Nashotah House Theological Seminary has appointed the Rev. Greg Peters as Servants of Christ Research Professor of Monastic Studies and Ascetical Theology. He will serve as chairman of Nashotah’s first international James Lloyd Breck Conference on Monasticism and the Church, set for June 13-14.
This year’s conference theme, “The Monastic Call of Every Christian,” will explore the idea that the sacrament of baptism is the foundation of all forms of religious life, consecrated or lay.
The hiring of Peters, and the Breck Conference as an annual event, are made possible by an endowment established at Nashotah House in 2017 by the St. Benedict Servants of Christ.
“My hope is to continue Nashotah House’s longstanding commitment to take seriously personal holiness and service in the Church,” Peters said. “Monasticism has a lot to teach the 21st century, and through the newly endowed Breck Conference we will be able to investigate monastic history for the express purpose of recovering its riches for today’s Church. To do this at Nashotah House reinforces the school’s commitment to the Christian tradition and to the ‘real preparation’ of ecclesial ministers.”
Greg Peters received a Doctorate in Monastic Studies from the Pontifical Athenaeum of Sant’Anselmo in Rome, a PhD in theology from the University of St. Michael’s College in Toronto, and master’s degrees from St. John’s School of Theology in Collegeville, Minn., and Dallas Theological Seminary.
He has published several articles and books, including The Monkhood of All Believers: The Monastic Foundation of Christian Spirituality and The Story of Monasticism: Retrieving an Ancient Tradition for Contemporary Spirituality.
“By adding Fr. Greg Peters to our team to launch our annual conference, Nashotah House honors the Servants of Christ, reaffirming our seminary’s long-standing monastic ideals,” said Garwood Anderson, president and provost of Nashotah House. “As arguably the leading Anglican scholar of Christian monasticism in North America, Fr. Peters will guide a new generation of Christians into the treasures of monastic spirituality for our time.”
The conference will feature three speakers in addition to Peters:
 David Fagerberg received a PhD from Yale University and is a professor of theology and liturgical studies at the University of Notre Dame. His recent publications include On Liturgical Asceticism (CUA Press, 2018) and Consecrating the World: On Mundane Liturgical Theology (Angelico, 2016). |
 The Rev. Julia Gatta received an MA from Cornell University and an MDiv from Episcopal Divinity School and is the Frank A. Juhan Professor of Pastoral Theology at the University of the South. She holds a PhD in Medieval Studies from Cornell University. She is the author of The Pastoral Art of the English Mystics, The Nearness of God: Parish Ministry as Spiritual Practice, and Go in Peace: The Art of Hearing Confessions, written in collaboration with Martin Smith. Her most recent publication is Life in Christ: Practicing Christian Spirituality. |
 Fr. Gregory Gresko received his Doctorate and Licentiate in Sacred Theology from the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family at the Pontifical Lateran University (Vatican City), writing his dissertation on the consecration of the family. He is an American Benedictine monk who serves as professor of theology at the Pontifical Athenaeum of Sant’Anselmo (Rome). |
Adapted from Nashotah House
Matthew Townsend is a Halifax-based freelance journalist and volunteer advocate for survivors of sexual misconduct in Anglican settings. He served as editor of the Anglican Journal from 2019 to 2021 and communications missioner for the Anglican Diocese of Quebec from 2019 to 2022. He and his wife recently entered catechism class in the Orthodox Church in America.
