The committee of bishops working on the letter has declined to make any of the drafts public, but a group of conservative Episcopalians who oppose the document have begun offering copies to whoever wants them.

But elsewhere conservative Episcopalians said the vote was a stunning assault on the church and an unpardonable rebuke of scripture.

Akinola joined Minns and 50 other conservative Episcopalians in a warning that confirming Gene Robinson could "precipitate a dramatic realignment of the church."

"We're not leaving," said Diane L. Knippers, a conservative Episcopalian who is president of the Institute on Religion and Democracy in Washington.

Father Hesse said he met Bishop Turumanya in Dallas in 1997, at a meeting organized by conservative Episcopalians for overseas bishops.

Another divorce proposal shook the United Methodist convention in Pittsburgh earlier this month, while conservative Episcopalians have already broken away to form a dissident network of their own.

What deeply saddens me is that he is a well-regarded leader to many of the most conservative Episcopalians in this country.

He spoke as conservative Episcopalians meeting on Thursday in Fairfax, Va., laid the groundwork to secede from the Episcopal Church.

The move drew fire from the world Anglican leadership and from conservative Episcopalians across the United States, and the American church offered dissenting parishes the option of working temporarily with other bishops.