordained Sacraments, through the ministry of the same Apostolic Orders; and worship one God and Father through the same Lord Jesus Christ, by the same Holy and Divine Spirit Who is given to them who believe, to guide them into all truth.

Moreover we note in Article II of our Constitution that:

Contingent upon the continuing consent of Diocesan Synod and consistent with the Preamble to and Article XVII of this Constitution, the Church in the Diocese accedes to the Constitution (hereinafter the "National Constitution") and Canons (hereinafter, the "National Canons) of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America (hereinafter, the "Episcopal Church"). The Diocese also recognizes the advisory authority of the resolutions of the General Convention of the Episcopal Church.

We have noted with sorrow that actions taken at the 75th General Convention in Columbus, Ohio have caused an even greater chasm to exist between the American Province, and the Anglican Communion as articulated by the Lambeth Commission on Communion. We have failed to respond to the various Windsor Resolutions as requested by the Primates, and we have elected a Presiding Bishop who is on record as not supporting the spirit and the words of those Resolutions.

Moreover the General Convention failed to reaffirm the necessity of belief in Jesus Christ, as the only begotten Son of God, who is "the Way, the Truth, and the Life." (St. John 14:6) Finally we approved the consecration to the episcopate of a priest who has been divorced twice and married three times. If the intention of this General Convention was to reconcile with the Anglican Communion, then we have failed.

We have already received responses critical of General Convention from the Global South, and other parts of the Anglican Communion. It is altogether possible that within the next few months after several crucial international Anglican meetings, we will discover that The Episcopal Church has, in the words of the Windsor Report, severely "broken the bonds of affection," running the inevitable risk of being expelled from the Anglican Communion. As Presiding Bishop Frank Griswold indicated, failure to pass an acceptable response to Windsor will result in the Bishops of the Episcopal Church not being invited to the Lambeth Conference to which all Anglican Bishops are invited every ten years. The next Lambeth Conference will meet in two years.

In reading carefully the Constitution of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America and the preface to the Book of Common Prayer, it would also appear that this General Convention has exceeded its constitutional authority.

In the next few weeks you will read many accounts of this General Convention, some of which will be written by those who did not even attend the event. What is critical, however, is the interpretation of the Archbishop of Canterbury, and the other Primates, not the opinions of a General Convention. In fact several groups whose existence has been initiated by the Archbishop of Canterbury are already in the process of the evaluation of the Convention's actions.

Upon reviewing the responses of the clergy and the General Convention deputies who met this past Friday, and as faithful and committed members of the Church in this Diocese, we are aware of their unanimous concern and regret over the actions of this General Convention.

Therefore, we as the Standing Committee are united with the clergy and General Convention Deputies in our resolve to be faithful to the Constitution of this Diocese and our relationship with the worldwide Anglican Communion.

We are also aware of the fact that unilateral actions taken by dioceses and Provinces are inappropriate in the eyes of the Primates of the Anglican Communion when not done in concert. As we await the responses of the Archbishop of Canterbury and the other Provinces of the Anglican Communion, we are taking the following actions:

* We continue to communicate with other members of the American Province who share our concerns so that together we may continue to be the authentic expression of Anglicanism in the United States.

* The leadership of the Anglican Communion Network of Dioceses, a body suggested by the Archbishop of Canterbury, is in regular contact with the Archbishop and numerous primates who have already expressed great concern over the actions of General Convention and its failure to respond adequately to the requests of the Anglican Communion set forth in the Windsor Report. The Archbishop and other primates requested the faithful Anglicans in this country to work together through the Anglican Communion Network to address the serious divisions which have been further aggravated by this General Convention. The Diocese of Quincy will take part in a meeting of the Anglican Communion Network in several weeks.

* In anticipation of the responses of the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Network, and others, the Standing Committee is reserving Saturday, Sept 16th as a date to convene a special diocesan synod. The site will be named at a later date.

As your Bishop and Standing Committee, we are diligently working to do all that is necessary to ensure that our diocese remains what it has been since its creation in 1877, namely, a recognized and legitimate member of the Anglican Communion.

We ask for your prayers, and under the complete guidance and judgment of the Glorious Trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, we promise you that we will be ever mindful of the trust and responsibility that has been given to us.

In the words of the Primates of the Council of Anglican Provinces of Africa, "We assure all those Scripturally faithful Dioceses and Congregations alienated and marginalized within your Provincial Structure that we have heard their cries."

Sincerely yours in Christ,

The Right Reverend Keith L. Ackerman

The Very Reverend John Spencer

The Reverend W.J. Barnds

The Reverend James Marshall

Mr. Robert Fairman

Mrs. Lois Shawl

Mrs. Crystal Potthoff