| CLERGY | |
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Revd Canon Patrick Curran (Chaplain) Patrick was born in Germany in 1956 and spent his early years in Ontario, Canada (Toronto, Scarborough, and Galt, now Cambridge) before returning to Germany in 1969, where he completed secondary school at a Lutheran boarding school on the Baltic coast. He returned to Canada to study at the University of King’s College in Halifax, obtaining a BA in Classics and German. He was sponsored by the Diocese of Gibraltar in Europe to train for the ordained ministry at Chichester Theological College in England. There he completed a BTh with the University of Southampton. In 1984, he was ordained deacon, and in 1985 priested in Exeter Cathedral, England, serving his title at St. Michael’s and All Angels, Heavitree, with St. Paul’s, Burnthouse Lane, Exeter. In 1987, he moved to Bradford, West Yorkshire, to be the Bishop’s Chaplain to Students. After this, he returned to the Diocese in Europe as Chaplain in Bonn and Cologne and latterly as Chaplain in Vienna and Archdeacon of the Eastern Archdeaconry (2001-2015). He is married and has two adult daughters and two grandsons. Canon Curran is eager to commend the Christian faith as a living tradition with increased and daily increasing relevance as the Way of Life for peoples the world over. He has been nurtured in the Anglican tradition having trained for the ordained ministry in the Church of England and worked in the same since his calling in 1979. The Christian faith is the means of grace that allows us “to pass through things temporal so that we lose not our hold on the things eternal.” He is blessed to be serving an international congregation committed to this tradition. He is grateful that through the gathered church Sunday by Sunday, the ancient liturgy, the historic church building, he is privileged to see the gifts of faith made manifest in people from “from every nation, tribe, people and language”. Email: |
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Revd Robert S. Kinney, PhD (Honorary Assistant Chaplain) Robert is honored to have the opportunity to serve at Christ Church in Vienna and very much enjoys the life of this church community. In his day job, he is the Director of Ministries of the Charles Simeon Trust (USA). A native of Illinois, Robert was awarded a bachelor’s degree in Early Christian Literature at the University of Chicago. His BA thesis was on idolatry in Paul's epistle to the church in Rome. In 2008, Robert was awarded an MS in Communications (Journalism) from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, focusing his final project on issues of race, education, and Christianity on the South Side of Chicago. In 2015, Robert finished a PhD in New Testament at the University of Bristol in England. His dissertation explored aspects of Greco-Roman rhetoric in the Gospel of Matthew and was published by Mohr Siebeck in the WUNT II series as Hellenistic Dimensions of the Gospel of Matthew: Background and Rhetoric. He also served formally as a pastoral intern at Holy Trinity Church in Chicago for six years (2002-2008) and later as University Minister (2012-2014). He also completed a Curacy here at Christ Church between 2019 and 2023. He is a former Fellow at the Center for Pastor Theologians and presently serves on the Boards of the Charles Simeon Trust of Africa and Prédica Fiel in Cuba. Email: |
| READER-IN-TRANING | |
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Frank Sauer, PhD Frank was born in Leverkusen, Germany, in 1974 and has been living happily in Vienna since 2004. He is currently preparing for an authorized lay ministry as a Reader in the Diocese in Europe. As a long-standing member of Christ Church, he has been involved in various areas: as an acolyte, a former member of the choir, leading intercessions, leading morning and evening prayers, parish council, leading the animal blessing service, being a lecturer, and offering talks at Soundings. Professionally, he currently works for Caritas Vienna as a regional supervisor and speaker for public relations. Before that, he worked for many years as a coach, advisor, and trainer in the field of vocational training. In 2002 he obtained a Master's degree in Education, Sociology and Old Catholic Theology from the University of Bonn. In 2018 he received his doctorate in philosophy in the field of Advanced Theological Studies / Religious Education at the University of Vienna. His dissertation, Migration und Versöhnung. Missionstheologische Ansätze aus anglikanischer Perspektive, dealt with missiological approaches from an Anglican perspective in the context of migration. Since he was young, Frank has been involved in various areas in the church context: children's and youth groups, ecumenical Bible groups, preparing liturgy and singing in choirs. During his studies, he was involved in the German Youth Red Cross in the area of training and further education for volunteers. Things Frank loves about Christ Church: the diversity of the congregation, the nurturing of the English musical tradition, the high level of commitment from parishioners. In 2015 he made a profession in the Third Order of the Society of Saint Francis (TSSF), a worldwide Anglican Franciscan Religious Order. |
| STAFF | |
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Joan Avery, PhD (Choir Director) Joan was born in England, went to school in several continents, and moved to Austria in the early nineties to study music. She has a licentiate in Violin Performance from the ABRSM and a PhD in German Literature. She is currently leading four choirs, as well as playing in various orchestras. She enjoys getting the best sound out of people, especially those who think they cannot sing. She tutors in English, French, and violin at averygoodcoach.com. |
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Andrew Couse (Organist) Andrew has served as our organist for several years. He came to Vienna in 1998 to take a position at the Volksoper and has taught at the Musik und Kunst University of the City of Vienna (formerly Konservatorium) for the past ten years. Originally from Ottawa in Canada, he studied piano and organ with Marion Hewitt and Dr. Godfrey Hewitt, received a bachelor's degree in music from Carleton University and went on to Montreal to do a master's degree in Musicology and Conducting at McGill University, concurrently with completing an Advanced Diploma in Organ Performance at Concordia University under Bernard Lagacé. He spent several years working as Director of Music at the Church of St. John the Evangelist in Montreal before travelling to Germany in 1990, under a Canada Arts Council grant, to study orchestral conducting at the Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst "Franz Liszt" in Weimar. He particularly values the high standards and appreciation of good music here at Christ Church and the enthusiasm that the congregation brings to singing the hymns! Outside of music, Andrew is a qualified Shiatsu practitioner. He teaches at the International Academy for Hara Shiatsu in Vienna, regularly travels to China to study aspects of traditional Chinese medicine, and has a Shiatsu practice in Vienna. |
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Andrew Seneviratne (Verger) As Verger, Andrew is responsible for looking after the church premises. He works with the Chaplain to ensure that all runs smoothly during regular and special services, particularly baptisms, funerals, and those over the Christmas and Easter seasons. Born and brought up in Sri Lanka, he came to Vienna to be with his brother and to work in the hospitality industry. Brought up in the Roman Catholic Church, he feels at home at Christ Church and particularly appreciates the fact that the services are in English. He enjoys getting to know Christians of a variety of different nationalities within our congregation. Being a hotelier does not allow Andrew much free time, but he enjoys getting involved, along with his wife, at the Vienna Christian Center. |
