St. Anne’s, a church body of 250 members, has remained steadfast and loyal in their commitment to the Holy Scripture, the historic teachings of Christianity and the Anglican Communion for over 100 years. However, the Episcopal Church USA has chosen a path that no longer reflects the membership’s steadfast faith.

The resolution, which does not mention homosexuality, was adopted in the closing minutes of the 211th Annual Council of the Virginia diocese yesterday at the Richmond Marriott. About 1,000 Episcopalians from across the state attended the two-day meeting.

The Standing Committee reportedly plans to issue a public letter soon explaining its decision. But, with Bennison insisting that his resignation is "not in the best interests of the diocese," it seemed that the jurisdiction could be in for a tug of war similar to that in the late 1990s in the Diocese of New Jersey. There, Bishop Joe Morris Doss held out against calls from diocesan leaders for him to leave, though he eventually took a severance package valued at $1.2 million to do so.

We are deeply disturbed that the list of nominees does not include any candidate who is representative of orthodox Anglicanism. Of these four nominees, Bishops Alexander, Gulick and Jefferts Schori voted against a resolution affirming the authority of Scripture and basic tenets of Christian faith (B001) and voted to approve the consecration of V. Gene Robinson at General Convention 2003. Bishop Gulick, consecrated in 1994, has an extensive record of supporting the revisionist agenda.