The Diocesan Dialogue
Current Issue
February 2007

Two New Rectors Begin Duties in Diocese

By Dick Snyder

The Rev. Kathy West (left) is new rector at St. Mary’s, Provo. The Rev. Emil Belsky is new rector at St. Paul’s, Salt Lake City. Dialogue photo.

Two Utah parishes have recently celebrated the ministry of new rectors.

The Rev. Kathy West arrived in July and is serving as rector at St. Mary's, Provo. And the Rev. Emil Belsky is rector at St. Paul's, Salt Lake City.

West comes from St. Matthew’s, Whittier, Calif., where she served as assistant rector.

"I am very happy here," she said.

She explained that she had never been in Utah prior to her interview here. Her husband Ira visited the state as a child.

She served as a teacher at Glendale High School in California before entering seminary at Claremont—where the Rev. Canon Mary June Nestler, now of Utah, was then dean of the seminary.

She taught English as a Second Language classes and is looking forward to instituting worship in Spanish at St. Mary's. She has been working with the Rev. Canon Pablo Ramos on that project.

"It's a huge passion of mine," she said.

She noted that she and Ramos determined that she heard him proclaim the Gospel in a church in Mexico when he was serving as deacon there.

The congregation at Provo "is very sophisticated, and very easy to relate to," she said.

She is planning to provide stability for on going parish programs such as the Sunday School. The church recently gained 18 Lutheran members from Tree of Life Church, and many of them had children.

She finds her new ministry "stimulating and challenging," and looks forward to working with the congregation "to see how we are going to grow."

Her husband is Jewish and participates in parish functions including the Christmas pageant.

Belsky arrived in Salt Lake City in August to become rector of St. Paul's. He came from All Saints, Omaha, Neb., where he had served as assistant rector.

"The people here are wonderful. There is a spirit and energy here that is rare," he said.

He has found the congregation to be "warm and welcoming."

He noted that St. Paul's is evolving from a pastoral-sized congregation to a program-size parish, and that "patterns of behavior have to change. The parish leadership is aware of that."

He held a series of listening sessions, with attendance ranging from nine parishioners at the smallest to 28 at the largest.

Those sessions produced "areas of concern" which consisted of youth ministry, communications and administration, newcomer incorporation, adult spiritual formation and pastoral care.

Individuals with interests in these areas are being recruited to serve on newly formed committees.

"We will see how it all fits together as a whole" with the ministry teams. "The key is widespread involvement" in having members of the congregation live out their baptismal ministry.

He added that administrative duties have consumed much of his schedule so far. He is looking forward beginning a schedule of pastoral visits. "I most enjoy pastoral contact," he said.

His wife Cindy is a nurse. They have a daughter and son-inlaw and one grandchild in Grand Junction, Colo., and another son in Omaha.

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