By A.J. Dugger III
Holy Trinity Episcopal Church has become renowned for engaging with the homeless community every Sunday. After their 9 and 11 A.M. morning worship services, the congregation holds another service at 2 pm called “The Church In The Yard Eucharist.” “We have a large meal for the folks that came to church, although many others come out for Church In The Yard,” said Father Bill Dennler, who became a priest at Holy Trinity in 2009. “Typically on a Sunday at 2 pm we have anywhere from 150 to 200 meals served.”
Dennler says that during that meal, he and the congregation get to engage with the homeless people in attendance. “Eye contact is very important,” said Dennler. “We want to treat them like we’d treat anybody else. We don’t want to just serve them a plate. We talk to them and have conversation to get to know them. In the course of that we find out that we’re all alike in many ways.” Dennler said that he’s seen people bond before his eyes during the meals. “I like the open atmosphere. After these meals most of the people look at the homeless people differently.”
While some people may wonder what a priest has in common with homeless people, Dennler explained that he can relate. “I know what it’s like to be in the positions that they’re in,” said the priest, who has turned his life around dramatically. Dennler was born in Connecticut but grew up in California. In the past he was an alcoholic drug addict going in and out of prison. He once lived on the streets and can relate to the people in those situations. “It’s a divine thing that I would end up here at Holy Trinity. There’s a large homeless presence with everything from addiction to mental health issues to people in poverty.” By opening the church’s doors and sharing his own story, Dennler has become an inspiration to people enduring rough times.
The priest wants people to know that it is a stereotype that homeless people are lazy. “It’s not a case of people who don’t want to work,” he said. “There’s a lot of complex problems out here. People end up homeless for various reasons.”
Dennler says that it feels good to fellowship with people who are misfortuneate. “That’s part of my calling,” he told The Tennessee Tribune. “We live in a great country with a lot of opportunities and wealth. These kinds of things should be looked at in a different way.”
Holy Trinity Episcopal Church is located at 615 6th Ave South. Call (615) 256-6359 or visit chtnashville.com for more information.