Ministerial Staff
* * Clergy * *
Rev. Jedediah Mannis
The
Rev. Jedediah Mannis is an ordained minister in the United Church of
Christ. Prior to his ordination in October, 2004, Rev. Mannis worked
as an attorney for eight years with the Rev. Debbie Little, the
Episcopal priest who founded Common Cathedral in Boston, an outdoor
church for homeless men and women. He is the president of the
Shelter Island Fund, Inc., a non-profit organization that preserves
open space throughout Massachusetts using limited development as a
conservation strategy. Rev. Mannis is a graduate of Yale College,
Yale Law School and the Harvard Divinity School and has served on a
variety of municipal and private boards and commissions.
Rev. Patricia Zifcak
The
Rev. Patricia Zifcak is an ordained vocational deacon in the
Episcopal Church. Following many years of discernment, an M.Div.
from Andover Newton Theological School and completion of the
Diaconate Formation Program sponsored by the Episcopal Diocese of
Massachusetts, Rev. Zifcak was ordained to the Vocational Diaconate
in June, 2002. Rev. Zifcak taught at The Park School in
Brookline for twenty-eight years, primarily physical education for
nursery through ninth grade. She now heads the Diaconal Training
Program for the Diocese of Massachusetts, and serves as deacon at
Christ Church in Woonsocket, RI.
Rev. Jean Chapman
The Rev. Jean Chapman was ordained as an American Baptist
minister in June of 2006. She is an associate minister at Old
Cambridge Baptist Church, called by Old Cambridge Baptist to be an
outreach minister to The Outdoor Church. She has a B.S. in
Elementary Education from SUNY at Brockport, New York, and an M.Div.
from the Boston University School of Theology. She has lent
administrative assistance to the Barbara McInnis House, the Homeless
Empowerment Project/Spare Change Newspaper and Interfaith Action.
Rev. Chapman is currently enrolled in the MSW Program at Boston University in
Boston, Massachusetts.
* * Seminarians * *
Current
Emma Crossen
Emma will enter her third and final year at the Harvard Divinity School in the fall. She joined the Outdoor Church to “explore the logistics and conceptual issues involved with the establishment, maintenance, and development of Outdoor Church” and, at the same time, to consider the ecclesiology and theology that informs Outdoor Church. During her internship, she successfully designed and implemented an extension of the Outdoor Church's outdoor meals program to other days of the week.
Marianne Carroll
Marianne joined the Outdoor Church to help communicate God’s love to people who are socially outcast (and
to anyone else who may encounter Outdoor Church) by means of
effective pastoral care and inclusive worship.
Additionally, she wanted to explore the possibility and
meaning(s) of ordination with the objective of discerning
whether she was called to pursue it. She recently graduated from the Harvard Divinity School
after completing a thesis entitled "The Sabbath
and Christian Discipleship
Past
Tracy Welles
Rebecca Cho
Rebecca received an M.Div. from the Boston University School of Theology. She intends to be ordained as a minister in the United Methodist Church. Rebecca has a B.A. in French and is interested in studying foreign languages, traveling and hiking. Of the Outdoor Church, she says:
Participating in The Outdoor Church has been a wonderful experience for me. Initially I was drawn to the ministry because I wanted to participate in a group that focused on Jesus' command to feed the hungry. I feel that this ministry brings me closer to an understanding of Jesus' own ministry. It has been amazing to get to know so many great people through the Outdoor Church. Each Sunday we experience something new and different and God touches us through the people we meet at the worship service and on the streets of Cambridge. This sense of God's presence in this ministry keeps me coming back Sunday after Sunday wondering what new lesson God has in store for us this week.
Rebecca, now the mother of a new daughter, Evelyn, lives in Boston.
Irene Jenkins
Irene Jenkins was drawn to the Outdoor Church because it is "one of the few authentic and unmediated places to live out one's faith". Rather than get caught up in the outward formalities of faith, the staff and congregants keep their priority of Christian love and acceptance at the core of their service. When she talks to the members of the church, she finds herself "alive with the sheer faith and courage of those around her". Though it is frustrating to be unable to offer a cure for homelessness, she finds meaning in the process of being present as people work through the struggles of street existence and life in general.
Irene graduated from the Harvard Divinity School and now teaches at the St. Paul School in New Hampshire.
Elizabeth Paxton
Elizabeth
Paxton was born and raised in Phoenix Arizona.
Liz, a third year student at the Harvard Divinity School, is now
in Israel participating in an Israeli-Palestinian peace initiative.
As part of her internship with the Outdoor Church, Liz created an oral documentary based on interviews with members of the Outdoor Church. To hear Liz's documentary, click here.
After graduation, Liz intends to seek ordination as a minister in the United Church of Christ, using a variety of media in a ministry to further social justice.* * Volunteers * *
John Girash
John Girash comes to Boston via southern Ontario, Canada. He first got involved with The Outdoor Church through North-Prospect UCC in Porter Square. John has just received a Ph.D. in Astronomy. He lives in Arlington, Massachusetts and is married to the Rev. Rebee Girash.
Mardi Moran
Mardi
Moran is resident of Cambridge and a long standing member of St.
James's Episcopal Church in Porter Square. She and her
husband, Si, are co-owners of Tag's Hardware located in the Porter
Square Shopping Mall. She is active in municipal politics and
has worked generously and tirelessly to improve the living
conditions of the chronically homeless men and women in Cambridge.
Mike O'Grady
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