The Reverend Jennifer Totney is joining the community of Trinity Hall as Acting Dean for the Lent Term.
In this role, Jennifer offers pastoral care for all members of College, regardless of religious belief.
She also will have responsibility for the services in Chapel during the term. She joins the College during The Reverend Dr Stephen Plant’s sabbatical.
Jennifer said: “I am really looking forward to meeting everyone and getting to know the Trinity Hall community better in the coming weeks.”
Alongside being Acting Dean, Jennifer is Director of Contextual Training at Westcott House on Jesus Lane, a Church of England theological college training ordinands (including some who are, and have been, on placement in the College chapel).
Jennifer trained for ministry herself at Westcott, where she completed the theology Tripos (Selwyn 2006). Before returning to Cambridge in 2021, Jennifer served in parishes in Wiltshire in the Diocese of Salisbury, including as vicar of rural parishes in the Vale of Pewsey.
She has been involved in theological education at all levels throughout her ministry, discovering that exploring questions of theology with those of all faiths and none leads to stimulating conversations and learning for herself as well as her conversation partners.
Jennifer is interested in the relationship between poetry, liturgy and theology, especially in the work of George Herbert. She enjoys reading, choral music and travelling the UK and beyond with her husband and daughter. A keen walker, she often visits the Lake District to provide contrast to the expansive skies and level landscape of the fens.
Jennifer will be in College on Wednesdays and Sundays, as well as other times by arrangement, and can be contacted by email at any time.
All are welcome to attend services in Chapel; all details can be found in the Chapel Card.
At Evensong on Sundays, the preachers this term will follow the theme of Jesus’ ‘I am’ sayings, reflecting on the powerful images of light, shepherd, bread and vine found in John’s gospel. There will also be Thursday night Compline on 1 and 29 February at 9.15pm which are beautiful reflective evening services sung by the choir.