Clergy & Staff
The Rev. Edward Thornley, Rector
Father Ed is the Ninth Rector of The Episcopal Parish of St. John the Evangelist in Hingham, Massachusetts.
A U.K. native from Canterbury, Father Ed studied theology at the University of Exeter and then trained for ordination at Westcott House, Cambridge, and at Yale Divinity School. He was ordained in the Church of England and served his curacy in the Dereham and District Team Ministry, a six-parish benefice in the Diocese of Norwich.
Following his curacy, Fr. Ed served as Assistant Priest and Chaplain to St. Marylebone Parish Church in the Diocese of London. In London, he held multiple simultaneous positions as Chaplain to The St. Marylebone CE School, The St. Marylebone CE Bridge School (the Church of England’s flagship free school for students with special educational needs), and The Royal Academy of Music. He also served as coordinating Anglican Chaplain to The University of Westminster.
Upon moving to the United States, Fr. Ed began his ministry to the Episcopal Church as Middle and Upper School Chaplain at All Saints’ Episcopal School in Fort Worth, Texas. He then served as Day School Chaplain and Associate Rector at St. Patrick’s Episcopal Church and Day School in Washington D.C., until he was called as the Ninth Rector of St. John’s in summer 2024.
These diverse experiences have given Fr. Ed an enduring passion for theological education, Christian formation, and intergenerational ministry. Building on his expertise in religious education and interfaith dialogue, he is currently writing a Ph.D. in Divinity at the University of Aberdeen, where his research focuses on the nature of Christian vocation in a pluralist society.
Fr. Ed is married to Dr. Devon Abts, a Massachusetts native and theologian specializing in religion and the arts, whom he met at Yale. Devon serves as Director of Operations and Research at The Clemente Course in the Humanities, a higher education nonprofit that provides free, college-accredited courses to underserved communities.
Fr. Ed and Devon live in the Rectory with their two cats, Spyro and Duke, and they enjoy spending time with friends and family on both sides of the pond. They love music and the arts, reading, traveling, hiking, cycling, cooking, and devoting their life together to serving God with their community.
Sr. Adele Marie Ryan SSM, Priest Associate
Our Priest Associate, Sister Adele Marie Ryan, SSM was born and raised in New York City where she and her family were active members of the Church of the Intercession in Washington Heights.
Prior to college she worked in data processing at the New Jersey Bell Telephone Company. Shortly after graduation from Fairleigh Dickinson University, she entered the Society of Saint Margaret in Boston, making her profession in life vows in 1964. She was Director of Saint Margaret’s Camp for Girls in Duxbury, served on the staff of Grace Church, Newark, N.J., Saint Christopher’s Chapel, Lower East Side, NYC, and Saint Luke’s Church, Germantown, Philadelphia, where, in 1981 she was ordained to the priesthood after graduation from the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia. During her years in the Diocese of Pennsylvania Sister Adele Marie chaired the Diocesan Committee on Spiritual Growth, served on the Liturgical Commission, and was Dean of the Wissahickon Deanery.
Sister Adele Marie is the Superior of the Society of Saint Margaret. As such she exercises oversight for the life and mission of the Society in Duxbury, Dorchester, New York City, and Haiti. During her terms as Superior she has learned more about real estate and construction than she ever wanted to know. She lives at Saint Margaret’s Convent in Duxbury, with eight Sisters of the Community.
Fr. Robert Edson, Rector Emeritus
The Rev. Robert Edson was born at U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., and was raised in Washington, D.C. He graduated with a B.A. from Tusculum College, Greeneville, Tenn., in 1963, and earned his M.Div. from the Episcopal Theological School in Cambridge, Mass., in 1966. He was ordained to the diaconate in 1966 and to the priesthood in 1967 in the Washington National Cathedral. He served as Assistant in Saint John’s Church, Chevy Chase, Md., 1966-70; Rector of Saint John’s Church in Cornwall, N.Y., 1970-76; Rector of Trinity Church in Washington, D.C., 1976-81; and Rector of Saint John the Evangelist, Hingham, from 1981 until he retired in 2007. Father Robert served as Interim at Saint John’s Church in Franklin, Mass., and Parish Priest at Emmanuel Church in West Roxbury, Mass.
His wife, the late Rev. Diane M. Edson, was a priest and Rector of St. Andrew’s Church in Hanover for five years. She was the founding director of Wellspring Multi-Service Center in Hull, Mass. They have two children.
Fr. Robert has served as Dean of the South Shore Clergy and was Director of the Recently Ordained Clergy of the Diocese for 11 years. He presently serves as a Chaplain to Retired Clergy and Surviving Spouses, the Board of the Society of the Relief of Aged or Disabled Episcopal Clergy and the Society for the Relief of Widows and Orphans of Episcopal Clergy. He is an Associate of the Society of Saint Margaret, Vice-President of the Margaret Coffin Prayer Book Society, Chair of the Board of Wellspring Multi-Service Center in Hull, and is on the Boards of Blue Hills Healthy Families in Weymouth and the Coastal Area Board of the Department of Children and Families.
Fr. Robert continues to serve St. John’s as a Pastoral Care Associate.
Monique Weiss Byrnes, Organist and Director of Music
Monique lives with her husband Brendan in Foxborough, Massachusetts, where they raised their two children, Luke and Chloe Byrnes. Monique has focused on the spiritual and nourishing qualities that sacred choral and liturgical music bring to the singer and musician in the church community. The joy, beauty, love, and deep caring inherent in the sacred choral community has inspired her vocation as a liturgical musician. She has directed children’s, RSCM, youth, and adult choirs in the Episcopal church and finds a natural and deep connection to each other and the Divine in each moment of sacred music making in the Episcopal tradition.
Monique received a Bachelor’s of Music in Organ Performance and Master’s in Music Teaching with a Choral emphasis from Oberlin Conservatory of Music. Since Oberlin, she has played organ and directed choirs in churches, schools, and communities. She writes, “As a choral director, I find the simple, intriguing, and sometimes messy work of this musical and spiritual journey with each chorister and the choir as a whole, to be a fascinating, mystical, and glorious journey and in part a musical meditation or prayer to God.”
To balance the music, Monique loves spending time in nature, going to museums and concerts with her husband Brendan, their children, and their Australian cattle dog, Daisy. In addition, she can be found gardening, cooking, baking, kayaking, hiking, and doing yoga as a way to center her day around finding God in each sacred moment of life.
Alexis MacElhiney, Sunday School Director & Youth Coordinator
Alexis MacElhiney has lived in Hingham for the past 17 years with her husband, Rob, and two boys, Matt and Danny. She grew up in Knoxville, Tenn., and received her Bachelor’s degree in Finance from the University of Tennessee.
She worked in commercial lending at Bank of America for many years before deciding to stay home full time with her children. In 2015, she returned to the workplace as part-time Sunday School Director at St. John’s. During that time period, she also pursued her interest in finance by working as a part-time bookkeeper at Holly Hill Farm.
The year 2020 was quite tumultuous and she decided she needed to leave her position at St. John’s and focus on health and family life. She returned to the Sunday School position in 2022.
She remained involved at St. John’s and served as Treasurer and a member of the Vestry in 2022.
Alexis’s interests include travel, gardening, boating, and walks with their yellow lab Leo.
Amsale Faye, Accountant
Amsale has been St. John’s part-time Accountant since April, 2013. Amsale (pronounced Am-sall-ee) has over 30 years of experience with accounting and finance in the non-profit and private sectors. She holds a BS in Management and MBA in Accounting & Finance from Suffolk University. In addition, Amsale has worked at the Society of St. Margaret in Duxbury and currently at St. Stephen’s Church/Youth Programs in Boston. She has two children and is a proud grandmother of three. Amsale is one of the founders of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Boston and is an active board member.
Myriah Manley, Sexton
Our Sexton, Myriah, is a long time resident of Hingham where she grew up attending St. Paul’s School before pursuing a pre-med course of study at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Prior to joining us at St. John’s, Myriah was a Floral Director at Whole Foods, experience that’s evident in her beautiful work with St. John’s planters. Myriah is also a singer/songwriter and recording artist and she runs her own floral design business with her mother Dorothy, St. John’s long-time Sexton. In addition to all of these other remarkable skills, Myriah holds two degrees in Reiki Japanese Healing Art, and is pursuing a Masters degree.
Nancy Holtschlag, Parish Administrator
Nancy was born and raised in Hingham, where she resides with her husband, Mike, their four children, and their two dogs. She has been a parishioner at St. John’s for over fifteen years and has been active in several church ministries, including Sunday School, the Holiday Boutique, B-Safe, and Outreach.
A graduate of Harvard University (BA Government), Nancy spent her early professional years working for her family’s direct mailing business. After a brief stint in Philadelphia, where she worked on a research grant for the Annenberg Public Policy Center, Nancy returned to Hingham to raise her family. For the last twenty years she has volunteered her time extensively at the church, the Hingham schools, and the community at large. She also served for several years on the Board of Directors at the Company Theatre in Norwell.