CLERGY

The Rev. Christopher Blake Thomas, Rector
christopher@thedoubter.org

Fr. Christopher was born in Morgan City, Louisiana, but considers Houston home. He has undergraduate (BBA, ’88) and graduate (MBA, ’04) degrees in finance and business administration from the University of Houston. Much of his career has been spent in the service of God, as a church business administrator. He holds the designation Certified Church Administrator (CCA) through his professional organization, the National Association of Church Business Administration. Fr. Christopher has served large, resource-sized congregations (Episcopal, Presbyterian & UCC), focusing on capital building projects, in Houston, New York City, Dallas, and Fort Worth. Fr. Christopher moved to North Texas in 2009 to complete a Master of Divinity at Brite Divinity School at Texas Christian University in 2011, and was ordained to the Sacred Order of Priests in the Episcopal Church in North Texas in 2018.

Fr. Christopher has done significant work in social justice advocacy in Fort Worth and Tarrant County, including cross-boundary interfaith work with the Multicultural Alliance of Texas. He also helped to design and implement multicultural training with a specific LGBTQIA+ focus for Fort Worth’s Police Academy corps of cadets. He is passionate about drawing people together across perceived boundaries into community where the work of God can take place. Fr. Christopher’s passion for urban social justice ministry with an emphasis on race and reconciliation is timely as he began his call as the 5th Rector of St. Thomas the Apostle February 1, 2020, just weeks prior to the dual pandemics of COVID-19 and the racial reckoning of our community and beyond.

Fr. Christopher is an avid cyclist, and a classically-trained (although not practicing!) organist who enjoys taking in the many cultural and fine arts benefits that Dallas and North Texas have to offer.

Deacon Jennifer Smith

The Rev. Dr. Jennifer Smith, Deacon
jennifer@thedoubter.org

Dcn. Jennifer was ordained to the diaconate in 2017 in Dallas. Bishop Sumner placed her at St. Thomas in order to continue racial reconciliation work at the parish and the diocesan levels as well as at the larger province level. She is very interested in the outreach committee work at St. Thomas and finding ways we can develop relationships with the poor and marginalized in North Texas.

Jennifer is also a practicing physician, working as a radiologist at UT Southwestern and Children’s. She and Matt, her husband, were medical school sweethearts and were married before graduation. Matt works for Blue Cross Blue Shield. They have two high school children, Judson (16) and Cami (14). Both children participate in marching band at Wakeland HS in Frisco.

In Jennifer’s spare time, she enjoys reading all sorts of books. She prefers crocheting over knitting and frequently works on simple crocheted projects during church meetings.

Stephen Waller

The Rev. Stephen J. Waller, Rector Emeritus
doubtertom@thedoubter.org

Fr. Waller is from Northwest Louisiana, born in Shreveport in 1946. After college at W&L in Virginia and The General Seminary in NYC, he returned to the Diocese of Louisiana to be ordained. Stephen served first in Ruston, then in Baton Rouge and then in Monroe. From Monroe he went to Milwaukee where he served on ecumenical groups in the Diocese of Milwaukee and on the architectural committee of the Diocese. He was elected the 3rd Rector of Saint Thomas the Apostle in 1989 and served there from 1 September 1989 until 30 November 2012, when he resigned and retired. After retiring he began attending the Church of Redeemer in Irving near his home. He was tricked into attending a weekly Bible class there, better than many classes in Seminary. Stephen returned to Saint Thomas the Apostle at the invitation of the current Rector, and was given the honorary title of Rector Emeritus. He attends both Redeemer and Saint Thomas the Apostle, having the benefit of two wonderful parishes. Stephen sees clergy and lay folk in Spiritual Direction, something he did while serving as a parish priest and gladly continues. He is a member of the Third Order of the Society of Saint Francis and the Order of Saint John, a serving Order of Chivalry under the British Crown. He writes in oursoulsinsilencewait.com which is a weekly expression of what is going on in his brain.

Dr. Stephen V. Sprinkle, Theologian-in-Residence
s.sprinkle@tcu.edu

Stephen V. Sprinkle, PhD, serves as Theologian-in-Residence. He is Emeritus Professor of Practical Theology at Brite Divinity School in Fort Worth, Texas, and held the office of Director of Field Education and Supervised Ministry there from 1994 to 2022. He also served the divinity school as Director of the Carpenter Initiative in Gender, Sexuality, and Justice. A native of North Carolina, and educated with a B.A. from Barton College, an M.Div. from Yale University Divinity School, and a Ph.D. in Systematic Theology from Duke University Graduate School, he was ordained in 1977. Throughout his career, Dr. Sprinkle has been involved in the life and witness of the church ecumenical. Dr. Sprinkle was named 2010-2011 Hero of Hope by the Cathedral of Hope United Church of Christ in Dallas, Texas for his advocacy on behalf of the LGBTQIA+ community. He holds professional memberships in the Academy of Religious Leadership, the Association of Theological Field Educators, and is a member of the Forum on the Military Chaplaincy. He is a National Board Member of Parity, a faith-based organization headquartered in New York City that builds bridges across the LGBTQIA+ and faith divide. Dr. Sprinkle is a human rights advocate, a widely sought speaker, and is an internationally recognized authority on anti-LGBTQ hate crimes.

He has authored many articles and chapters in books, as well as three academic books, Disciples and Theology (1999) and Ordination (2004), both published by Chalice Press, and Unfinished Lives: Reviving the Memories of LGBTQ Hate Crimes Victims (2011) by Resource Publications. He is currently engaged in a writing project on ministry and eschatology.

Dr. Sprinkle and his life partner Rob Rodriguez live in the Oak Cliff section of Dallas, Texas, and are ardent dog fanciers.

STAFF

Lee Swift, Administrative Assistant
leeswift@thedoubter.org
Lee Swift was born in Monnett, Missouri into a military family, so has lived in multiple locales, including Germany, Maine, Washington, California, Illinois but Texas has been home for most of his life. Like his many homes, Lee’s career is quite varied and unique: in radio broadcasting as an announcer, sales, and finally general manager; in insurance as a regional manager; in telecommunications as a manager of customer relations groups, fraud detection and federal and state compliance. Lee also is a writer of novels, plays and screenplays. One of Lee’s play “In The Company of Strangers” received many accolades, including from the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival. Lee lives with Stephen, his partner of 34 years and husband of 8 years in Dallas. Lee views his role as administrative assistant as a servant ministry for the parish.

And in addition to our professional staff, you will often find the office and campus tended by a number of dedicated volunteers from the parish family itself.

VESTRY

Class of 2024: Alyssa Abadinsky, Jerry Knight, Rene Aguirre
Class of 2025: Janet Elsea, Dan Hall, John VanBuskirk
Class of 2026: John Billingsley, Hampton Burwick, Jami Mifflin

Officers and ex officio:
Senior Warden: Janet Elsea
Junior Warden: Dan Hall
Clerk: Richard Elsea
Chancellor: Rusty Rippamonti
Treasurer: Joe DeuPree
Assistant Treasurer: Wynne Voorhees
Controller: Laura Giffin