The Reverend Brian Burt Wilbert
Rector, Christ Church, Oberlin, Ohio

When did you begin to think about a vocation in the Church?
At 16. When I mentioned it to my rector, his advice was to finish high school, go to college, and then talk with him. So I did! On Christmas Eve 1981 we spent hours together and then we made an appointment to  see the Bishop of Ohio. Starting “the process” at 21, there were hurdles, but with every step I felt God’s sustaining presence through my relationships with other companions on the way.

Why Bexley?
Historically it’s associated with Kenyon College, of which I’m a graduate. Ordained clergy still need Philander Chase’s pioneering spirit for effective ministry. And Bexley also because of its association with other denominations. We need to know our differences so we can concentrate on what unites rather than divides us.

What was Bexley like?
I envisioned a cloistered experience of prayer and preparation. Happily I tasted a life marked by prayer and study, but a life which was real. We all lived, learned, laughed and loved in a unique community of faith.

What would you say to someone considering Bexley, if you only had a minute?
General Convention has issued the 20/20 vision, to double the baptized membership of our Church in the next two decades. To welcome another 2.4 million souls we’d better be prepared to walk that journey with them and provide ordained leadership to help them live into their commitment. Bexley will enable you to do that.

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not serving the Church?
Music, genealogy, and gardening.

Words to live by
To experience God by living, learning, laughing, and loving, wherever God plants me.