Jeffrey Nelson
MDiv, ‘86
Johanson Lake, NE
Parish priest at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, Grand Island, Nebraska and Christ Episcopal Church, Central City, Nebraska
Can you share some highlights or meaningful moments from your life since you graduated from LSTC?
I have had a memorable, challenging, wild, satisfying life since graduating from LSTC. Professionally, I had the opportunity to serve in various positions: parish pastor, campus pastor, college professor, and writer and editor for the publishing house. Additionally, I had the opportunity to earn a Th.D., and I made the decision to be received as a priest in the Episcopal Church and step off the ELCA roster. But perhaps my greatest joys were personal. I raised three children whose very presence in this world makes the world a better place. Most important for me, personally, was my journey toward coming out as a gay man and meeting and marrying my husband.
How has your LSTC experience shaped your journey?
Of course, LSTC prepared me academically for the career I was blessed to have. But even beyond that, LSTC was the first place I could honestly address my sexuality. Even before the church at large wanted to address it, I found teachers at LSTC who were supportive and encouraged me to explore my sexuality and embrace who God created me to be. Also, at LSTC, I found a community of support in a group of other gay men. There I found the courage and confidence to begin to work through my own fear, hopes, and dreams for my life. Sadly, without this support system, I struggled for many more years beyond school before finally embracing myself and coming out publicly and for good. But LSTC helped anchor me in community and gave me the theological tools to help bridge the gap (in my own mind and heart) between spirituality and sexuality. I am grateful for this.
Do you have any words of encouragement for current students?
Not really. If anything, I admire them for taking up the call to ministry in a time when the church as we know it seems to be dying away. Today’s students will be there as something new emerges and will be on the front lines—perhaps even leading the way—as this happens. I’m old and tired now, but I am excited for the future of the faith in the hands of these folks who have taken up the call.
