Episcopal diocese elects new bishop after nearly 3-year vacancy, LGBT disputes
A diocese of The Episcopal Church that has been without a bishop for nearly three years amid concerns over voting and LGBT issues has finally elected a new leader.
The Episcopal Diocese of Florida elected the Rev. J. Randolph Alexander Jr., rector of Immanuel Church-on-the-Hill in Alexandria, Virginia, last week to serve as its ninth bishop.
Alexander was elected at a convention of over 200 clergy and lay delegates held at the Camp Weed & Cerveny Conference Center in Live Oak. He received 86 clergy votes and 78 lay votes on the third ballot to secure the position.
Other candidates included the Rev. M. Dorian Del Priore, rector at Holy Cross Church of Simpsonville, South Carolina; and the Very Rev. Thomas Clayton Purdy, rector at Christ Church, Frederica of St. Simons Island, Georgia.
The next step will be for the diocese to ask the bishops and standing committees of The Episcopal Church to officially consent to the election, which the denominational leaders will have 120 days to finalize.
In a statement released by the diocese, Alexander said he was “humbled, beyond words, by this decision from the people of God in the Diocese of Florida.”
“The harvest field is ripe unto the harvest, the potential is immense, and God’s love for us is beyond our limited imagination,” he said. “I ask the prayers of the diocese, as well, for my amazing wife, the Reverend Patricia Alexander, and for our sons, William, Peter, and Andrew, and our future daughter-in-law, Bailey.”
“May all that we do honor God and build up God's beloved people in the Diocese of Florida. May we walk together as God's beloved, in the name of Jesus Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit.”
In May 2022, the Rev. Charlie Holt was elected bishop, with him slated to replace the retiring Florida Bishop Samuel Howard. However, several lay leaders and clergy alleged that the election process had been tainted.
The Episcopal Church Court of Review filed a report in August 2022 that found "irregularities" that created "seeds of uncertainty” about “the integrity of the process."
In response, the diocese held a second election in November 2022, in which Holt won again, receiving the votes of 56 clergy and 79 laity. The minimum needed was 56 clergy and 67 laity.
However, a group of 29 clergy and lay delegates involved in the second election argued that the process was "fundamentally unfair" and wrongfully excluded certain delegates. The 29 delegates protesting the results exceeded the 25-delegate minimum required to file a formal objection.
Holt not only faced questions about the process of his election, but also concerns from many within the diocese over how he, an opponent of gay marriage, would treat LGBT individuals.
The Episcopal Church mandates that dioceses allow for the blessing of same-sex unions, with conscience protections given to clergy who are morally opposed to performing such rites.
In response, Holt released a statement in December 2022 vowing to permit "each parish" to decide whether they will bless same-sex unions, making it "a matter of conscience and context."
In March 2023, the LGBTQ+ Caucus of The Episcopal Church released an open letter objecting to Holt becoming bishop, claiming that his election was “the intended result of a system designed in the exclusion of LGBTQ+ voices and votes."
The Florida Diocese Standing Committee announced in July 2023 that Holt had failed to receive the necessary support from Episcopal standing committees and bishops with jurisdiction to be installed as bishop.
"We know this news will evoke many responses, especially among the delegates who voted for Charlie Holt, those who have worked hard to obtain consent to the election and those who objected to it," diocesan officials said at the time.
"Upon Bishop Howard's retirement, the Standing Committee will be the ecclesiastical authority of the diocese, as prescribed in Article IV of the Constitution of The Episcopal Church."
In October 2023, even without a successor, Bishop Howard retired. He would go on to face allegations of financial misconduct and discrimination against LGBT individuals, both of which he denied.
Last year, Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe announced that an accord had been reached to resolve the allegations against Howard, in which the retiring bishop would not face disciplinary action.
In September 2024, the Florida Standing Committee told Episcopal News Service that they still didn't have a new bishop, as a recent convention failed to elect a new leader for the diocese.
Since then, diocesan officials have been overseeing a process of reconciliation and healing for members of the regional body, while the standing committee has assumed leadership.
In July, the diocese announced that it had three candidates for bishop, including Alexander. All three of the clergy under consideration were based outside the Florida regional body.
