Dear Diocese of Florida,
With thanks for the power of the Holy Spirit moving among us, we are delighted to share that today during our Bishop Election at Camp Weed & Cerveny Conference Center, the convention of more than 200 clergy and lay delegates elected the Reverend J. Randolph (Randy) Alexander Jr. as our ninth bishop.
Fr. Alexander was elected on the third ballot, with 86 clergy votes and 78 lay votes.
“I am humbled, beyond words, by this decision from the people of God in the Diocese of Florida,” said Fr. Alexander. “The harvest field is ripe unto the harvest, the potential is immense, and God’s love for us is beyond our limited imagination. I thank God for the privilege of meeting Fr. Tom and Fr. Dorian, and ask the prayers of the diocese for their ongoing vital ministries. 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. Finally, I’d also like to share a special thanks to the faithful, dedicated members of the search and transition committees, as well as the standing committee, for their leadership throughout this process. 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.”
Fr. Alexander has been rector at Immanuel Church-on-the-Hill in Alexandria, Virginia since 2013 and a priest for three decades. Raised in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains, he previously served parishes in New York, Maryland, and London. He chairs the Diocese of Virginia’s Committee on Priesthood. A graduate of the University of Virginia and General Theological Seminary, he is completing a D.Min. at Virginia Seminary this year. He and his wife, the Reverend Patricia Alexander, have three grown sons. He enjoys hiking, kayaking, travel, and museums.
“It’s a blessing to see our diocese come together to select Fr. Alexander as our future leader,” said the Rev. Justin Yawn, outgoing Standing Committee president, and the Rev. Bob Goolsby, incoming Standing Committee president, in a joint statement. “We give thanks to God for carrying us to this day and all who led and assisted this process—from our search and transition committees who gave themselves faithfully to this process and worked closely alongside the Episcopal Church staff, to Diocesan Council, our fellow Standing Committee members, the diocesan staff, and many more. Because of them and the prayerful discernment of our clergy and lay delegates, our diocese has chosen the person that it believes God is calling to lead us. We now look forward to asking the consent of the wider Episcopal Church to our election.”
In the Episcopal Church, a bishop election requires not only a successful electing convention, but also the consent of a majority of bishops with jurisdiction and a majority of standing committees of dioceses across the church. In the coming days, we will formally begin this process by asking bishops and standing committees for consent to our election. They will have 120 days to provide consent.
The slate of nominees also included the Reverend M. Dorian Del Priore, rector at Holy Cross Church in Simpsonville, South Carolina, and the Very Reverend Thomas Clayton (Tom) Purdy, rector at Christ Church, Frederica in St. Simons Island, Georgia.
“We are grateful to Fr. Del Priore and Fr. Purdy for the time and energy they dedicated to our diocese during this search process. We were fortunate to offer three exceptional spiritual leaders to our diocese, and we wish both Fr. Del Priore and Fr. Purdy the best as they continue to serve their parishes and spread the word of God across the Episcopal Church,” said Fr. Yawn and Fr. Goolsby.
To our Diocese, thank you, all, for your passion and participation in this bishop search and election process over the past 18 months. We are grateful for every one of you, and are so proud of the outcome we achieved together. Please join us in congratulating Fr. Alexander!