The Rector of Grace Church

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Fr. Bates came to Grace Church in 2011 and was previously Associate Rector of Calvary Church in Summit, New Jersey. He has also lived in New York City, Princeton, Hunan Province in China, Arkansas, and is a native of Texas.  

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He completed his Ph.D. in Liturgical Studies at Drew University in 2008, writing on changing twentieth-century attitudes concerning death in the United States and their effects on Christian burial rituals. He holds an M.Div. from The Graduate School of Theology at Abilene Christian University (Texas) and a B.A. in Biblical Languages from Harding University (Arkansas).

 

Fr. Bates has been learning classical guitar for the past few years and enjoys reading, cooking authentic homestyle Chinese food, and all things brewed, especially craft coffee. 

 

He has two wonderful children, West and Zadie.

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