PEP II January 11th - 15th, 2021 - Conference Leaders - Episcopal Preaching Foundation
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PEP II
January 11th – 15th, 2021
Conference Leaders
The Rev. John Branson is semi-retired in North Carolina following almost 40 years
in the Episcopal Church of Connecticut and the Diocese of Newark. He has served
as an Interim since retirement in the Dioceses of Virginia, North Carolina,
Connecticut and Chicago. He serves as August priest-in-charge of a summer chapel
in the Episcopal Church of New Hampshire.
In recent years, poetry has become a source of inspiration for his preaching. As
Emily Dickenson suggests, were we to tell it slant we might awaken a new
awareness of meaning for scripture and Spirit in the general slog through our
every days. John would be the first to acknowledge the challenge and immensity of responsibility for today’s
preachers.
John is married to Judyth and are parents of one adult daughter.
The Rev. (Thelma M.) Nikki Mathis is the Rector of St. Gregory the Great
Episcopal Church in Athens, GA and graduated PEP in 2008. Originally, Nikki
worked as a licensed clinical social worker before entering the priesthood in
2008, enjoying a career that spanned nearly 20 years. During that time, her
research earned publication in The Journal of Family Social Work.
Since entering the priesthood, Nikki has authored several articles and sermons in
publications that include The Sewanee Theological Review, The Episcopal
Preaching Foundation’s Preaching the Beatitudes, Graymoor, and The Alban
Weekly. She is formerly a recipient of a grant from the College of Pastoral Leaders from Austin Seminary, and
has served as Trustee for Sewanee, University of the South. Nikki is a regular member of the PEP Faculty, and
currently serves on the Standing Committee in the Diocese of Atlanta.
Keynote Speakers
The Rev. Kimberly S. Jackson is the Interim Vicar for the Episcopal Church of the
Common Ground in Atlanta, Georgia. Common Ground is a church without walls
that serves people who are currently unhoused.
Rev. Jackson is a public theologian and a fierce community activist. Kim works to
end the death penalty, co-creates Church with people who are unhoused, and is
passionate about sharing the liberating Gospel of Christ. She is currently a
candidate for Georgia State Senate. When she’s not wearing a collar, you can find
Kim in the garden planting a variety of crops.
Kim is a graduate of Furman University, Candler School of Theology at Emory University, and Virginia
Theological Seminary. She and her spouse, Trina, live on a small hobby farm in Stone Mountain with goats,
ducks, bees, and chickens.
The Rev. Canon Stephanie Spellers serves as Canon to Presiding Bishop Michael B.
Curry and spearheads Episcopal efforts around evangelism, reconciliation and
creation care. Her newest book, The Church Cracked Open: Disruption, Decline and
New Hope for Beloved Community (March 2021), follows on her popular titles
Radical Welcome: Embracing God, The Other and the Spirit of Transformation and
The Episcopal Way. Spellers has served as Chaplain to the Episcopal House of
Bishops, directed and taught mission and evangelism at General Theological
Seminary, and served as a canon in the Diocese of Long Island. Before that, she
founded The Crossing, a ground-breaking church within St. Paul’s Cathedral in
Boston, and led numerous church-wide renewal and justice efforts. A native of Frankfort, Kentucky, and a
graduate of both Episcopal Divinity School and Harvard Divinity School, she and her husband Albert deGrasse
make their home today in New York's Harlem neighborhood. Learn more about her recent work at
www.churchcrackedopen.com.
Panelist and Preaching Group Leaders
The Rev. Dr. O. Wesley Allen, Jr. is the Lois Craddock Perkins Professor of
Homiletics at Perkins School of Theology Southern Methodist University, in Dallas,
Texas. Wes received his B.A. from Birmingham-Southern College, his M.Div. from
Yale Divinity School, and his Ph.D. in New Testament (with a minor in Preaching)
from Emory University. As an ordained United Methodist, he has served in a
number of parishes, campus ministry, and academic positions. In the arena of New
Testament, Allen has expertise in the Synoptic Gospels and Acts. In the arena of
preaching and worship, Dr. Allen has special interest in rethinking the role of
preaching and liturgy week in and week out in community in a shifting, postmodern world. Wes is the author
of over a dozen books, and his most recent books include The Sermon Without End: A Conversational
Approach to Preaching (with Ronald J. Allen), Preaching and the Human Condition, and Preaching in the Era of
Trump, with a preaching commentary on Matthew. Having completed a digital introduction to worship that
should be published in 2021, Dr. Allen is currently working on a critical preaching commentary on the Gospel
of Mark.
The Rev. Dr. Ron Allen taught preaching and Gospels and Letters at Christian
Theological Seminary from 1982 to 2019. Prior to that, he and his spouse, the
Reverend Linda McKiernan-Allen, were co-ministers of First Christian Church
(Disciples of Christ), Grand Island, Nebraska. He loves leading Bible studies in
congregations.
He has published more than 40 books, most recently: I Will Tell You the Mystery: A
Commentary on Preaching from the Book of Revelation (2019). Three of his books
are widely used in small group studies in congregations: A Faith of Your Own:
Naming What You Really Believe, Reading the New Testament for the First Time, and The Life of Jesus for
Today. He was an editor for the pioneering Preaching God’s Transforming Justice: A Commentary on the
Lectionary, which comments on every reading in the lectionary and introduces 22 new Holy Days for Justice
(e.g. , Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Peace in the Home, Yom haShoa, Gifts of Sexuality and Gender, Sojourner
Truth Day). With O. Wesley Allen, Jr., he urges thinking of preaching as conversation, as for example, in Allen
and Allen, The Sermon Without End: A Conversational Approach to Preaching.
Allen and his spouse have five young adult children: Canaan, Genesis, Moriah, Barek, and Sabbath, as well as
five grandchildren. He and his family spent summers teaching in Zambia and Jamaica. He has also traveled in
Israel, India, South Korea, Belize, England, Ireland, New Zealand, Aruba, Canada, the countries surrounding the
Baltic, as well as Mexico, Spain, the Canary Islands, Uruguay, Argentina, Greece, Italy, Croatia, and Antarctica.
The Rev. Susan Ironside is the rector at Grace Episcopal Church in Madison, NJ. A
graduate of The General Theological Seminary, where she was awarded the Bishop
of Newark Preaching Prize, Mother Susan has served on the Standing Committee
for Liturgy and Music Same-Sex Blessings Task Force for General Convention.
Before seminary, Susan worked for years as a Registered Nurse, specializing in the
care of vulnerable adults living in the community.
The Rev. Dr. Gerald C. Liu is the Assistant Professor of Worship and Preaching at
Princeton Theological Seminary in Princeton, NJ. He earned his BA in Music at
Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, his Master of Divinity from the Candler
School of Theology at Emory University (during which time he was also a theological
fellow at Georg-August Universität in Göttingen, Germany), and his PhD from Vanderbilt
University with a concentration in homiletics and liturgics. His classes and publications
explore curiosities about the arts as theological resources and phenomena, Asian
American identity, multicultural worship, and the production of believable public Christian witness. He is the
worship editor for the journal Homiletic His most recent book is Music and the Generosity of God (Palgrave,
2017).
He has previously served as a British Methodist Minister in Nottingham, England before becoming ordained in
the Mississippi Conference of the United Methodist Church. Currently, he volunteers as a minister in residence
at Church of the Village, a United Methodist congregation in Manhattan, and teaches and preaches in
congregations across the United States.
The Rev. Ricardo Lopez serves as Priest-in-Charge of three Episcopal Churches in
Odessa, Texas, as well as serving as chaplain to St. John’s Episcopal School. He
was ordained in 2010 in the Roman Catholic Church and was received as a
member of the Episcopal Church in May of 2018. Padre Ricardo is a member of
the Ecumenical Order of Charity and serves his mission through the lens of the
order’s charism. For Ricardo, preaching is a way of celebrating the love of God in
the lives of those gathered. In breaking open the word and blending it with the
daily lives the people, preaching becomes a moment of storytelling among family,
a moment of grace in which we are all enriched as we recognize how God’s love is present in our lives.
The Rev. Dr. Stephen Smith has a consistent record of providing leadership to
Churches that face a multitude of challenges. He recently retired as rector of St.
Patrick's Episcopal Church in Dublin, Ohio, where he successfully expanded
programming and significantly increased congregational participation.
His publications include Saving Salvation: The Amazing Evolution of Grace
(Morehouse: 2005) and numerous articles and sermons for Forward Movement
Publications and others. He is now under contract to contribute to a preaching
resource from John Knox Publications, specifically on preaching during Holy Week.
Rev. Smith holds a D.Min. in Preaching from the School of Theology at the University of the South, Sewanee,
TN.
The Rev. Kate Spelman has served churches of pastoral and program size in the
dioceses of Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and Chicago. She currently serves as the
Aging with Pride Program Specialist for AgeOptions, the area agency on aging for
suburban Cook County, where she puts her passions for elder care and community
organizing to work mobilizing churches to better serve LGBTQ older adults. Since
her agency work is a traditional 9 to 5 gig, she also serves a supply preacher in
many parishes in the Diocese of Chicago, and recently served as a member of the
Bishop Search & Nominations Committee of the diocese. She is also a very
mediocre CrossFit athlete, bread baker, and social media manager for her dog (follow Chick @chickndog on
Instagram).
The Very Rev. Dr. Sylvia Sweeney is Dean and President of the Bloy House, the Episcopal
Theological School at Claremont in the Diocese of Los Angeles, where she also teaches
Liturgics and Homiletics. Her doctorate is in Liturgical Studies from the Graduate
Theological Union in Berkeley and she is a graduate of Seabury-Western Theological
Seminary. Before coming to Bloy House, she was a parish priest in congregations in
Montana, Idaho, and California, and was the Ministry Development Officer for the
Episcopal Diocese of California. She is the author of Ecofeminist Perspectives on Ash Wednesday and Lent
(Peter Lang Publishing, 2009) and has written and collaborated on numerous publications and discussion
guides published and used within the Episcopal Church focusing on the sacramental rites, history and
meaning. These include several articles on marriage for the 2015 General Convention Task Force on Marriage
and “Claiming the Vision: Baptismal Identity in the Episcopal Church,” a video series on the development of
the baptism rite in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer. A central theme of her teaching and writing is the
development of a twenty-first-century baptismal ecclesiology as an essential common ground for conversation
and cooperation between scholars and (lay and ordained) ministers. Her current writing projects center
around developing a contemporary historical and theological perspective on the purpose and nature of Lenten
liturgical and devotional practices.
Liturgy
The Rev. Dr. Brent Norris is currently the rector at St. Mary’s in Asheville, NC. He is
Ecumenical Officer for the Diocese of Western North Carolina and has also served
in that Diocese as a member of the Standing Committee, Companion Diocese
Committee, and the Diocesan Commission on Liturgy. Brent is a founding board
member and frequent teacher for the Christian Discipleship Center, which is an
ecumenical organization which offers year round weekday adult formation
opportunities. He previously served congregations on St. Simons Island, GA and
Cullman, AL. He holds a B.A. in drama from Furman University, an M.Div. from
Sewanee, and a D.Min. from Columbia Theological Seminary. For most of those years, he has done double
duty as a preaching group leader and the conference liturgist/musician.
Chaplain
Sr. Miriam Elizabeth is a religious sister in the Order of St. Helena, an Episcopal
monastic order for women in North Augusta, SC, where she serves as a priest,
spiritual director, and retreat leader. She also serves as a supply priest in the
Episcopal Church in South Carolina and works as a mentor for Backstory Preaching,
an online ministry that helps preachers grow in the spirituality and craft of
preaching. She received her M. Div. in 2002 from the Episcopal Theological
Seminary of the Southwest in Austin, TX and served churches in south Texas for
nine years before joining the order. Prior to her priestly ministry, she worked as a
hospital and rehabilitation speech pathologist. She enjoys all things creative
including preaching, cooking, quilting and photography; and loves kayaking on a cool morning.
Distributed Learning Specialists
Dr. Julie Lytle, MDiv. is a Life Lover. Curious Innovator. Natural Networker.
Change Navigator. Julie's career links theology, faith formation, and technology.
Her goal is to connect people, to provide them access to resources they need, and
to build communities of practice to support and sustain efforts that enact the
Dream of God. Best known for her mantra, "Message, Method, then Media" and
her efforts to connect StoryKeeping (where we have been), StorySharing (sharing
we are) and StoryMaking (adding our experiences), she is most interested in how
environments fashion and form individuals and communities. She shares how she
connects the dots of "an ecology of faith" in her book Faith Formation 4.0: Introducing an Ecology of Faith in a
Digital Age. Julie's perspective, skills, processes, and practices are anchored in over forty years’ experience
integrating ministry and media in parish, diocesan, church-wide, academic, and health care contexts. She loves
learning and has an interdisciplinary PhD in Theology & Education from Boston College, a MDiv from the
University of Notre Dame, and a BA in Journalism/Advertising from the University of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill.
Dr. Edie Wakevainen is an educational technology specialist who works with
students, staff, and faculty at Bexley Seabury Seminary Federation to leverage
technology in the service of teaching and learning. She believes that the creative
and informed use of a variety of technologies can enhance student access,
engagement, and achievement in higher education. Edie has worked as an online
psychology professor in Michigan for over 20 years. She holds a Graduate
Certificate in Educational Technology from Michigan State University and the
Diploma in Anglican Studies from Bexley Seabury, as well as the PhD in
Physiological Psychology from Yale University. Edie is a proud alum of the Episcopal Preaching Foundation's
PEP 2018.
Board and Staff
The Rev. Canon Charles A. Cesaretti is a native of New Jersey and a Rutgers
University graduate. He attended the Episcopal Church’s seminary in Philadelphia
and completed post-graduate studies at Princeton Theological Seminary earning a
master’s degree in theology. As assistant to the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal
Church, his posting included being the envoy to oversee the international church
and governmental relations of the Episcopal Church in Central America, East and
South Africa, the Middle East, and Northern Ireland.
In 1990 Fr. Cesaretti became the assistant to the Rector of Trinity Church, Wall Street, where he was engaged
in the research and development of parish outreach and mission.
Ms. Meg Ruffing is the Executive Assistant of the Episcopal Preaching Foundation.
She has achieved her associate’s degree in Fashion Merchandising with some courses
in marketing. For over 5 years, she has been an administrative assistant to a
marketing firm and a mortgage firm where her strength in organization and creativity
grew throughout the years. Ms. Ruffing is also the first person you would be hearing
from when you are in communication with EPF. She enjoys meeting new people
every day and helping others deliver the word of the Lord. She has been known as
the “know it all” girl, but if she doesn’t have an answer, she will work hard on finding the answer for you.
Ms. Ruffing lives in New Jersey with her fiancé, Mike, and her two fur cat children, Amber and Otto, and is
currently fostering kittens to help them get adopted. In her spare time, she enjoys crafts like crochet and
knitting and her goal is to visit every Disney park in the world. Right now, she has Tokyo and Florida crossed
off the list.
Mr. Peter Wild is the Executive Director of the Episcopal Preaching Foundation
with a previous career as a consumer packaged goods marketing and advertising
professional.
In 2000 Peter joined Trinity Church Wall Street to lead the newly launched
national magazine Spirituality & Health which grew to an award winning,
advertiser-supported, bi-monthly thought leader in the field. Through growth,
leadership changes, and the 2008 recession, Peter counts the survival of the
magazine under the present owners as one of his successes.
A native of the U.K., Peter now lives in Connecticut with his wife, Kay. While humbly learning the ropes as a
new grandfather, his spare time activities include writing his memorable moments as an offshore sailor,
marathoner, therapy-dog owner, and beekeeper.
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