Meet The Pastor
The Rev. Thomas C. Jackson
Hi –
I serve as both the Interim Vicar at St. Cyprian’s and as the Episcopal Chaplain at Stanford University Hospital. Here at St. Cyprian’s I lead worship, preach, coordinate our lay leaders, and offer pastoral care as well as spiritual guidance.
I view preaching the Gospel and leading worship as vitally important. In preaching I work to show how God is calling us to live a Christian life in a community where only seven percent of the people go to church on Sunday. By being a voice for progressive Christianity and leading traditional Anglican worship, I strive to offer a new spiritual way to those turned off by televangelists who blame every earthquake and tornado on same sex marriage. The God I know, the one who walks with me in this neighborhood and down long hospital corridors, does not punish people for believing in the equality of all of God’s children. You can find recent sermons on our web site under the heading Spirituality.
Pastoral care is a third major element of my life and work at St. Cyprian’s. I visit those who are not able to worship here or are in the hospital. I also look to build a vital relationship with each of our members as they search for their own spiritual path in this time and place. I am more interested in helping people find their spiritual way than I am in telling people what to believe or what God wants them to do.
I also welcome all people to our community. At St. Cyprian’s we welcome people of all colors, backgrounds, and life experiences. We reach out to and embrace our LGBT brothers and sisters who for far too long have been judged and wounded by others who claim to be Christian. Judgment and condemnation are not our way at St. Cyprian’s.
I work with both same sex couples and heterosexual as they prepare for marriage here at St. Cyprian’s. We often use the PREPARE/ENRICH program to meet the church’s requirement for premarital counseling. For more than 30 years, PREPARE/ENRICH has led the way in helping couples explore and strengthen their relationships. As part of the marriage preparation process I work with couples to develop a wedding service that meets their hopes and often exceeds their dreams.
Trained as a non-denominational chaplain, I am also available to the community to conduct non-denominational marriages and funerals.
I became a priest after earlier career as an award winning journalist, community organizer, and public relations professional. A longtime resident of New Haven, Connecticut, I helped form the New Haven Land Trust, creating the first land trust in a Connecticut city. My work has ranged from helping people living with HIV/AIDS to protecting the environmental quality of God’s creation. I am blessed to be the proud father of two amazing daughters. My husband works as a corporate lawyer in Silicon Valley.