A professional educator, Audra Ryes dreams of sharing Christian faith with people of color through lessons and stories that affirm the participation of African descent in Anglican history.
She participated in a cross-cultural immersion experience in the Diocese of Southern Malawi, led by her professor the Rt. Rev. James Tengatenga. The trip was funded in part by a grant from the Seminary Consultation on Mission (SCOM). She also visited Ethiopia, where she was hosted by St. Matthew’s Anglican Church of Ethiopia in Addis Ababa. Along with experiencing the holiness of church and life in the two countries, she was able to compare two cultures with vastly different experiences of colonialism.
She’s in the process of preparing and delivering a formation series for young adults in the congregation of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Atlanta, GA, which has been her field parish for the last year and where she has already led adult formation classes. The series will engage participants in developing empathy for other cultures, beliefs, customs and art and the importance of hearing other voices in historic and religious contexts. Her goal is to make trained evangelists and disciples who use African-descent theology to enrich their lives and the lives of others.
