Greetings from the (not too) distant shores of Sabbaticalland! I’m thrilled to be sending you the great news that Wesley Rowell will be joining the Calvary staff on June 29 as our Minister for Congregational Care.
Wesley has just completed a year of Anglican Studies at Virginia Theological Seminary, following three years at Princeton Theological Seminary, where he received his Master of Divinity and served as a lay pastoral associate at Trinity Episcopal Church. He is a gifted and thoughtful preacher with the warm, gentle strength of a natural pastor.
It would be difficult to overstate how much affection and respect for Wesley was expressed by each of the references I called, which included the dean of the University Chapel at Princeton, the rector of Trinity Parish, a professor of liturgy at Virginia Seminary, and a beloved LPS preacher from New York City, who first nudged Wesley toward seminary several years ago. After meeting him in person in Memphis, along with Associate Rector Katherine Bush and Senior Warden Jessica Flynn, all three of us agreed unequivocally that we should invite Wesley to join the Calvary staff.
Wesley will be ordained to the transitional diaconate early this fall at Calvary. We’re thrilled that this celebration will happen here; stay tuned for more details.
Since I am away on sabbatical, I’ll say a little more about our process. Katherine and I decided that it would be prudent to post the position opening at Calvary soon after we announced the Rev. Paul McLain’s move to Trezevant to become lead chaplain and director of spiritual care. We did so because seminary semesters were coming to a close, and there might be strong candidates looking for ministry positions. Had we not found a person we were confident was right for Calvary, we would have extended the search to the fall. But Katherine, Jessica, and I were in complete agreement that we’d found our next associate rector in Wesley.
I know you’ll open your hearts to Wesley with the great spirit of hospitality I was met with at Calvary eight years ago. And I can’t wait to return at the end of August to join the good work of making God’s love visible in downtown Memphis with Wesley and with you once again.
Faithfully yours,
Scott Walters,
Rector
Hello Calvary,
I’m Wesley Rowell, and I’m so excited (and deeply grateful) to be joining your community as I continue my journey toward the priesthood in The Episcopal Church. I recently graduated from Virginia Theological Seminary (also known as an Episcopal finishing school), having earned my M.Div. from Princeton Theological Seminary with concentrations in Black Church Studies and Theology, Women, and Gender. I’m originally from Fayetteville, NC, and spent 24 beautiful, chaotic, and transformative years in New York City before the Spirit led me to seminary and now to Memphis.
My call to ministry lives in the holy intersections of race, gender, queerness, justice, and Jesus. I’ve served in faith communities from Middle Collegiate Church in the East Village to Trinity Church in Princeton to St. John’s Norwood in Bethesda, and each stop along the way has deepened my love for the Church and my hope for what it can be.
I believe in a God who shows up in flesh and feeling, in beauty and boldness, in laughter, song, tears, and dance. I’m excited to learn with you, pray with you, grow with you, and, yes, maybe even talk BBQ with you.
I can’t wait to meet you all.
With love and peace,
Wesley