05/31/2026
A Message from Father Sean
Dear People of St. Andrew’s,
I write to share some news with you.
After a season of deep prayer, conversation, and discernment, I have accepted the call to serve as the next Priest-in-Charge of St. Columba’s Scottish Episcopal Church in Largs, UK. My final Sunday at St. Andrew’s will be June 14th, and Lance and I will be moving to Scotland later this summer to begin this new chapter in our life and ministry.
We are both very excited for what lies ahead. St. Columba’s is a parish with a strong sense of identity, a generous and welcoming spirit, and a commitment to living faithfully in its seaside community in the Diocese of Glasgow and Galloway. I am humbled by the trust that they and Bishop Nick have placed in me, and I am eager to see how God will shape this new season of shared ministry in the years to come.
It goes without saying that this has been a truly challenging decision. Leaving St. Andrew’s is not something I do lightly. My time in this community of faith has formed me in ways I could never have expected, as a priest and as a person. I am grateful beyond what words can express for each of you and how you have trusted me with your stories, your questions, your joy and your grief. To have served among you during a season of transition, growth, and deep faithfulness has been one of the great gifts of my life.
I am profoundly grateful for the ministry we have shared together. Week by week, we have gathered at the altar to be formed by word and sacrament. We have walked together in seasons of joy and loss, offering prayer and presence. We have asked hard questions, listening for the Spirit speaking in scripture and contemplation. And we have sought to live our faith as the Body of Christ in the world, extending welcome and advocating for justice and compassion in our community. I have seen the risen Christ alive in you, in this community, this place, and you will always be a part of who I am.
Ours is a faith shaped by discernment and pilgrimage. From Abraham and Sarah setting out not knowing the destination, to the disciples leaving familiar shores to follow Christ, the people of God have long trusted that faithfulness sometimes means movement, listening deeply and stepping forward, trusting in the One who calls. It is that same faith in which we now place our hope, trusting that God is calling us forward to unknown shores. Discerning a new call in ministry rarely comes without a mixture of joy and grief, and this call holds both. We go with full hearts and with trust in what God is continuing to do in the life of St. Andrew’s, even as God call us to a new chapter.
Please keep me and Lance and the people of St. Columba’s in your prayers. Know that you are and will always be in mine.
There will be time in the weeks ahead to say more and to give thanks properly. For now, know how deeply grateful I am to have been your priest.
With love, gratitude, and unrelenting hope,
Fr. Sean+