2 February 2000

Dear People of God,

All of you by now are aware of the consecration of John Rodgers and Chuck Murphy as bishops by the Archbishop of Singapore, the Archbishop of Rwanda, Bishop Rucyahana of Rwanda and Bishop Allison and Bishop Dickson.

The consecrations pose serious questions about the relationships of Provinces of the Anglican Communion to the American Church, doctrinal and canonical issues within the American church, and canonical questions within the Diocese of South Carolina. Bishop Murphy is a bishop, I suppose in the Diocese of Singapore. He is still on the records of the Diocese of South Carolina as a priest of this diocese, since no letter dimissory has been sent or asked for. Obviously the office of bishop now is his status, therefore in reality, he is not a priest of the diocese. I will have to depend on the Chancellor to work these matters out canonically. He has stated his desire to remain at All Saints' Church. To do so will require my permission and license. Bishop Murphy will not be back from Singapore until Friday evening. My intent is to meet with Bishop Murphy and the Vestry of All Saints' Church early next week to make some determination about where we are.

You also need some background on this event. On January 13, I received a telephone call from the Rev. Bill Atwood, who was on his way to Rwanda to see Archbishop Kolini at the request of Bishop Stanton of Dallas. Bishop Stanton had received word from Archbishop Nkoyoyo of Uganda, stating that he had been invited to participate in the consecration of three bishops for the American Church and that he declined. Fr. Atwood asked if I had a position to give to Archbishop Kolini. I told him that I was opposed, particularly because it preceded the primates' meeting in March and because four of the six primates, who had contemplated such an action in Kampala in November, were now opposed. The action had the potential of dividing faithful people who are in agreement about doctrinal and moral issues in the American Church.

I contacted both Bishop Allison and Bishop Murphy who acknowledged to me that they were going to Singapore in late January. I also discussed with them my objections to the one name that seemed to be public. I expressed my concern that faithful people not be divided and my willingness to work to prevent this from happening. I also stated my objections to the possible consecrations. Such an action would preempt any decision by the Primates in March and would then rest on the action of only two of the six Primates who originally contemplated the action. Both Bishop Allison and Bishop Murphy reaffirmed their position that any decision regarding consecrations would belong to the archbishops and not to them.

I had a second discussion with them in Pawleys Island when I blessed the marriage of a couple from All Saints' Church. I did raise with them the questions about relationships to the Diocese, and the commitment that Bishop Murphy made sometime ago to live in the Diocese and not be divisive to its common life. I also pointed out the strange canonical issues and my concern that we not end up divided. I reminded them that there had been an article in "The Coastal Observer" on September 10, 1998 which stated that Bishop Murphy had consulted attorneys about the church property and was advised that All Saints' could possibly keep their property because the parish pre-dates the Diocese. The facts are that the charter of All Saints' Church was not renewed by the parish in the Nineteenth Century and the property passed to the ownership of the Trustees of the Diocese of South Carolina. Bishop Capers and the Trustees gave the property back to the parish in May 1903. All Saints' therefore has claim to the property as long as they are a part of the Diocese of South Carolina. We parted this conversation positively. I stated my strong concern that the action was both pre-mature and lacking support of all the Kampala primates, and also reaffirmed my desire to see that no division resulted. They restated that any decision would belong to the Archbishops.

I have kept Bishop Skilton abreast of all developments and last week sent word to the Vice President of the Province and the Archbishop of Canterbury.

I believe that in all of these events, it is important to minimize further divisions and to urge the whole church to seek a Godly solution. This action is obviously a symptom of much larger issues. More anger and hatred will not help the situation.

As far as the issues are concerned that relate to me and the Diocese of South Carolina, I will continue to pray for guidance, I will continue to consult with Bishop Skilton, the Deans, the Standing Committee, Bishop Murphy and the Vestry and people of All Saints' Church. When that discernment produces the proper fruit, you will hear it directly from me. I cherish your prayers.

Faithfully,

(The Rt Rev) Edward L Salmon Jr
13th Bishop of South Carolina