FLORENCE, S.C. ”“ In an atmosphere of excitement and anticipation, clergy and delegates of the Diocese of South Carolina gathered Friday evening for an opening Eucharist to their 222nd annual convention.
With a theme that focused primarily on moving forward after their split with the national Episcopal Church, spirits were high among the crowd despite the most recent developments in a legal battle over rights to the Diocese’s name, seal and property.
All Saints Church member Libby Phillips said she feels that the Diocese will now be meeting the needs of a group of people that would not be met otherwise.
“We are just so enthusiastic and excited about what’s happening,” Phillips said. “We’re looking to the future and growth and spirituality.”
Participants and clergy present seemed eager to accept Bishop Mark Lawrence’s call to focus on the future and let the courts decide the more complicated matters of the once-Episcopal affiliated group.
Project Canterbury has some [url=http://anglicanhistory.org/england/eking/index.html]materials[/url] on Edward King of Lincoln, including his Lenten addresses on “Duty and Conscience, whom Bishop Ackerman referenced in his sermon.