Jeffery W. Marx, Rector
Email
Rector’s Greeting
Fr. Jeff's blog
Phone: (901) 853-0425 ext. 105
I am the oldest of four children born to a career sailor and stay-at-home mom in Chicago, Illinois. At age 10, I moved with my family to Philadelphia, and when I was 14, we moved to Memphis. I came to faith in the Roman Catholic Church and entered seminary at Saint Meinrad Monastery in Indiana, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in History (with Philosophy, English, and Religion minors). Following graduation, I attended the Catholic University in Leuven, Belgium, earning two master’s degrees. I wrote a thesis on “A Catholic Response to Fundamentalism” (one chapter was published). Ordained in 1984, I was active in youth ministry, parish work, and a Catholic High School. In 1989, I left ministry and spent ten years at Youth Villages, most of that time as Director of Training and Performance Improvement. During that time I earned a Master of Science in Social Work. I broadened my theological insights and spirituality in unique ways from the experience of working with emotionally disturbed youth. While attending the Episcopal church, I was invited to consider a call to priestly ministry, and in 1999 I began to serve at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Memphis. I will never forget my first sermon, as my father had died the evening before my first Eucharist there. Blessings and loss often go together. Jesus was present to me in a wonderful way that day. After two years at the Cathedral, I packed up my belongings and drove thirty miles out Poplar Avenue, turned right, drove one block, and came to my new home: Saint Andrew’s. I started on Ash Wednesday, February 28, 2001. I told the congregation I was so happy that it was hard to feel that it was Lent! The joy and excitement has never abated. Saint Andrew’s has grown and contracted, but through it all we have focused on prayer, study, and the work of the Kingdom. My wife, three children, and I have loved our time in this parish.
Rector’s Greeting
Fr. Jeff's blog
Phone: (901) 853-0425 ext. 105
I am the oldest of four children born to a career sailor and stay-at-home mom in Chicago, Illinois. At age 10, I moved with my family to Philadelphia, and when I was 14, we moved to Memphis. I came to faith in the Roman Catholic Church and entered seminary at Saint Meinrad Monastery in Indiana, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in History (with Philosophy, English, and Religion minors). Following graduation, I attended the Catholic University in Leuven, Belgium, earning two master’s degrees. I wrote a thesis on “A Catholic Response to Fundamentalism” (one chapter was published). Ordained in 1984, I was active in youth ministry, parish work, and a Catholic High School. In 1989, I left ministry and spent ten years at Youth Villages, most of that time as Director of Training and Performance Improvement. During that time I earned a Master of Science in Social Work. I broadened my theological insights and spirituality in unique ways from the experience of working with emotionally disturbed youth. While attending the Episcopal church, I was invited to consider a call to priestly ministry, and in 1999 I began to serve at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Memphis. I will never forget my first sermon, as my father had died the evening before my first Eucharist there. Blessings and loss often go together. Jesus was present to me in a wonderful way that day. After two years at the Cathedral, I packed up my belongings and drove thirty miles out Poplar Avenue, turned right, drove one block, and came to my new home: Saint Andrew’s. I started on Ash Wednesday, February 28, 2001. I told the congregation I was so happy that it was hard to feel that it was Lent! The joy and excitement has never abated. Saint Andrew’s has grown and contracted, but through it all we have focused on prayer, study, and the work of the Kingdom. My wife, three children, and I have loved our time in this parish.
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Christian Senyoni, Associate Rector
Fr. Christian’s blog Phone: (901) 853-0425 ext. 104 I grew up in Rwanda (East Africa), but I was born in Congo (DRC), where my parents served as diplomats. My faith was formed and nurtured in the Roman Catholic Church. Our lives were forever dramatically changed with the horrible tragedy of the Rwandan Genocide of 1994. Four other siblings and I and our mother traveled through several countries seeking some kind of safety and lasting stability. Every family lost relatives in the killings. It was hard to reconcile reality with the faith that had been nurtured in us. God brought us to safety numerous times. During this long refugee trek full of hardships, I discovered Evangelicalism, which emphasizes well one’s personal relationship with God. It would be many years later that I would see why God let us pass through all those nations as refugees. It helped us understand Jesus’s early life in exile. We saw the human condition at its worst. The trauma of it all took a toll on many individuals and families, mine included. In 2010, my youngest daughter was born in Wisconsin while I was still in seminary. God has been so faithful to us. My evangelical training was balanced with a Catholic tradition of sacramental life. This was God working to shape us. God continues to shape us. I became a priest in the Episcopal Church in 2013, and, looking back, I see God’s hand––only the power of God could have orchestrated everything to get me where I am today. It took a lot of grace and forgiveness from God! It was a journey that one could not possibly forget, but most important to me was realizing that God is never far from us, even when our faith is at zero. God is LOVE! |
