A Death in our Diocesan Family - The Very Rev. Dr. William H. Petersen

The Very Rev. Dr. William H. Petersen of Fairport, NY, died June 5, 2025, at Rochester General Hospital, Rochester, NY. He was born in Davenport, IA, on February 13, 1941, to William A. and Dorothea (Schultz) Petersen. He was married to Priscilla (Eide) on July 20, 1963, in San Mateo, CA. He is survived by his wife, their children Erik of Fairport and Daphne Petersen of Penfield, grandson Fletcher Brown, and several cousins. He was preceded in death by his parents and a younger sister, Kathleen, who died at age two.

He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Grinnell College, Grinnell, IA, in 1963; a Master of Divinity degree from Church Divinity School of the Pacific (CDSP), Berkeley, CA, 1966; a PhD from Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, CA, 1976; was a Fellow at the Case-Study Institute, Cambridge, MA, 1977; a Diplomate at the Warren Deem Institute for Theological Education Management, Harriman, NY, 1985; did further graduate work at the Graduate School of Ecumenical Studies, World Council of Churches, Geneva, Switzerland, 1989; and did Archival Research on Bishop Brent, at the World Council of Churches Library, Geneva, Switzerland, Winter 1995.

Fr. Petersen served locally as Dean of Bexley Hall Seminary, Rochester (1983-1996), and was named Dean Emeritus (2002) and Professor Emeritus (2009) of Ecclesiastical and Ecumenical History when Bexley Hall was in partnership with Trinity Lutheran Seminary, Columbus, Ohio. He retired in June 2009.

Dr. Petersen’s pastoral experiences as an Episcopal priest were extensive. In recent years, he served in the Diocese of Rochester as Interim Associate, Interim Rector, or Interim Pastor at St. Paul’s, Rochester; Christ Church, Pittsford; St. Luke’s, Fairport; and All Saints, Irondequoit. He was also an assisting priest at Trinity Church on Capitol Square, Columbus, OH, Priest Associate at Church of the Good Shepherd, New York City, NY, and served in other priestly positions in Wisconsin, California, and Iowa.

He was active in seminary education for his entire vocation, serving a decade as the
Professor of Church History at Nashotah House, Nashotah, WI (tenured 1977) before moving to Rochester. In addition to his many years as Dean, he was also active in the administration as Provost at Colgate Rochester Divinity School (CRDS) from 1985-1987, Provost at Bexley Hall Seminary with responsibility for the campus in Columbus, OH, 1999- 2009, and Interim Director of the Anglican Studies Program at Colgate Rochester/Crozer Divinity School (CRCDS) from 2011-2012.

He served the international church as a visiting professor in Hong Kong, lectured in the Czech Republic, was the American Council of Churches appointment as member of the Anglican-Lutheran International Commission, and served on the International Anglican Liturgical Consultation.

Nationally, he was on the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music, was appointed by the Presiding Bishop (PB) to represent the Episcopal Church to the Consultation on Common Texts, served on the PB’s Select Committee of Bishops and Deans, and the Theology Committee of the Standing Commission on Ecumenical Relations. He also served on the Board for Theological Education, the PB’s Ecclesiological Advisory Group, was Alternate or Deputy for five successive triennial General Conventions, was on the General Board of Examining Chaplains, the Council of Episcopal Seminary Deans, the Standing Commission on Ecumenical Relations, a delegate for the Consultation on Church Union, and was on the board of the Anglican Theological Review and the Council of Associated Parishes for Liturgy and Mission. He was a regular speaker/teacher at the annual National Workshops on Christian Unity.

One of his most rewarding undertakings was his work on the Lutheran-Episcopal Dialogues II and III (1978-1991). Those conversations and complex proceedings resulted in Inter-Eucharistic fellowship between the Episcopal Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA). He was a leader/keynoter/teacher at innumerable diocesan and/or synodal ecumenical conferences in the Anglican-Lutheran reception process. His booklet, Traditions Transplanted: The Story of Anglican and Lutheran Churches in America (with Robert Goeser), (Forward Movement Publications ©1981), summarizes the history of these “two traditions, as they were transplanted from state church environments in England and Europe to the religious pluralism and frontier conditions of North America.” The two articles in the booklet were “an experiment in mutual storytelling, by two well-
known professors of Church History.”

At the diocesan level, he served on various committees (liturgical, pastoral, or theological) and led retreats, quiet days, and ecumenical conferences in dioceses in fifteen states as well as Canada.

Fr. Petersen wrote numerous articles and reviews in professional journals and was the author of What Are We Waiting For? Reclaiming Advent for Time to Come. In his article, “Re-Writing Wesley: An Advent Intervention,” published in Proceedings—Journal of the North American Academy of Liturgy (October 4, 2024), Petersen modified verse two of Hymn #57, “Lo, He comes, with clouds descending,” (The Hymnal 1982) to replace anti- Semitic phrasing with more inclusive lyrics.

He was a distinguished historian, theologian, liturgist, and ecumenist in the Episcopal
Church and the greater Anglican Communion. Dr. Petersen was a mentor to seminarians fulfilling their vocations in the church, and was noted for supporting inclusivity within his community, the church, and the world. He was a strong influence on the formation of generations of Episcopal clergy.

Special honors included having a private audience with His Holiness, Pope John Paul II, at the Vatican in 1989, where he was invested with the coveted award for extraordinary service in the Ecumenical Movement: Santissimo Ordo del Cordoncino Verdi (al Dente); receiving an Honorary Doctorate from his alma mater, CDSP, in 1997; and receiving an Honorary Doctorate from the Most Rev. Peter Kwong, Bishop of Hong Kong, in 1998. He attended the World Council of Churches assemblies in France, Zimbabwe, and Australia. Bill was a delightful and witty conversationalist who freely referenced authors from Dante to J.K. Rowling. He enriched his life with cultural experiences of repertory theatre, art museums, symphonic, organ, and choral music, and reading. He deeply loved his wife, children, and grandson, Fletcher, and was richly blessed with an immense circle of beloved friends.

Calling hours will be at Keenan Funeral Home, 7501 Pittsford-Palmyra Rd, Fairport NY, Sunday, June 22, 12-2 PM, and a Requiem Eucharist will be on Thursday, June 26, at 2 PM at Christ Episcopal Church, 141 East Avenue, Rochester, the Rt. Rev. Kara Wagner Sherer presiding. He will be interred into the columbarium of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Fairport. The family will provide flowers. Memorial gifts can be made in his memory to WXXI Public Media, https://www.wxxi.org, or Episcopal Relief and Development, https://www.episcopalrelief.org.