Richard Manley-Tannis
History
- Member for
- 2 years 27 weeks
Biography
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Posted May 31st, 2008 by Richard Manley-...
I began my journey within the Syrian Orthodox Tradition in Ottawa, ON. After struggling with my appreciation for the beauty of deeply revered ritual, I found that my experience of the misuse of patriarchal power led me further into my journey ... in this space of exploration, I lived in Ottawa, Peterborough and Kingston, ON.
After exploring Wicca, Islam, Judaism and Buddhism, I found the Rabbi Yeshua inviting me back to my Christian home. In that caring whisper, I found the United Church, where ideas of Justice were lived out intentionally. In 1997, I was confirmed into the United Church as a member of Queen Street United Church in Kingston, ON. It was in Nipawin, SK within the Pastoral Charge of Bridging Waters, in which my spouse had been Settled after completing the MDiv at Queen's Theological College, that I discovered the Diakonate and responded to the Call that had been with me my entire life.
I now find myself in Accountable Leadership within the UCC as a Diaconal Minister. In this role as a Deacon, I find the many challenges that our denomination confronts invigorating in the potential that awaits. As I explore with a richly profound sense of the Divine within an institution, which for all of its inherent human brokenness, struggles to bring the Spirit to Creation through action and reflection, I continue to be blessed by the presence of the community - and for that I am most humbled.