St. Alban's Episcopal Church

Elizabeth and I want to thank everyone for the wonderful welcome on July 6th and for all of the other things everyone has done to make us feel welcome. I’d also like to thank everyone, especially the Choir, for their work in preparation for my ordination on August 9th. I can’t wait to begin my priestly ministry with you on August 10th at my First Mass.

I thought for my introductory article I would tell you something about us. I was born and raised in West Memphis, Arkansas, on the Mississippi delta. I was raised the son of a Missionary Baptist, turned Assemblies of God, minister. After my parents divorced I rarely attended church except with my older brother, Donald, who is a professional Church Musician. Donald converted to the Episcopal Church during his college years, and it was through him that I was first introduced to the Episcopal Church. It was also from Donald that I inherited my love for Church Music, and my reverence for its practice in the liturgy. Having been introduced to the Episcopal Church I began to research it, reading every book I could find on its theology, history, and liturgy. Eventually when I was a freshmen in High School I began to walk to the Episcopal Church near my home. It was at this parish, Holy Cross Episcopal Church, that I was baptized and confirmed on the Third Sunday of Advent in 1997. Almost immediately upon my coming to the Episcopal Church, I began to perceive a vocation to the priesthood. After graduation, I attended the University of the South, in Sewanee, TN. At Sewanee, I majored in Medieval Studies and continued to discern my vocation, spending my first summer at college working as the Parish Intern at St. John’s Episcopal Church, Ft. Smith, Arkansas. There I worked in various capacities at the parish including youth ministry, Christian Education, Music, and Pastoral Care.

Through the University Chapel, and with the help of the University Chaplain and Chapel community, I continued to explore my call to ministry with a small group discernment committee. After several meetings with my discernment group I pursued the process further and entered the official discernment process in the Diocese of Fort Worth. Following college we moved to Nashotah, Wisconsin, where I entered seminary at Nashotah House Episcopal Seminary.

I had a wonderful time at Sewanee and it was there, singing together in the University Chapel Choir, that I met my, then, fiancé Elizabeth. My wife, Elizabeth, and I have been married since January 21st of 2006. We were engaged our senior year in College, married during my first year at Nashotah House. Elizabeth grew up as a cradle Episcopalian in Durham, North Carolina, the granddaughter of an Episcopal priest. She has worked throughout her life in museum education, particularly in the field of life science. She’s always had a passion for working with children and helping children to love science and nature as much as she does. While at Sewanee, she majored in Biology with a minor in environmental studies. While we lived in Wisconsin, Elizabeth worked at the Discovery World Museum of Milwaukee and as a full-time nanny.

Elizabeth hopes to begin teaching in the Fall of 2009, and eventually pursue work as a High School Counselor. Elizabeth and I currently have a thirteen week old Lab/Australian Shepherd mix puppy, named Leo and a Guinea Pig named Mary Clarence. As many of you know, our family is growing this fall, as we’re expecting our first child, a boy, on September 25th.

I’m very excited to begin work with the youth program at St. Alban’s. I’m by no means an expert, but here’s my humble opinion about youth ministry. I see youth ministry as raising up new, faithful members of Christ’s Catholic Church. That’s it. I see our youth as the future of this parish, but more than that they are members of this parish here and now, members who just happen to be younger. We, as the clergy, are here to assist with the sanctification of the faithful. Youth Group is just another way that this parish attempts to make faithful, holy members of Christ’s Holy Catholic Church. This means that Youth Group will include discussion and instruction, but also fellowship and fun, service to the community, but also worship and prayer. For many “youth group” is what churches do to keep kids “off the streets.” This will not be the case. We’re not here just to give kids something positive to do so they don’t get into other harmful activities. We’re here to be instruments of sanctification. With that in mind, the things we’ll be doing will take on a new meaning. A lunch or a lock-in becomes a time to enjoy each others’ company and learn to be holy together. A mission trip becomes a time to see the face of Jesus in others, and serve Jesus in others. A quiet compline in a dark church filled with candlelight becomes a time to offer up the world in prayer.

Soon you will begin to hear information about upcoming youth events. I invite everyone to begin to see these events, and those to follow, in this new way. At the beginning, there will be several events to allow you to get to know me and vice versa. During that time we’ll also be discerning exactly what the regular youth program will look like at St. Alban’s.

If you are interested in helping out, praying regularly for the program, giving to support the needs of the youth program, or you’d just like to discuss ideas with me, please feel free to come by and see me. I’m available for all, especially youth, so drop by. Right now I’m in the process of contacting the other youth workers in Arlington to get an idea of what’s going in the various churches and how we might work together with the other youth programs in the area. We have a lot of work to do, and I’m not going to make promises that I can’t keep, but I do promise to give you my time and my energy, and to continually offer up all our labors to God the Father, through Jesus Christ, His Son.