Rev. Pilar Parnell, a native of our area who grew up at Zion Episcopal Church in Rome, will return to the diocese this fall as the new priest for St. James’, Skaneateles. As we welcome her (back) to Central New York, read her responses to questions we recently asked her to get to know her!
What has your journey as an ordained person been like?
I grew up in the Diocese of Central New York at Zion Episcopal Church in Rome, NY. I first began to realize my call as a 16-year-old serving on a Diocesan mission trip to El Salvador. Our experience of sharing the Eucharist with those we were serving and way seeing God bind us together in this sacrament was life changing. As I have celebrated and been pastor to many children in my life as a priest, what I have come to realize is that God was working on me from the moment He knit the fabric of my life together. To this day I recall where I was as an 8 year old young acolyte watching my priest celebrate when I realized what was happening at the consecration of the host. I fully believe that I am ordained and that this call grew in me because I was raised in a parish and diocese that lifted children up as equal members of the community and shared sacred spaces with me.
In college I pursued ordination in through the Diocese of Western New York. I graduated in December of 2013 from SUNY Fredonia and began seminary in the fall of 2014. Scott and I met the first week of classes and have been joined at the hip ever since. We graduated in 2017 and accepted calls to serve in the Northern Neck of Virginia, five miles from the Chesapeake Bay.
In my ministry since, I have been passionate about racial reconciliation, making space for children in all our sacred spaces helping them to recall and retain the memory of God on their souls, and have been passionate about helping people who are at the end of their lives live into a holy death.
What is your life like outside of ministry?
The only thing that I think I am more passionate about than following Jesus is my vocation as a wife and mother. There is no place that I experience God’s love more fully than in the life of my family. In my free time I enjoy singing (I am a classically trained vocalist) and baking, but most days I am singing Taylor Swift with our daughter, Charlene, and our son George. I am also trying to rekindle my love of playing the Euphonium.
What called out to you about St. James’ that led you to enter their discernment/search process?
My call to St. James’ is one that began eight years ago and it has been the still small voice beckoning me throughout the years. In 2016, just before I was ordained, Scott and I realized we had a few mutual connections at St. James’ when visiting New York for my ordination interviews. We attended that Sunday and as I walked into the church, I felt the pull of the Holy Spirit say that this is where I was going. Of course that wasn’t possible at the time, so I ignored it. We visited again in 2022 and the same thing happened. A year ago when I heard that St. James’ was entering this time of transition again I felt as though I had to pursue this call, but in a two-clergy family everything has to line up just right. You both have to have churches available to discern with, within driving distance of each other. It seemed impossible that this could work out, but every step of the way something has happened to open door after door. I truly feel as though the past eight years of my life have led me to this place and I feel humbled and honored to be able to serve a parish as vibrant and loving as St. James’.
What is your hope/dream for the ministry of your new parish?
My hope for our mutual ministry at St. James’ is that we walk faithfully together and are courageous enough to follow where the Holy Spirit calls us. I feel blessed to be accepting a call at a parish that is already so vibrant and passionate. I hope to continue to stoke that flame. I pray that we continue to shape the lives of the children among us working to grow a ministry that is multigenerational and joyous. I pray that in our world around us we are bold to proclaim the good news of God’s abiding love to all those who are fearful of the uncertainty of the world we live in. And I pray that we are joyous enough to “see visions and dream dreams.” (Acts 2:7) because what I have learned in this life is that when God is boldly proclaimed in our midst there is nothing that cannot be mended and no life that cannot be transformed.
