The Rev. Canon Curt Benham Called as Cathedral’s 15th Dean

During morning services at the Cathedral Church of St. Luke, Orlando, on Sunday, Sept. 6, Mike Rhodes, junior warden, made the announcement that the Rev. Canon Curt Benham has been called to serve as the Cathedral’s 15th dean. The Charter called him by unanimous vote with the consent and full support of the Rt. Rev. Dr. Justin S. Holcomb. Currently serving as associate rector at Trinity Parish in St. Augustine, where he is founding pastor of Trinity’s North Campus in SilverLeaf, Benham will begin his new role at the Cathedral on Dec. 1.

Announcement and Background

Bishop Holcomb announced the appointment in a Sept. 8 letter to the Episcopal Diocese of Central Florida, saying in part:

Canon Benham is a preacher of the gospel. He announces what God has done for sinners and sufferers in Jesus Christ, and he announces it with warmth and without apology. He calls himself a “Scripture and Prayer Book loyalist,” and he means it: Word, sacrament, and the cure of souls are not three departments of his ministry but one thing. He has planted churches and grown them from nothing—twice. He knows how to hold what is strong in a congregation and lead it forward at a pace it can sustain, deliberately and without leaving anyone behind.

“I look forward to welcoming him and his family to the diocese as well as the Cathedral,” said the Rev. Canon Dr. Dan Smith, canon to the ordinary. “The Cathedral Search Committee did the hard work of developing a clear understanding of the Cathedral, its history and its present story, and their work allowed the Chapter to choose someone that I believe will be a terrific dean for our Cathedral.”

“I’m deeply humbled and deeply honored to have received this call and to follow in the footsteps of Dean Reggie [Kidd, who retired May 31] – what a wonderful, godly, faithful pastor and leader! – to serve with a wonderful staff and carry on the faithful tradition of the Cathedral Church of St. Luke, to keep moving forward in proclaiming the gospel through Word and sacrament and the beauty and holiness of Prayer Book worship,” Benham said. “I’m deeply honored, and I’m deeply humbled, and I can’t wait to be down there.

“And at the same time, I love my parish here, which is to say I love the people that I get to serve here,” he continued. “And so I’m holding sadness in one hand, and excitement and deep expectation of what the Lord’s going to continue to do at St. Luke’s in the other hand.”

Since 2024, Benham has also served as regional canon in the Episcopal Diocese of Florida. He previously served for two decades in Atlanta, where he was ordained to the priesthood in 2011. He first served on the staff of a large regional church, ministering to teenagers and their parents, and then answered the call to plant a new church in the Vinings neighborhood, serving as founding rector for 10 years.

Under his leadership, both the churches he planted experienced sustained growth. The Atlanta congregation grew to an average Sunday attendance of more than 200, and the SilverLeaf congregation has grown to 230 in two years.

Born and raised in Jacksonville, Benham graduated from Episcopal School of Jacksonville and earned a bachelor’s degree in English education from Florida State University. After college, he helped start a college ministry in Timisoara, Romania, with Cru, then returned to the U.S. to earn his Master of Divinity at Southeastern Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina. He and his wife, Michelle, also a Jacksonville native, have three children: Samuel, Virginia “Ginny” and Margot. He enjoys fly fishing, climbing mountains, taking walks with his kids and bird watching with Michelle.

Priority and Proclamation

In this time of transition from one congregation and one city to a new congregation and a new city, Benham stands on the good news that forms the center of his life and his ministry – regardless of position or place.

“Tim Keller said the gospel is not the ABC’s of Christianity; it’s the A to Z of Christianity,” he said. “This is the proclamation of the good news of Jesus, and not Jesus as a life coach, not Jesus as merely a ‘good moral teacher.’

“He is a good moral teacher, but that’s not the main reason he came,” Benham said. “Jesus is the one who fulfilled all righteousness for us in his life. Jesus is the one who, rather than demanding a sacrifice from us, became the sacrifice for us to take away our sins and defeat death for us. Jesus is the one who rose again to give us eternal life. Jesus is the one who ascended to the right hand of the Father, who ever intercedes for us. Jesus is the one who single-handedly won salvation, which is to say he reconciled us back to himself. He reconciled us back to God.

“Regarding this message that we are blessed to get to proclaim, the way I like to put it regarding churches is this: ‘If you walk out of church on Sunday and say, “Oh, I’m a piece of junk. God must be mad at me. I’ve got a lot to work on this week,” we’ve failed,’ he continued. ‘If you walk out of church saying, “Wow, that sermon was wonderful and inspiring,” we’ve failed. If you walk out of church saying, “The music was so glorious,” we’ve failed. But if you walk out of church saying, “Wow, Jesus actually is a wonderful, powerful, merciful Savior for me,” we’ve won. That’s the win for when we gather in church.

“And the beauty of Prayer Book worship is that it’s baked into the cake,” he said. “The whole point of the liturgy is to point you away from yourself and toward Jesus, who loves you and gave himself for you. And to do that in the beauty of the way St. Luke’s has been doing it for a long time – what a gift!”

Future and Hope

As he looks ahead to his service at the Cathedral, Benham pointed out that he will be joining “a talented, dedicated staff and amazing parishioners,” noting that his priorities come straight from the Holy Orders received in ordination. “We’re called to proclaim the gospel through Word and sacrament,” he said. “We’re called to care for the souls of the people in our parish, and that’s a geographical area including our church. And we’re called to obey our bishop.

“I want to come do those things at St. Luke’s and strive to do them well, with integrity and energy,” he said. “And as I get to know the people I’m called to serve, and as I get to know their hearts for their church and for their neighbors, together, we’re going to figure out some ways to reach out to our neighbors. As we proclaim the gospel through Word and sacrament, we’re going to figure out some ways to invite others in, to go out and serve the people God has placed in our lives and pray for opportunities to proclaim the gospel to them.”

Benham’s gratitude and hope for the future extend beyond his upcoming role at St. Luke’s, however. “I’m humbled and honored to be able to serve at the Cathedral, but I’m also humbled and honored to be able to serve at a wonderful diocese made up of wonderful ordained and lay leaders led by a wonderful bishop,” he said. “I don’t see a diocese anywhere in The Episcopal Church that has this much gospel vision coming from our bishop and buy-in from all the clergy and lay leaders. I see a diocese that is not just headed in the right direction but is vigorously headed in the right direction, and I can’t wait to come down and join the ranks.”