Teacher
Practitioners
Our teacher practitioners are the thriving heartbeat of our learning community.
The Right Reverend Susan J. A. Bell (she/her) is the current bishop of Niagara—and she loves to preach! She also loves to study scripture and the ways that it bisects, directs, and shapes the lived reality of believers. She’s a lifelong learner and enjoys the study of culture, and the history of the church. Before the privilege of serving as the diocesan bishop of Niagara, Bishop Susan was the Canon Missioner for the Diocese of Toronto, and before that, the Chaplain of Havergal College and Associate Priest at St. Martin-in-the-Fields, as well as being Honorary Associate at the Cathedral of St. James in Toronto. She now serves as the provincial and national ACPO Bishop; as a member of the ACC/UCC Bilateral Dialogue; as a member of the National Standing Committee on Religious Orders and is the Episcopal Visitor for the SRC and Worker Sisters of the Holy Spirit. She loves literature and poetry, and is a doctoral candidate at the University of Toronto. Her thesis subject is priest and poet George Herbert and his seventeenth-century pastoral manual, The Countrey Parson. Susan is married to Tom, the Music Director at St. James’ Cathedral in Toronto, and together they have four children whom they love very much and are very proud of. Susan is captivated by God’s dream for us of a new heaven and a new earth and is committing her life to trying to live and work that dream out in a church she also loves. As a result, her long-standing interest in and promotion of missional and contextual preaching is deeper than ever in this post-secular and digital age.
The Venerable Dr. David Anderson (he/him) is the rector of the Church of Saint John the Evangelist in west downtown Hamilton and the Archdeacon of Hamilton-Haldimand in the Diocese of Niagara. David is passionate about neighbourhoods and helping disciples of Jesus participate more fully in what God is up to in their own local contexts. David is also an advocate for the cultivation of missional leadership in our diocese and has led a turn toward the neighbourhood in the parish. David is the chair of the Curriculum Committee of the Niagara School for Missional Leadership and a member of the Academy of Religious Leadership. David’s doctoral degree is from Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota in the area of Congregational Mission and Leadership. When David has time he rides with a group known as the “Loose Association of Motorcycle Enthusiasts,” or LAME. David says that for a motorcycle gang, they are not as tough as they sound.
Emily is the Parish Development Missioner at the Anglican Diocese of Niagara and is focused on nurturing faithful, vital, and resilient missional faith communities through parish consultations, education, and resourcing. Emily guides the development and implementation of programs and resources in support of the diocese’s vision and mission-driven initiatives, as articulated in the diocesan Mission Action Plan. Working in collaboration with the diocesan senior leadership team, she helps nurture and support parish leaders by providing consultative services in strategic planning, visioning, faith formation, and congregational development.
Dr. John Bowen (he/him) is Professor Emeritus of Evangelism at Wycliffe College in Toronto, where he taught courses on evangelism, culture, church planting, preaching, and C.S. Lewis. Before that, he worked as a campus minister and evangelist for Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship. His newest book is The Unfolding Gospel: How the Good News Makes Sense of Discipleship, Church, Mission, and Everything Else (Fortress, 2021). He and his wife Deborah, a retired English professor, have four wonderful grandchildren and are long-time members of St. John the Evangelist in Hamilton.
Gillian Doucet Campbell, MA, CFRE (she/her) is the Director of Stewardship and Development for the Anglican Diocese of Niagara. She provides leadership, strategic direction, and coordination of stewardship and fund development initiatives to foster a culture of generous, intentional givers that contributes to the renewal and mission of the communities she works in. With over fifteen years of experience in fundraising, administration, and constituent care with a focus on generous hospitality and gratitude, she has activated over $10 million through major and planned gifts, grants, and sponsorships in small- to mid-sized nonprofits. Gillian has a particular interest in Design Thinking, philanthropic trends in Canada and the wider Church, social enterprise, ethical financial investing, and organizational change. She is a member of the Canadian Association of Gift Planners (CAGP) and the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Golden Horseshoe and is on the Communications Committee for AFP Canada. She recently joined the board of Abundance Canada (formerly the Mennonite Foundation of Canada) and serves on both its Nominations and Investment Committees. A highly accomplished, results-driven fundraiser, Gillian thrives on curiosity and coffee.
Leanne Friesen (she/her) is the Lead Pastor of Mount Hamilton Baptist Church, where she has pastored for sixteen years. In her time there, she has led her church through a renovation project, incorporation, restructuring, the hiring of new staff, and the church’s shift to becoming a more missional congregation. She is passionate about the local church and believes in the importance of individual parishes embracing their own unique roles and callings in their communities. Leanne is also a frequent guest speaker and teacher at retreats and conferences around the country. She writes at leannefriesen.com and has also recently started a project to support people who are grieving called “Grieving Room” on Facebook and Instagram.
The Most Reverend Colin Johnson (he/him) is an Honorary Assistant at St. James Cathedral. He retired as Archbishop of Toronto at the end of 2018. He currently coaches and mentors new bishops and is a board and faculty member of the Episcopal Church’s College for Bishops. He continues to lead conferences, retreats, and workshops in Canada, the US, and Hong Kong. He has particular interest in issues of leadership in challenging times, biblical interpretation, liturgy and prayer, missional strategy, safe church policy, and organizational change. The proud grandfather of three young granddaughters, he is relearning the second verses of old nursery rhymes, amongst his other reading and catching up on Netflix series he missed while working.
The Venerable Val Kerr (she/her) is a member of the Iroquois Confederacy, Mohawk Nation, Wolf Clan, Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte and keepers of the Eastern Door. Val is the Archdeacon of Truth, Reconciliation, and Indigenous Ministry for the Diocese of Niagara. Val has served as the Priest-in-Charge of All Saints, Hagersville; Rector of St. John the Evangelist, Niagara Falls; and Vice-Rector of St. George’s, St. Catharines. Val is well known as a social justice advocate, a participant in the Diocese of Niagara’s Anti-racism Working Group, a member of the Council of General Synod, and its Strategic Planning Working Group. Val also acts as the knowledge keeper for the Step Program at St. George’s, St. Catharines and for CLAY (Conference of Lutheran and Anglican Youth). Val is active in palliative and lifelong care and an advocate of lifelong learning. She is a widow, mother, mother-in-law, grandmother, great grandmother, sister, auntie, cousin, and friend.
The Reverend Cid Latty (he/him) served in pastoral ministry for over 15 years with the Baptist Union of Great Britain before joining Canadian Baptist of Ontario and Quebec as the Congregational Development Associate. He co-founded the Cafechurch Network which helped to start more than a hundred café churches in high street coffee shops all over the UK. He is married to Alison and they have two children.
The Reverend Canon Ian Mobsby (he/him) has ten years of experience as a Lay Pioneer and sixteen years as an Ordained Pioneer Minister in the Church of England. He has been involved in founding five Fresh Expressions of Church including three new monastic communities and an alternative worship community in a Parish ‘mixed economy’ context in Central and South London. Ian is also the Guardian of the New Monastic Society of the Holy Trinity a Pioneering fraternity seeking to plant missional new monastic communities in the UK and beyond. Ian has in the past played a part in the National Fresh Expressions team. He is currently pioneering a new more contemplative missional community just south of Blackfriars Bridge in Central London, and the Diocesan Assistant Dean for Fresh Expressions and Pioneer Ministry and the Chair of the Diocese of Southwark Spiritual Formation Group. As a former Occupational Therapist Ian has worked within Mental Health services and complex disability rehabilitation. Ian is fully aware of the consequences and challenges of Pioneer Ministry, who himself experienced serious burnout as a consequence to his own inability to surrender and trust God in a difficult former working missional context.
Patrick Paulsen’s (he/him) greatest passion is teaching people to see Jesus in his proper context—as a first century Jew in the historical setting of the intertestamental period. His Master’s thesis was on “Exploring the Self-awareness of Jesus through His Use of Hebrew Idioms and Elements of Second Temple Judaism,” and teaching this is what he loves to do.
Patrick is married to (The Rev. Canon Dr.) Judy Paulsen and they have three children and four grandchildren. He holds a Master’s degree in Applied Science and a Master’s degree in Theological Studies. His passions are: learning, teaching, kayaking, drumming, and learning languages. With Judy and Bishop Susan Bell, he co-wrote Christian Foundations. He also wrote a three-part series called “Know the Flow: (1) The Story of Israel from Abraham to Jesus, (2) Jesus in His First Century Context and (3) The Story of the Early Church, Canon and Creeds.”
Canon Christyn Perkons (she/her) is the Director of Congregational Support & Development for the Diocese of Niagara. Christyn worked with a team of clergy and lay leaders to develop the diocesan mission action plan, and grounded in that work, brought together resources and a process that would readily allow parishes to undertake the same kind of holy listening and discernment. Christyn is passionate about discerning where God is at work in our neighbourhoods and inviting us to come alongside God’s work. The possibilities for transformation of people’s lives and the culture in which we’re embedded are at the heart of her vocation. This hunger to meet God in our daily lives drives not only her congregational ministry but also her mentoring of diocesan missioners and those exploring a call to ordained ministry, and her work with the team creating anti-racism training for the diocese. The faith community that nurtures Christyn is St. Christopher’s in Burlington, where she writes and offers intercessions and co-writes contextual liturgies that open space for people’s hearts to encounter Jesus.
Chris Pullenayegem is the Director of the Congregational Vitality through Community Engagement initiative at the Vancouver School of Theology. is a ministry practitioner committed to a holistic approach to ministry, integrating faith, justice, and compassion in contextualized, incarnational ways. He has held senior positions in private, government and not-for-profit sectors. He also has decades of experience working in the areas of church renewal, new ministry and migrant church development and discipleship/faith formation. Chris has an academic background in law (specializing in refugee and Immigration law and policy), psychology, leading change and innovation and adult education. He grew up in a multi-religious and multi-ethic context among communities fractured along these lines. An immigrant from Sri Lanka, Chris lives in Ontario, loves working collaboratively and has a keen interest in peace and reconciliation. He is a trainer in cross-cultural competencies and multi-faith awareness and is a keen observer of people movements. Chris finds recreation in music, wood-working and outdoor activities.
The Reverend Jon Swales MBE is an Anglican priest, theological educator, and climate activist. He lives in the UK. Jon heads up a fresh expression of church and charity called Lighthouse which shares the love of Jesus with adults with multiple and complex needs. Jon has recently completed a book called Lament and Hope: Prayers for the Climate and Ecological Emergency.
Janice Whiteley (she/her) is a member of the Chapleau Cree First Nation and was born in Chapleau, Ontario. Janice is an experienced educator, and professor of Nursing at Mohawk College, Hamilton. She graduated from the Mohawk College nursing program in 1986 and completed a BScN at McMaster University in 1997. Janice also completed a Bachelor of Aboriginal Adult Education at Brock University in 2009. She has significant experience as a nurse on a post-operative unit at Joseph Brant Hospital, Burlington; the Six Nations Mental Health Clinic, Ohsweken; Director of Health for the Chapleau Cree Health Clinic. Janice resides in Burlington with her husband, Rob. Together they have three adult sons and six grandchildren. Janice is a member of St. Matthew-on-the-Plains, where she is a member of Parish Council. Janice is a member of Diocesan Synod and has a strong interest in Indigenous health, education, and culture.
Dr. Tim Wray is a bi-vocational minister. He serves as an ELCIC pastor in Airdrie, Alberta and lives and ranches in nearby Irricana. As a farmer, he tries to implement regenerative practices, is trained in Holistic Management, and participates in Alberta’s Regenerative Agriculture Lab through Rural Routes for Climate Change. Wearing a church hat, he is active on the board of Circle M, Centre for Rural Community Leadership and Ministry, sits on his Synodical Ministry Team for Care of Creation, and is a contributor to the ELCIC sermon offerings for small and vacant congregations. The mission of God permeates both vocations. Tim is currently working through The LEAD Journey with his congregation and is enrolled in the Missional Network’s Leadership Project. Prior to seminary, he studied agriculture at the University of Alberta. His MDiv is from Lutheran Theological Seminary, Saskatoon. The focus of his DMin project was on the lives of young adults in rural communities. Along with his wife, Joanne and their three children they manage a cattle herd and a small flock of sheep.