Elizabeth Marie Melchionna, ‘06 M.Div.

The Rev. Elizabeth Marie Melchionna began serving as the 29th Rector of The Chapel of the Cross in August of 2016.

The Rev. Melchionna (pronounced mel-shio-na) is a native of Roanoke, Virginia. She has always felt curiosity about God and how encounters with God shape people’s lives and communities. This curiosity led her to study and work both domestically as well as in Madagascar, England, New Zealand, and Thailand. 

After working in outdoor education and leadership development, Mother Elizabeth Marie began her ordained ministry as a Luce Scholar teaching at Payap University and facilitating interfaith dialogue at the Institute for Religion, Culture and Peace, Chiang Mai, Thailand.  Always serving with an attentiveness to leading for healthy change, Elizabeth Marie has worked as a parish priest at St. Mary’s in Arlington, VA and as the Davidson College Episcopal Campus Minister and Associate Rector at St. Alban’s in Davidson, NC. Most recently she served as the Canon for Discipleship and Parish Life at St. John’s Cathedral in Denver, CO.

Elizabeth Marie holds degrees from Davidson College (magna cum laude) and Yale University’s Divinity School (summa cum laude). Additionally, she holds graduate certificates in Anglican Studies (Berkeley Divinity School at Yale), Liturgy (Yale Institute of Sacred Music), and Conflict Transformation (Eastern Mennonite University). 

As Rector (senior pastor and chief of staff), Elizabeth Marie gets to engage nearly every aspect of life at The Chapel of the Cross, from preaching, teaching, pastoral care and leadership development, to budgets, administration and financial stewardship. She is passionate about worship and music, the process of formation for all ages (informed by putting our faith into action), creating systems for healthy change, and in cultivating leaders who know, love, and follow Jesus.