Ordination to the Sacred Order of Deacons: Ranie Neislar

I am so excited to share this special day with you all. Though it will not look as originally planned, I know you will all very much be with me. I would be honored by your presence through livestream and appreciate your prayers!

It is difficult to believe that two years have passed since I left Saint Paul’s for seminary at Sewanee. For those in the parish I have not had the privilege to meet, I want to share a little bit of my story.  I am from Athens, GA and graduated from the University of Georgia in 2009. After college I moved around a bit in the southeast until landing in Augusta. It was here that I began my relationship with The Episcopal Church and began attending one of our sister parishes, St. Augustine’s. I fell in love with our tradition’s rich liturgy, understanding of ritual, and integration of theology in context. After attending a Lutheran seminary part-time beginning in 2010, I slowly became immersed in Episcopal life and before I knew it I was also working as the Campus Minister at Augusta University! In 2015 I joined the Saint Paul’s family and worked in ministry with Youth and Young Adults. During my service at Saint Paul’s I fell more deeply in love with parish ministry than I ever thought possible. The drive to serve God in the CSRA is abundant at Saint Paul’s and it overflows to feed those in the parish community and those outside the parish gates. In 2018, the Bishop, the Standing Committee and the Commission on Ministry advanced me to the next phase of preparation, and I chose to attend seminary at Sewanee’s School of Theology in Sewanee, TN. Leaving Saint Paul’s that summer of was one of the hardest things I have done, but I was also excited to return to academic work and prepare for ordained ministry.

This weekend, “God willing and the people consenting,” I will be ordained to the Sacred Order of Deacons. My heart sings! In a few more months, after graduating from Sewanee with a Master of Divinity, I will move to Huntsville, AL with my dog, Mara, and begin serving in a curacy at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Alabama. They are a really wonderful community, and I am excited to get back into parish ministry–whatever that looks like these days! After six month’s time,  “God willing and the people consenting,” I will be ordained to the Sacred Order of Priests, and I pray you will be able to attend in person if not on  Facebook.

I could not have hoped or asked for a better parish community, staff, colleagues, and friends to shape and prepare me for ordained ministry. I know there were hard moments and celebrations alike, but what I most cherish and remember is the incredible grace I received from you–that grace has marked me forever and is a continuing source of peace and strength. Thank you for that imperishable gift.

Love and peace,

Ranie