On Monday, Feb. 8, 2021, The Rt. Rev. Gregory O. Brewer, bishop of the Diocese of Central Florida, conducted a service at the Cathedral Church of St. Luke in downtown Orlando ordaining four candidates to the Transitional Diaconate.

The diaconate is one of the three clerical orders in the Episcopal Church: deacons, priests and bishops. Transitional deacons are preparing for priesthood.

Photo: Courtesy Erick Perez

The ordained, pictured here standing in front of Bishop Brewer, include (from left to right) The Rev. Frans van Santen, The Rev. David Svihel, The Rev. Robin Reed and The Rev. Jonathan Jameson.

In his sermon, Bishop Brewer challenged the ordinands to resist the temptation to pursue the priesthood to become “insiders” in the church, leaving behind the service and ministry outside the church that is the mark of the diaconate. “Take your place in the life of the church,” Brewer charged, “as men and women who are willing to stand up for those who are not here. Have the courage to serve in places where it’s just you and somebody else, and nobody else will know, except all of heaven will be giving thanks.”

Bishop Brewer continued with a call to a deep relationship with God that sustains anonymous servant ministry. “Make room in your life to be alone with God in a way that nurtures the sweetness of his presence inside of you, and gives you the stamina to keep praying when you feel nothing. Because God is greater than our hearts.”

Click here to view the entire ordination service.

Please join Bishop Brewer in prayer for the newly ordained, welcoming them into the life of the Diocese of Central Florida.

Ordinands

Van Santen earned his M. Div. degree from Tyndale Seminary in the Netherlands. He’s sponsored in the diocesan discernment process by Grace Episcopal Church in Ocala where he is serving in the church’s residency program.

Svihel earned an M. Div. from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, and has accepted a call to serve at Church of the Redeemer in Sarasota. He is sponsored in the discernment process by St. Francis in the Fields Church in Harrods Creek, Kentucky.

Reed will complete her M. Div. degree at Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, Virginia, this spring. Robin is sponsored in the discernment process by The Episcopal Church of the Resurrection in Longwood where she is a member.

Jameson will complete his M. Div. degree at Montreal Theological College at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, this spring. He is sponsored in the diocesan discernment process by Trinity Episcopal Church in Vero Beach.