If all goes according to God’s Will, The Reverend Doctor Eric Joseph Ellis will have been ordained as a priest at St Augustine of Hippo Episcopal Church in Galveston on Saturday.
He has served as the Deacon in Charge since July 2023 at St Augustine of Hippo.
God calls the leaders of his flock at different times and different stages in their lives.
Eric Ellis will continue to carry on as a dental surgeon while he serves at St Augustine of Hippo. We will share more of his story and how he heard God’s call to attend seminary as a man with a family and a dental practice in an upcoming issue.
The website of the Episcopal Diocese of Texas offers the following information about the history of St. Augustine of Hippo Church: “St. Augustine of Hippo Episcopal Church in Galveston was established in June 1884 for a predominantly African American congregation.
St. Augustine of Hippo, Galveston was organized in response to 50 Black seamen who petitioned the Rev. Charles M. Parkman, then rector of Grace Episcopal Church, for their own parish and to worship on the sabbath.
Prior to 1884, the African American Episcopalians on Galveston Island could attend services held for them at Grace Episcopal Church only Wednesday and Friday evenings. The Rev. William F. Floyd, Ph.D., a Black physician and clergyman from Louisville, Kentucky was the first vicar of St. Augustine of Hippo appointed in summer 1885.”
