Welcome Reverend Edward Thornley!
The Rev. Edward Thornley has been called as the Ninth Rector of The Episcopal Parish of St. John the Evangelist. Father Ed, as he is often known, currently serves as Day School Chaplain and Associate Rector of St. Patrick’s Episcopal Church and Day School in Washington DC. He and his family are delighted to be joining the community of St. John’s this summer.
Born in Canterbury, England, Fr. Ed grew up on the Kent coast before studying theology at the University of Exeter. He then trained for ordination and studied pastoral theology at Westcott House, Cambridge, Yale Divinity School, and Berkeley Divinity School, The Episcopal Seminary at Yale, where he met his wife, Devon Abts.
Fr. Ed was ordained in The Church of England and served his title in The Dereham and District Team Ministry in the Diocese of Norwich. He then served as Assistant Priest and Chaplain to St. Marylebone Parish Church in the Diocese of London, where he had particular duties as Chaplain to The St. Marylebone CE Schools, including the Church of England’s flagship free school for students with special educational needs. During this time, Fr. Ed also served as Chaplain to The Royal Academy of Music, and as Coordinating Anglican Chaplain to The University of Westminster. In July 2018, Fr. Ed and Devon returned to the United States and to the Episcopal Church, where he first served as Middle and Upper School Chaplain at All Saints’ Episcopal School in Fort Worth, Texas, before taking up his current position at St. Patrick’s.
Throughout his ministry, Fr. Ed has specialized in theological education, spiritual formation, community outreach, and intergenerational ministry. He has served on several large clergy and lay leadership teams, focusing especially on outreach to individuals both within and beyond the Church. Fr. Ed is also currently writing a PhD in Divinity at the University of Aberdeen, focusing on ministerial strategies for Christian formation in a pluralist world.
On a more personal note, Fr. Ed’s wife Devon is a Massachusetts native, and the couple were married in Boston, with close family still living nearby. She is an academic theologian, having earned her PhD in theology and the arts from King’s College London. They have two cats, Spyro and Duke, who are originally from Dereham, Norfolk, and even have strangely detectable accents to prove it. Fr. Ed and Devon enjoy nothing more than spending time with friends and family, and their community. They enjoy hiking, cycling (e-bikes are a current favorite), as well as cooking. Devon is a soon-to-be certified master gardener. They are vegetarian, but not pushy with it! Fr. Ed also has a particular passion for the ministry of craft breweries and pub-going, and very much enjoys a nerdy theological fireside chat at the spiritual intersection of cellar and sanctuary.
Indeed, through a desire to serve the wider community, Fr. Ed has discovered a calling to return to parish ministry, and he is delighted that St. John’s has called him and his family to this wonderful vocation. He looks forward to helping the community at St John’s live into its mission to “share the Good News of the Gospel through engaging worship, faithful service, and life-long Christian formation while joyfully living out our faith in this community and the world.” From living near Hingham, Norfolk, to Hingham, Massachusetts, Fr. Ed and his family are thrilled to be “coming home” to the community this summer!
The Rector Search Committee and Vestry are delighted to welcome Father Ed, Devon, and their faithful friends Duke & Spyro to the St. John's family. We offer our heartfelt gratitude to Clergy Leaders Sarah Máto, Robert Edson, & Meg Ingalls for their faithful Ministry with St. John's during the Interim Time.
St. John's future is bright and we are excited to move forward together!