Capturing the joy of the day:
Mother Robin Woodberry is ordained and becomes St. Paul's priest-in-charge
Mother Robin Woodberry is ordained and becomes St. Paul's priest-in-charge
On June 3, The Rev. Robin Woodberry took the next step in a journey that began with her becoming an Episcopalian in 2017 and brought her to St. Paul's as deacon-in-charge last year. She was ordained a priest in the Episcopal Church and named priest-in-charge of St. Paul's.
The ordination of our new Deacon-in-Charge, Dr. Robin Woodberry
May 28, 2022: St. Paul's parishioners joined in the celebration at Trinity Cathedral Saturday of the ordination of our new Deacon-in-Charge Dr. Robin R. Woodberry, our sponsored candidate Maureen M. (Wood) Major and three other deacons -- Leah Romanelli DeJesus, Lonny J. Gatlin and Albert J. Muller -- in the Diocese of Ohio.
The homily by Ruth Benedict Mercer was built on the importance of the deacons in helping people find hope in a chaotic world, especially given the recent mass murders in Buffalo and Uvalde. She underscored that hope differs from optimism in that it challenges and helps people to change course and become stronger.
The service committed each of the five deacons to the following:
"My sisters and brothers, every Christian is called to follow Jesus Christ, serving God the Father, through the power of the Holy Spirit. God now calls you to a special ministry of servanthood directly under your bishop.
"In the name of Jesus Christ, you are to serve all people, particularly the poor, the weak, the sick, and the lonely. As deacons in the Church, you are to study the Holy Scriptures, to seek nourishment from them, and to model your life upon them. You are to make Christ and his redemptive love known, by your word and example, to those among whom you live, and work, and worship. You are to interpret to the Church the needs, concerns, and hopes of the world. You are to assist the bishop and priests in public worship and in the ministration of God’s Word and Sacraments, and you are 10 to carry out other duties assigned to you from time to time.
"At all times, your life and teaching are to show Christ’s people that in serving the helpless they are serving Christ himself."
The homily by Ruth Benedict Mercer was built on the importance of the deacons in helping people find hope in a chaotic world, especially given the recent mass murders in Buffalo and Uvalde. She underscored that hope differs from optimism in that it challenges and helps people to change course and become stronger.
The service committed each of the five deacons to the following:
"My sisters and brothers, every Christian is called to follow Jesus Christ, serving God the Father, through the power of the Holy Spirit. God now calls you to a special ministry of servanthood directly under your bishop.
"In the name of Jesus Christ, you are to serve all people, particularly the poor, the weak, the sick, and the lonely. As deacons in the Church, you are to study the Holy Scriptures, to seek nourishment from them, and to model your life upon them. You are to make Christ and his redemptive love known, by your word and example, to those among whom you live, and work, and worship. You are to interpret to the Church the needs, concerns, and hopes of the world. You are to assist the bishop and priests in public worship and in the ministration of God’s Word and Sacraments, and you are 10 to carry out other duties assigned to you from time to time.
"At all times, your life and teaching are to show Christ’s people that in serving the helpless they are serving Christ himself."
Introducing the new spiritual leader of St. Paul's
We have joyful news to share with the family of St. Paul’s: Dr. Robin Woodberry has accepted our call to become the next spiritual leader of our church.
At its meeting last Friday, the Vestry unanimously approved the recommendation of the Search Committee, and Robin accepted the call Saturday.
A native of Youngstown, Robin is the daughter of a pastor and deacon, married to her high school sweetheart, a mother of five, grandmother of five and had been an ordained Baptist minister since 2005. She’s also been the executive director of the Mahoning Valley Association of Churches.
Like our own Jon Coventry, Robin took the path to the Episcopal church and priesthood later in life. And like Jon, she’ll be ordained into the transitional-diaconate (and become St. Paul’s deacon-in-charge) before she becomes our priest-in-charge.
Robin graduated last year from the Anglican Studies program at Church Divinity School of the Pacific in Berkeley, Calif. She’s completing her field work at Christ Church in Hudson, and here’s what one of her many supporters at the church shared with our Search Committee when they visited the service she officiated on May 8.
“We have been privileged to journey with Dr. Robin Woodberry, our very own Candidate for Holy Orders, as she has moved through the seminary and diocesan training necessary to become an ordained priest. Her growth during this time has been extraordinary. Already a highly educated theologian, Robin is motivated by love, service to others, and a strong faith in God’s grace, which are all themes I hear in her excellent sermons and see in her interactions with our parish and staff.”
Christ Church Rector Charlotte Collins Reed praised Robin’s people, pastoral and preaching skills and noted that she has facilitated Christ Church’s discussions of race and has been willing to share her own experiences “without judgment and with humor and grace.”
"Her love of Jesus is obvious and her enthusiasm and energy for ministry run deep,” Rector Reed added.
Robin’s coming to St. Paul’s is the culmination of more than five years of dedicated work by our Search Committee. Theirs would have been hard work in the best of times, but it was made so much harder by the challenges that a worldwide pandemic presented for our church and every church.
Still, the committee headed by Barb Anderson crafted the parish profile and captured the core values of St. Paul’s – the values that ultimately attracted Robin to us. And the committee – even as some of its membership changed -- continued to advocate passionately for the right fit for St. Paul’s.
We thank all the members who have served including the original committee of Barb Anderson, Jon Coventry (who began his own journey to the priesthood during this process), Douglas Colmery, Marilyn Dickinson, Olivia Johnson, Bill Kendrick, Dick Reinbold and Deb Shamlin (whom we lost to leukemia in the early days of the pandemic); and we thank those who came on board in recent weeks to help bring a unanimous recommendation to Vestry: Karen Merrin Swope, Demetrius Carrothers and Susan Phillips.
Robin told Search Committee members that after her first meeting with them, she went home and prayed. And her prayer was a simple one: That God would help the people of St. Paul’s grow to love her as she loves St. Paul’s.
To that, we can only say, “Amen!”
Joyfully yours,
The Vestry of St. Paul's Episcopal Church
May 2022
At its meeting last Friday, the Vestry unanimously approved the recommendation of the Search Committee, and Robin accepted the call Saturday.
A native of Youngstown, Robin is the daughter of a pastor and deacon, married to her high school sweetheart, a mother of five, grandmother of five and had been an ordained Baptist minister since 2005. She’s also been the executive director of the Mahoning Valley Association of Churches.
Like our own Jon Coventry, Robin took the path to the Episcopal church and priesthood later in life. And like Jon, she’ll be ordained into the transitional-diaconate (and become St. Paul’s deacon-in-charge) before she becomes our priest-in-charge.
Robin graduated last year from the Anglican Studies program at Church Divinity School of the Pacific in Berkeley, Calif. She’s completing her field work at Christ Church in Hudson, and here’s what one of her many supporters at the church shared with our Search Committee when they visited the service she officiated on May 8.
“We have been privileged to journey with Dr. Robin Woodberry, our very own Candidate for Holy Orders, as she has moved through the seminary and diocesan training necessary to become an ordained priest. Her growth during this time has been extraordinary. Already a highly educated theologian, Robin is motivated by love, service to others, and a strong faith in God’s grace, which are all themes I hear in her excellent sermons and see in her interactions with our parish and staff.”
Christ Church Rector Charlotte Collins Reed praised Robin’s people, pastoral and preaching skills and noted that she has facilitated Christ Church’s discussions of race and has been willing to share her own experiences “without judgment and with humor and grace.”
"Her love of Jesus is obvious and her enthusiasm and energy for ministry run deep,” Rector Reed added.
Robin’s coming to St. Paul’s is the culmination of more than five years of dedicated work by our Search Committee. Theirs would have been hard work in the best of times, but it was made so much harder by the challenges that a worldwide pandemic presented for our church and every church.
Still, the committee headed by Barb Anderson crafted the parish profile and captured the core values of St. Paul’s – the values that ultimately attracted Robin to us. And the committee – even as some of its membership changed -- continued to advocate passionately for the right fit for St. Paul’s.
We thank all the members who have served including the original committee of Barb Anderson, Jon Coventry (who began his own journey to the priesthood during this process), Douglas Colmery, Marilyn Dickinson, Olivia Johnson, Bill Kendrick, Dick Reinbold and Deb Shamlin (whom we lost to leukemia in the early days of the pandemic); and we thank those who came on board in recent weeks to help bring a unanimous recommendation to Vestry: Karen Merrin Swope, Demetrius Carrothers and Susan Phillips.
Robin told Search Committee members that after her first meeting with them, she went home and prayed. And her prayer was a simple one: That God would help the people of St. Paul’s grow to love her as she loves St. Paul’s.
To that, we can only say, “Amen!”
Joyfully yours,
The Vestry of St. Paul's Episcopal Church
May 2022
A letter from Dr. Robin Woodberry
