A Letter to the People of St. James Fordham

September 4, 2026

Dear People of St. James the Greater, Fordham,

There are some letters that are easy to write, and there are others that come only after much prayer, reflection, and emotion. This is one of those letters.

As many of you now know, I have accepted a call to serve as Rector of the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd in Maitland, Florida. My last day of active ministry at St. James Fordham will be September 30, after which I will take my accumulated vacation in October before beginning this new chapter of ministry.

But before I leave, I need to say something that is much more important than dates and transitions:

Thank you.

Thank you for allowing me to walk with you, worship with you, preach with you, laugh with you, struggle with you, and serve alongside you.

Ministry at St. James has never simply been about Sunday mornings. Together, we have tried to be the Church in the middle of the realities of the Bronx—in a community where people know struggle, immigration, economic hardship, loneliness, injustice, gun proliferation, and uncertainty, but where we have also witnessed extraordinary faith, resilience, generosity, and hope.

You have taught me a lot.

You have reminded me that a church does not need to be wealthy to be generous.

A church does not need to be large to make a difference.

And a congregation does not need to have everything figured out before God can use it.

Again and again, I have watched St. James open its doors, share its resources, feed its neighbors, welcome strangers, pray for the suffering, and proclaim that God’s love still has something to say in Fordham and in the Bronx.

For that witness, I will always be grateful.

Transitions are never easy. They bring questions about what comes next. But throughout my ministry among you, I have preached that the Church belongs neither to its priest nor to any one generation of its members.

The Church belongs to Jesus Christ.

Clergy come and go. Leadership changes. Seasons begin and seasons end. But the mission continues because the One who called St. James into being is not leaving.

God is still here.

God is still calling.

God is still working.

And I believe St. James still has ministry to do.

So I leave you not simply with goodbye, but with encouragement: keep loving one another. Keep welcoming the stranger. Keep feeding the hungry. Keep standing with those whom the world pushes aside. Keep opening those doors. Keep praying. Keep worshiping. Keep trusting God.

And please—keep laughing.

There have been enough tears in this world already.

Robin and I carry with us deep gratitude for the love you have shown us. We will remember the meals, the conversations, the celebrations, the difficult days, the jokes, the prayers, and the countless ordinary moments through which a congregation slowly becomes family.

I am going to Florida because I believe God has called me into another season of ministry. But leaving St. James does not erase what we have shared.

You will remain part of my story, my ministry, and my prayers.

And wherever God leads us from here, we remain members of the same Body, followers of the same Jesus, and children of the same God.

So perhaps this is not simply goodbye.

Perhaps it is better to say:

Thank you.

God bless you.

Keep the faith.

And until we meet again—keep following Jesus.

With gratitude always,

The Rev. Dr. Nathanael Saint-Pierre
Missioner for Community Development