We are so pleased to welcome Patricia Rose, who will be a resident at St. Stephen’s and St. Edwards in Whitehall for the next two years. Patricia just graduated from the Church Divinity School of the Pacific (CDSP) and will be ordained to the Transitional Diaconate on June 12th in Cincinnati. She will be a transitional deacon for six months, and will then be ordained to the priesthood, God willing and the people consenting.
There’s a long standing tradition in the Episcopal Church of embedding newly ordained priests and deacons in churches with full-time clergy people who, along with the laity, can mentor them through their first years of ministry. In the past, newly ordained priests who were embedded in this way were called “curates,” and their time of service was called a “curacy.” This language is still used in many places, but in this diocese we prefer the term “resident,” since this is inclusive of vocational deacons as well as priests.
Regardless of what we call it, we feel very fortunate to have Patricia serving with us in this capacity. Before going to seminary Patricia, who is a teacher by training, served as the Director of Adult Spiritual Renewal at St. Timothy’s in Cincinnati. She has also served as a communications director, a freelance writer, and a curriculum developer. Patricia is a trained spiritual director with a deep prayer life who spent time ministering to San Francisco’s homeless population while in seminary. We look forward to both benefiting from her knowledge and skills, and mentoring her as she moves into ordained life.
In order to welcome her, we are currently moving the nursery to the Christian Education wing on the second floor of Hobson Hall, so that the old nursery can function as her office. We will have a chance to greet and receive her when she begins her ministry with us on July 1st.
