St. Paul rector’s mission: ‘doing brave, bold things’

St. Paul's Episcopal Church long has been known as the historic Capitol Square church with a socially relevant ministry.

In time, it also will be known for "doing brave, bold things," said the Rev. Canon D. Wallace Adams-Riley, the church's new rector.

The church has a rich legacy of "real flesh-and-blood ministries that stretch back to the 19th century with the orphanage. It's always been a part of who we are and there's a sense we want it to be even more so," said Adams-Riley, 37.

He will be formally installed tomorrow as the 15th rector in the church's more than 160 years. The Rt. Rev. Peter James Lee, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia, will preside over the service.

Adams-Riley's predecessor, the Rev. Canon Robert G. Hetherington, spent more than half of his 40-year career as a priest at St. Paul's.

The search to replace Hetherington, who retired in 2006, took two years, said Nina Rodriguez, senior warden.

The search committee's choice of Adams-Riley was unanimous, she said.

What impressed the committee the most?

"His enthusiasm, his love for people, love of God and of his work," she said.

On the job for about a month, Adams-Riley said he is delighted to be serving in the Diocese of Virginia and particularly at a church that continuously demonstrates "a flesh-and-blood expression of what we are about."

The church's diverse outreach programs includes feeding 300 people every week and the Micah Initiative for education, which began with the church at Richmond's Woodville Elementary School and has spread to 24 elementary schools with volunteers from 70 faith communities. Adams-Riley recently signed up as a mentor.

Attracting young adults and young families will be one of his greatest opportunities, he said.

With new residential development downtown and across the river in Manchester, he plans to boost Sunday attendance, which averages 360 members. The church's capacity is 1,000 people.

"I want those people in our pews! What can we do to get to those people?" he asked in an interview this week.

One idea he's pondering involves "renting a bus and sending it up and down Hull Street with doughnuts and coffee and receive [people] on the bus. I want to reach those people and I will not rest. I will always want to get out there and reach those people who don't have a church. That's one of the biggest things in my mind and heart. We will really give it a lot of energy."

Attracting young adults was something he did during his three previous ministries, he said.

Most recently, he served as canon vicar at St. John's Cathedral in Jacksonville, Fla., for two years. Before that he was the associate rector at Christ Church in Pensacola, Fla.

Adams-Riley earned his bachelor of arts from the University of the South in Sewanee, Tenn., and his master in divinity from Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria.

He and his wife, Gena, whom he met at Virginia Seminary, and son, Nelson, 3, live in Richmond's Fan District.

Adams-Riley said he's had fun learning about his predecessors and their leadership and boldness. He envisions the church taking even more daring steps.

"What are the next brave, bold things for us to do? That's what God would ask of us. And that's what I'm asking. That's what I want and that's why I came here."
Contact Robin Farmer at (804) 649-6312 or rfarmer@ .