• In 1994, after ten years ministry at Stocksfield Baptist Church Andy was seconded by the Baptist Union of Great Britain (BUGB) to explore the idea of Christian community based in homes, looking at patterns in the New Testament and beyond. Jane joined Andy as co-leader. A new community was begun in Hexham Northumberland. 

• In 1995, still under secondment of the BUGB, the Fitz-Gibbons moved to Ithaca, NY and established a new home based community and an itinerant ministry of spiritual renewal. 

• In 1998, the home-based community became known as "Community of Friends in Renewal" and Jane was formally ordained to Christian ministry at an ecumenical service in Ithaca NY.

• In 2000, the BUGB secondment ended, and the Fitz-Gibbons decided to continue ministry in the USA.

• In 2001, Community of Friends in Renewal was chartered as a jurisdiction in the one holy, catholic and apostolic church by Archbishop Wayne Boosahda of the Archdiocese of St. Patrick, Community of Evangelical Episcopal Churches (CEEC). Jane and Andy Fitz-Gibbon had their ordinations reaffirmed and were ordained priests and appointed Abbot and Abbess, "apostolic overseers" of the community. The first four deacons of the community were also ordained by Archbishop Boosahda.

• In Spring 2003, "Community of Friends in Renewal" become "The Lindisfarne Community" in preparation for the episcopal consecration of the Fitz-Gibbons. 

• In June 2003, Andrew and Jane were both consecrated bishops in apostolic succession by Archbishop Wayne Boosahda (the CEEC), Archbishop Joseph Grenier (Celtic Christian Church) and Archabbess Charlotte Rogers Buckans (Anglican Catholic Communion, USA).

Since then, the Lindisfarne Community has continued to evolve and grow as new members have joined us and we have received new insights. We are an inclusive and affirming community welcoming all who join our quest for a deep spirituality lived in the world. 

Along the way these are the influences that have shaped the community:

• The Anabaptist radicals of the sixteenth century, those at the time of the Reformation who practiced their faith "against the flow." They valued community, peace and radical commitment. They had a dynamic spirituality. The Wesleyan movement in the seventeenth century had similar values with regard to discipleship and small groups.

• The Celtic Christain emphases of the fifth to ninth centuries in Britain and Ireland. Here was a less hierarchical spirituality that valued the arts, music, poetry, had a healthy view of the wonders of nature, and affirmed women in ways the church has rarely done.

• The monastic movement of the desert and the early middle ages. The Celts led us to look again at the spirituality of the desert fathers and mothers and the later development of monasticism.

• The Christian feminist movement of the last quarter of the twentieth century. We believe that the movement has helped the church to consider again the radical, embryonic potential of freedom found in the gospels and in Paul's early charismatic practice.

• The charismatic movement of the latter half of the twentieth century and a rediscovery of spiritual gifts, new forms of worship and the dynamism of the Holy Spirit.

• The Convergence Movement synthesizing sacramental, evangelical and charismatic emphases.

• Diverse spiritualities and practices from eastern traditions, Buddhism, Daoism, Hindusim, and Sufism.

• The movement to affirm and include LGBTQ+.