Effective January 1, Father James Murphy will be assuming a new role at St. Thomas High School as Vice President of Mission. In this new position, Fr. Murphy will be responsible for the faith formation of the entire St. Thomas community and will serve as the primary source of sacramental support. His new role will amplify his ministerial gifts of fostering spiritual connections and service to the school, in the Basilian charism.

This decision comes from the Basilian Fathers and is part of their work through the Basilian Network for Education and New Evangelization (BNENE). In recent months, the network has been aiding schools in transitioning to lay operational leadership in an effort to utilize clerical expertise to bolster their functions within the ministry. The Vice President of Mission is a newly created position within the BNENE model that is being implemented at all of the North American Basilian high schools. Father Murphy will remain as the primary spiritual leader on St. Thomas’ campus, to assist the students, faculty, staff, and alumni in their journeys through the faith.

As this transition unfolds, the St. Thomas Board of Directors has appointed John Rynd, a Class of 1975 alumnus and deeply cherished member of the school community, to serve as the Interim President, beginning January 1, 2025. John brings decades of leadership experience and an in-depth understanding of St. Thomas’ mission and values to the position. He is a proud parent of alumni Clay (’08) and Kyle (’09), and his daughter Kelley (St. Agnes, ’12) was part of the cheerleading team for three years. Recently, John has volunteered as a coach for our freshman football team, where he has forged strong relationships with Father Murphy, school leadership, and key members of our community.

This transition bridges the school to a future of operational lay leadership, while ensuring the Basilian charism remains the strength of our mission. The school looks forward to welcoming Fr. Murphy into this new role and John Rynd into his lay leadership position.

FAQs

  • What is BNENE?

BNENE is the Basilian Network for Education and New Evangelization. Their mission is to “prepare, inspire and empower every educator in a Basilian school to prepare young people for a faith-filled life of service, fidelity, success and love through solid formation of Basilian and Catholic principles.” To learn more about BNENE, please click here.

BNENE is comprised of the following schools:

St. Thomas High School – Houston, Texas

St. Michael’s College School – Toronto, Ontario

Detroit Catholic Central – Detroit, Michigan

Detroit Cristo Rey – Detroit, Michigan

  • What are the other Basilian high schools doing?

St. Thomas is following in the guidance of BNENE to make these changes. All schools the network will be following the same guidance and rolling out the same transitions.

  • What is Father Murphy’s new role?

Father Murphy will be assuming the new role of Vice President of Mission. In this role, he will serve as the pastoral leader of St. Thomas High School and model Goodness, Discipline and Knowledge. As the VP of Mission, he will oversee all facets of faith formation, mission and chaplaincy at the school. Key responsibilities of the role include providing sacramental support for all school community members, participating in all faith formation events, such as Mass, Adoration, Spiritual direction, and confession, and teaching class(es) in the Theology Department.

  • Will Father Murphy still be at St. Thomas?

Yes! Father Murphy will remain at St. Thomas to serve students, faculty, staff, Board Members, and alumni. His new role will highlight his ministerial gifts and allow him to fortify the Basilian charism at St. Thomas High School.