Our Clergy
The Rev. Janice Gordon-Barnes…
… or Janice, as she prefers to be known, was called to be the rector of the Church of the Holy Comforter in August, 1989.
Born and brought up in London, England, Janice+ came to America in April 1971. When asked what brought her here, with a straight face she always replies, “Pan Am World Airways!” And indeed that was so, but it was not just the means of her transportation here, it was also her occupation, for she flew around the world as a Pan Am stewardess.
Six continents and three years later, having wrestled with a sense of call to become a priest, Janice+ left Pan Am to embark upon a journey that at that time seemed to be impossible. Back in 1974 there was no such thing as a “female priest” in the Episcopal Church, yet her sense of being called by God was so powerful that she felt she needed to step into the abyss in faith.
She got her undergraduate degree from Northwestern University, Chicago, in Comparative Religions, and her Master’s from the Divinity School at the University of Chicago. This was followed by a year at Seabury Western Theological Seminary. By this time it was 1980, and while the dioceses on the East and West coasts allowed for the ordination of women to the priesthood, dioceses in the mid-west, such as Chicago, were bitterly opposed.
The journey was hard for Janice and the three other women from the same Diocese. While they were ordained Deacons in 1980, hurdles manifold and diverse were thrown in their way, but in February 1981 the “Chicago Four” of which Janice+ was one, were ordained Priests in St. James' Cathedral, Chicago.
Following her ordination, Janice was called first as Curate, then as Assistant, at St. Augustine’s Church, Wilmette, Ill., and after four years there, she said yes to a call from St. Anne’s in Annapolis. She arrived there in February 1984, then moved north to Lutherville in 1989.
Married, with three grown step-children and two step-grandchildren, she and her husband Bill (a tenor in the choir) live in Baltimore city and are owned by three cats. As she has said on numerous occasions: “I feel so blessed to have been called here to the Church of the Holy Comforter.”
The Rev. C. Allen Spicer…
… has been a part-time associate rector at Holy Comforter since 2001. He was ordained a priest in April, 1963 and served churches in the Diocese of Maryland and then the Diocese of Easton from 1965 to 1984. When he retired in 1998, he had been rector of the Church of the Nativity in Cedarcroft for 14 years.
He is president of the Central Maryland Ecumenical Council and has been on the Board of Directors for a decade representing the Diocese of Maryland.
He has been chair of the Board of Directors of Claggett Center since 1996 and was also chair from 1986-89.
Allen grew up in Westminster, Md., and graduated from Western Maryland College, now McDaniel College. He is also a graduate from Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, Virginia and was honored with a honorary doctorate from Western Maryland College in the early 1980s.
He has been married to Gwen for more than 40 years. They have two daughters and three grandchildren.
The Rev. Herb Lodder…
… has been a part-time associate rector at Holy Comforter since 1993. Since August, 2004, he has been the chaplain at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center.
With his background in drug abuse treatment, Herb has developed a Spirituality Discussion Group in the Detox Program, a Bible Study Group in the Center for Addiction and Pregnancy, and a Discharge Planning Group in the Mental Health Unit. He also teaches an End of Life Program for new nurses and calls upon 20 to 40 patients each day.
Prior to this, he was administrative director of the Behavioral Pharmacology Research Unit, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, for more than 24 years.
Herb has served various churches in Maryland, Virginia and New York.
A graduate of Duke University, with a degree in English, he also has advanced degrees from Virginia Theological Seminary, George Washington University, the University of Baltimore and Loyola College, Baltimore.
Herb has been married to Fran since February, 1980. They have seven children in their blended family.