Episcopal Press and News
Carol Wade named as dean and rector of Lexington's Christ Church Cathedral
Episcopal News Service. June 27, 2011 [062711-01]
ENS staff
The Rev. Carol Wade, former canon precentor of Washington National Cathedral and former chaplain to the Episcopal Church's House of Bishops, has been named the seventh dean and 22nd rector of Christ Church Episcopal Cathedral in Lexington, Kentucky.
When she begins in her new role in September, Wade will be the first woman to serve as dean or rector of the cathedral since the Rev. James Moore became its first rector in 1796.
Wade is a consultant and speaker to congregations, dioceses and church leaders seeking renewal and transformation. As precentor of Washington National Cathedral, Wade created worship for many high-profile services on behalf of the Episcopal Church and the nation, including the funeral for former President Gerald R. Ford, the investiture of Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori and the traditional National Prayer Service the day after the inauguration of President Barack Obama.
Wade also was co-chair of the team that designed and executed the worship at the 76th General Convention in Anaheim, California in 2009.
"God has a dream to heal the world. Cathedrals are meant to give us a glimpse of that dream, and in so doing, to fortify and inspire us for that holy work and mission," she said according to a press release from the Lexington diocese.
Wade succeeds the Rt. Rev. Morris K. Thompson, sixth dean of cathedral who was elected bishop of Louisiana. The Rev. Larae Rutenbar has served as interim dean during the transition period.
"I am delighted to hear that Christ Church Cathedral has called Canon Carol Wade to be their next dean," said Jefferts Schori, according to the release. "Her abundant gifts will bless that cathedral as well as the diocese, but they will also resound to the glory of God far beyond. May the Episcopal Church in Lexington find much blessing in this new partnership."
Bishop Stacy F. Sauls of Lexington said in the release that Wade "brings a depth of faith combined with cathedral experience that few others could have offered. She also brings a vision, honed in experience, of what the ministry of a cathedral can be, and I know from our conversations of her excitement at how that vision fits with the direction the Diocese of Lexington has been pursuing and the people of the cathedral have supported and sought so faithfully to engage."
Sauls, who recently was named chief operating officer for the Episcopal Church and will leave the diocese in September, said that in Wade "God has called a world-class preacher and a pastor of great sensitivity to people of all sorts and conditions. Most importantly, I am absolutely confident that she will lead the cathedral to be all that it can be ... I confess to only one disappointment – that I will be unable to work with Carol as bishop due to my own transition..."
Diocese of Washington Bishop John Bryson Chane described Wade in the release as "a rare blend of being an exceptional pastor, an innovative liturgist and a solid preacher who has the ability to bring together these three gifts into a ministry of healing, corporate prayer and teaching."
Christ Church served as the cathedral of the Diocese of Lexington from 1897 through 1933, when it reverted to parish status. It was restored to cathedral status in 1989, according to the release.