LA CAPILLA DE SANTA MARIA - HENDERSONVILLE, NC
OUR RECTOR
My name is Father Miguel Alvarez. I was born in Jalupa, Tabasco, Mexico.
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I come from a very religious family. As a child, I remember my parents always talking to me about God. They taught me my first prayers; The Lord's Prayer, Hail Mary, and how to pray with a rosary. When I was fourteen, I felt that God was calling me to serve as a priest. I answered God's calling when I decided to enter the Seminary of Guadalupe Missioner's, a Religious Order in Mexico City. There I studied Philosophy and Theology at the Intercontinental University and received a Bachelor's degree in Philosophy. I enjoyed my life as a seminarian because I loved living in community.
I dreamed of becoming a missionary to share my life with other people and to make present the kingdom of God through the Bible's teachings, prayers, worship, and celebrations. After seminary, I was given the opportunity to live in South Korea for almost 5 years, learning the Korean language, about their culture, and helping on missions. These experiences made me even stronger in my missionary vocation.
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I was received as an Episcopal priest in the Diocese of Nevada in November 2013. I love the ways of the Episcopal Church, although different from the Roman Catholic Church where I was ordained. I have enjoyed each moment of my life as a priest and I can feel how God is helping me grow spiritually in my life and the lives of the members of the congregations where I serve.
Before I moved to the Diocese of Western North Carolina, I served at St. Thomas Mission in Las Vegas, Nevada. Every day, I renew my vows to continue dedicating my life to serving our loving God through ministry in our communities. The passage of the Gospel where Jesus says, "The harvest is plentiful for the laborers are few," comes to mind, and I think part of that harvest is the growth in our Latino communities in this diocese.
Thank you all so much for the possibility to be here in this beautiful diocese.