A concerned, caring priest with a deep love for God and for people. A warm, welcoming congregation with the same commitments. As The Rev. Ángel López looks forward to beginning his new ministry at St. Luke’s, Merritt Island, he – along with church and diocesan leadership – recognizes how God has put the call together.

“Fr. Ángel’s journey to the priesthood has taken a nontraditional path, but he has faithfully walked the journey,” said The Rev. Canon Scott Holcombe, canon to the ordinary for the Diocese of Central Florida. “I was glad to submit his name for consideration to the Search Committee at St. Luke’s and thrilled that he has accepted a 3/4-time rector position. Fr. Ángel and his wife, Maritza, will be relocating to Brevard County, where he will take up this new cure on Aug. 1, 2022.” A Celebration of New Ministry, presided over by The Rt. Rev. Gregory O. Brewer, will be announced at a later date.

The COVID-19 pandemic interrupted St. Luke’s planned search process after the church’s former rector, The Rev. Peter Roberts, left at the end of August 2019, explained Marcia Lambert, senior warden. “We were just getting ready to start the search process in March or April of 2020 … and that’s when COVID hit,” she said.

But God had a plan for the congregation through those challenging days. Before Roberts’ departure, The Rev. Eugene Fernsler, a retired Lutheran pastor, was assisting him with pastoral care. When the lockdown came, Fernsler offered to perform the church’s then-virtual services and has continued to serve throughout the interim time.

With Holcombe’s recommendation and the work of the Search Committee, a new day is dawning for both López and St. Luke’s. After some Zoom interviews and one in-person meeting, López came to the church for a meeting with the Search Committee and vestry combined. He also conducted Evening Prayer before a time of fellowship.

“One of the things that I first noticed about him was that he just comes across as a very warm person,” Lambert said. “It’s obvious that the ministry is a true calling for him.”

Holcombe agrees, noting that although López is recently ordained (as a transitional deacon on Sept. 12, 2020, and as a priest on April 25, 2021), he “has been active in teaching, leading retreats and spiritual direction for the past 20 years.”

(L-R) López, The Rev. Dr. José Rodríguez, Ms. Virginia Knowles and Ms. Susan Masters, all Episcopalians who graduated from Asbury Theological Seminary, Orlando, in May 2021

López also has a long previous career in retail, having worked for 27 years in both international and U.S. divisions of Sam’s Club. During this time, he began seminary in Puerto Rico from 1989-2021, later completing his Master of Arts in Ministry Leadership at the Orlando campus of Asbury Theological Seminary. He completed his studies in Anglicanism at Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary and is currently working toward a Ph.D. in Ministry, Leadership and Mission through Newburgh Theological Seminary.

López comes to St. Luke’s from St. John’s, Kissimmee, where he served as part-time assistant priest, leading the English-language services. “From the earliest stages in seminary, I felt a call for the English-speaking community; I said, ‘I can learn from them, and they can learn from me,'” he explained. He led in both Rite I and Rite II services during the pandemic, adding additional ministries as restrictions lifted, including a monthly healing service. He was not seeking another position when Holcombe told him about the need at St. Luke’s.

“I put it in God’s hands from that very first day,” López said. “And obviously, the Lord was there. … I learned a lot from the process, and it was very educating and uplifting.”

St. Luke’s hopes to reach more people and possibly add new programs once its new rector is in place, Lambert said, adding, “He was just ordained a year ago, so he may have some fresh ideas. We are also open to being a more diverse congregation than we were in the past.”

And López does have fresh ideas, including a potential Spanish service, which he will only pursue after much study and prayer. “I think diversity is very important for the church,” he said. “I think the church enriches when we have a multicultural community.” In addition, he hopes to add more interactive Bible classes and minister to young people.

“I want to do something special with the youth,” López said. He also hopes to work with families, helping build relationships between parents and children.

“The community [at St. Luke’s] is open for that,” he said. “They had it in mind before the search process. … everything works together.”

During the transition, López is spending time with his own family – his wife, three grown children, one son-in-law and two grandsons – as he and his wife prepare for their move. Soon, the family will celebrate his son’s graduation from Basic and Advanced Individual Training as he prepares for deployment with the U.S. Army to South Korea. But López remains excited about his new call, as is St. Luke’s.

“We’re fairly easy,” Lambert said. “From that aspect, I think it will be a good experience for him. And then by the same token, because he is such a warm, caring person, we feel that he will be good for us because of our feeling about how we are as a congregation. We’re a family.”