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Leadership
Meet Our Bishop
The Most Rev. Ray R. Sutton serves as the Presiding Bishop of the Reformed Episcopal Church (REC) and the Ordinary of the Diocese of Mid America. He is also the Dean of the Province and Ecumenical Affairs of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA), of which the Reformed Episcopal Church is a founding member and special jurisdiction. Bishop Sutton often lectures at ACNA and Reformed Episcopal Seminaries, and is a popular retreat speaker.
A native of Kentucky and a Dallas resident since he was 13, Bishop Sutton received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Southern Methodist University and his Masters of Theology from Dallas Theological Seminary. From 1976 to 1991, he served as a parish minister. Following this, he pursued doctoral studies in an associated research program at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford with Coventry University, from which he received his Ph.D.
He became the Dean and Professor of New Testament at the Reformed Episcopal Seminary in Philadelphia, and continues as an adjunct professor today. Later, Bishop Sutton functioned as Dean and Professor of Theology at Cranmer Theological House, where he continues to teach. He has also authored four books on theology, his most recent being Signed, Sealed and Delivered: A Study of Holy Baptism.
Bishop Sutton is married to Susan Jean Schaerdel of Dallas, a fellow graduate of Southern Methodist University. The Suttons have seven children and four grandchildren. The Suttons live in Dallas where Bishop Sutton’s residential offices are at the Cathedral of the Church of the Holy Communion.
Meet Our Vicar
Derek grew up in Pittsburg, Kansas. He studied communications and religious studies at Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar,Missouri. He transferred to Missouri State University where he graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a minor in religious studies. Derek graduated from Assemblies of God Theological Seminary in Springfield, Missouri with an M.A in Counseling. He holds a Master of Divinity Degree from Phillips Theological Seminary in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He has served as a pastor in the United Methodist Church and Presbyterian Church. Derek’s spiritual journey led him to the Anglican tradition of Christianity. Derek met his first wife, Lisa, in college. She passed away in 2011. He remarried and his wife, Jamie, was also a widow and a friend from college. Derek and Jamie have four children and three grandchildren. They began attending All Saints Anglican Church in Springfield, Missouri in 2019.
Derek was ordained to the diaconate in 2021. He served as a transitional deacon at All Saints until he was called to pastor Church of Our Savior Anglican in Joplin Missouri. He was ordained to the priesthood on the Feast of St. Patrick 2023. He loves to help people fall in love with the church and encounter depths of Scripture. He also loves to guide people in discovering their spiritual gifts. In his free time, Derek enjoys hanging out with his family, traveling, searching out antiques and listening to ever changing music playlists.