11/10/2025
Dear Tyson House friends,
Grace and peace to you all.
I want to share with you that I have been called and appointed by Bishop Brian Cole to serve as the Priest-in-Charge at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Maryville, Tennessee, beginning January 6, the Feast of the Epiphany. This new call comes with both joy and gratitude, and also a touch of sadness as I prepare to step away from my role as Chaplain here at Tyson House. Serving among you has been one of the greatest joys of my ministry.
Together we have prayed ancient prayers and shared long, deep conversations; we have baptized, confirmed, and welcomed new disciples; we have eaten meals around our tables (Common Room and Chapel) that link the ordinary with the profound. You have taught me what it means to be church in the midst of “the changes and chances of this life”: anchored in worship, open to questioning, rooted in friendship, and committed to justice and mercy for our neighbors. And you’ve done so with curiosity, honesty, laughter, and love.
As we prepare for this transition, I want to share what comes next for Tyson House. Later this month, I will meet with Bishop Cole to discuss the next steps for the ministry. During this time, the Tyson House Council will take on a more pivotal role in guiding the community’s life and will work closely with Bishop Cole and Bishop Strickland to ensure continued support and discernment for the future.
I know transitions can feel uncertain, but I want to be clear about something essential: what makes Tyson House special does not leave with me. The heart of this ministry has always been its people, the students, alumni, and friends who gather here, and the Episcopal and Lutheran congregations who love and support this place. That spirit of welcome, prayer, and friendship will continue, just as it has through every chapter of Tyson House’s story. Change is part of how this community grows and evolves; what lies ahead is the opportunity to carry what we’ve received forward in new ways.
And I’m not going very far (St. Andrews is only 20 minutes away!). I will remain a resource for this community and for you personally. My hope and prayer is that Tyson House will continue to be a place where students encounter the living Christ, where faith is deepened through honest conversation and shared life, and where all who enter find belonging, beauty, and joy.
Thank you for the grace you have shown me, for your trust and humor, for your questions and your faith. You will always be part of my story and my heart.
With deep affection and blessing,
Faithfully,
RJ+
A Special Announcement from the Vestry of St. Andrew's:
Dear St. Andrew’s family,
I read a Substack this morning entitled The Beginning is Near, which was taken from today’s gospel reading in Luke. In case you’re unfamiliar with Substack, it is an online platform for writers and other creators to publish newsletters and other content, connecting directly with an audience. The title was intriguing to me, given where we are at St. Andrew’s right now. The first line was even more intriguing: “We are very near the end now, or perhaps we are very near the beginning.” Very thought-provoking, and even more so, since this particular Substack was written by the Reverend RJ Powell, who is currently the Chaplain of Tyson House and priest associate at St. James, Knoxville. (https://substack.com/) As I pondered how to present the information that this letter contains, it became clear to me that this title, and this opening line are exactly the right way to present this information to you.
We have all been faithfully praying and waiting for this moment for several months, and so on behalf of the vestry, and with great pleasure and gratitude, I am honored to announce the call of Reverend RJ Powell as our Priest-in Charge at St. Andrew’s. RJ’s first Sunday with us will be January 11, 2026, when we hope everyone will join us in welcoming RJ to St. Andrew’s! (More celebration details to come!)
We are deeply grateful to each of you for your prayers and support of the vestry as we navigated this process, and I would extend special thanks to all vestry members who have worked diligently preparing the way and kept the secret until this moment! I also want to express sincere thanks to Bishop Cole for his careful discernment in the process of recommending Father RJ to lead our parish, and to Canon Woodfin for his care and guidance during this time of transition. A HUGE special note of gratitude goes to Father Sean McEwen, for whom we are deeply grateful and whose tireless service and steady presence have guided us through this interim period. Thank you for going above and beyond in caring for our parish family.
This is truly an exciting time for us at St. Andrew’s, and as we are about to enter the time of Advent, we recognize that we have much to prepare for and much to celebrate.
And so, friends, here we are: “We are very near the end, now, or perhaps we are very near the beginning.”
Thanks be to God.
Sonya Marsh
Senior Warden
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Dear People of St. Andrew’s,
Grace and peace to you in our Lord, Jesus Christ!
It is with deep joy and gratitude that I write to you as your newly called Priest-in-Charge. I look forward to beginning our shared ministry together on January 6, the Feast of the Epiphany, a day that celebrates the revealing of Christ’s light to the ends of the earth. It seems a fitting time to begin this new chapter, as together we seek to reflect that same light here in Maryville and beyond.
A bit about me: I currently serve as Chaplain of Tyson House, the Episcopal and Lutheran campus ministry at the University of Tennessee, and as a priest-associate at St. James in Knoxville. I also serve our diocese as Ecumenical Officer and as a member of the Standing Committee. My husband, Michaelangelo, and I have been married for ten years, and our home is joyfully shared with a lively menagerie of pets and pollinators.
I was raised in the Church of Christ (Instrumental) in Virginia and found my way into the Episcopal tradition while in seminary. The beauty and depth of our liturgy, the balance of prayer and intellect, and the sacramental vision that takes Jesus seriously in his ministry of reconciling all people to God’s love drew me in. Over the years, ministry has taken many forms for me, campus chaplaincy, parish life, interfaith and ecumenical work, but at the heart of it all has been a calling to help communities discover Christ’s presence in their midst and to nurture lives of faith, compassion, and justice.
I want to offer my heartfelt thanks to the Rev. Sean McEwen for his faithful and steady pastoral leadership during this time of transition, and to Sonya Marsh, your Senior Warden, along with the entire Vestry, for their dedication, prayer, and hard work in guiding the parish over these past months. Their faithfulness and care, as well as the hard work you’ve done these past years with the Rev. Amy Bradley, have prepared the way for this next season of ministry together, and I am deeply grateful for their witness.
I am eager to join you in that work: to pray and learn together, to share the sacraments, to listen for how the Spirit is calling us to grow, and to discern how St. Andrew’s can continue to be a beacon of Christ’s love in this community.
Please know how grateful I am for the warmth already shown to me and for the care you have taken in preparing for this new season of ministry. I am excited to meet each of you in the months ahead, to hear your stories, and to imagine together what new epiphanies God might reveal among us.
With every blessing for the journey ahead,
Faithfully,
The Rev. RJ Powell
