The Rev. Bowie Snodgrass

THE REV. BOWIE SNODGRASS

GET TO KNOW OUR TWELFTH RECTOR

Christ Church in Short Hills, NJ called The Rev. Bowie Snodgrass as its twelfth Rector on March 16, 2021. She is the first woman to serve as Rector of Christ Church in our 139-year history. As Priest-in-Charge since January 2019, Rev. Bowie has led our dynamic congregation and encouraged new initiatives, while actively engaging with the local community. She is part of the Coalition of Religious Leaders of Millburn and Short Hills; started a monthly Interfaith Bible Hour with Temple B’nai Jeshurun and St. Stephen’s in Millburn; and has been a guest preacher at Saint Rose of Lima. Bowie is a member of the Diocese of Newark’s Commission on Ministry on the Priesthood. She came to Christ Church in 2016 as Curate and then Associate Rector, with a focus on spiritual formation and newcomer welcome, in addition to serving as Chaplain at Christ Church Nursery School. 


Bowie was sponsored for ordination in the Diocese of New York by the Congregation of St. Saviour at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine. She served as Wisdom Year Resident and Deacon at the Parish of Calvary-St. George's. Her lay experience before then was diverse and far-reaching. Her professional ministries in New York included service as Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministries at St. James' Church on Madison Avenue; Executive Director of Faith House Manhattan, a visionary experiential interfaith organization; and Web Content Editor at the Episcopal Church Center, overseeing a redesign of www.episcopalchurch.org. Bowie was on the Task Group of the Standing Commission of Liturgy and Music that wrote a new Episcopal liturgy for same-gender blessings. She served on the Steering Committee for Christian Churches Together, the largest inter-denominational Christian organization in the United States, and was an Episcopal Delegate for the National Council of Churches in Christ USA. Bowie was a founding leader of Transmission, an emerging house church in NYC, and has been involved in innovative church planting ministries. 


Bowie majored in Religious Studies at Vassar College, received her M.Div. from Union Theological Seminary in New York City, a Master of Sacred Theology and a Diploma in Anglican Studies from General Theological Seminary. She has published articles and poetry in The Huffington Post, The Anglican Theological Review, and The Episcopal New Yorker.


Bowie and her husband, George Mathew, an Indian-American conductor, social entrepreneur and founder of Music For Life International, live in Short Hills with their son, daughter and cat. Learn more at bowiesnodgrass.com.

MORE FROM REV. BOWIE SNODGRASS

DID YOU KNOW?

Bowie... 

… helped imagine the Wild Goose Festival and Pop-Up Youth Ministry.


… was the General Manager of Music for Life International, presenting global humanitarian concerts at Carnegie Hall for Syrian refugees, ending violence against women, disaster relief in Pakistan, and pediatric AIDS. 


… organized an Easter Service at Club Avalon, formerly the infamous Limelight Club in NYC, and before that Holy Communion Episcopal Church, founded by the Rev. William Augustus Muhlenberg.


… studied Theology and Russian at Trinity College Dublin. She later received a Scaife-Anderson Grant from the Episcopal Church to study Orthodox Christianity when she lived in Russia for a year and visited Istanbul, Kiev, Siberia, Moscow and St. Petersburg.


… attended Far Brook School in Short Hills when her father, the Rev. T. James Snodgrass, was Rector of the House of Prayer in Newark and founder of Apostles House, an emergency shelter for families in New Jersey, with Christ Church in Short Hills as the first of six co-sponsoring congregations.

 

Photos by Naki Studios and the Millburn/Short Hills Front Porch Photo Project 2020

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