The Rt. Rev. Royal U. Grote, Jr. attended Reformed Episcopal Seminary in Philadelphia and was ordained in 1975. He served as a local parish priest in Pennsylvania and New Jersey until coming to Houston, TX in 1991. In 1984 he was consecrated Bishop and subsequently, the Reformed Episcopal Church called him to be a Missionary Bishop and to plant parishes in the Central and Western United States. He is now the Bishop Ordinary of the Diocese of Mid-America and oversees more than 40 parishes. When he is not traveling, Bishop Grote attends St. Matthias.

The Very Rev. Jason R. Grote was called as our Vicar in 2000. He received his theological training at the Reformed Episcopal Seminary in Philadelphia. There he received an award in homiletics (preaching). He is currently pursuing his Bachelor of Business Degree at the University of Houston Downtown. Once completed, the Reformed Episcopal Seminary will grant him his Master of Divinity degree.

Fr. Jason served as a youth pastor in New Jersey and at one of our Houston area parishes - St. Thomas of Canterbury. He was ordained to the Presbyterate on September 14, 2000 and has been with St. Matthias ever since. In addition to serving as our Priest, he is also the treasurer for the Diocese of Mid-America, the webmaster for the Reformed Episcopal Church and works as a programmer for a web/database consulting firm.

He married his wife, Liz, in February 2004 and they had their firstborn, Aidan, on November 10th, 2005. Fr. Jason is an avid golfer and loves the Philadelphia Eagles!!

Deaconess Annette Johnson assists Father Grote in the ministry of the Church, especially with women and children, under the supervision of the Bishop. She holds a degree in Education with certifications in Reading and Learning Disabilities. Her graduate work has been in the areas of Education Diagnostics and Theology. She was set apart as a Deaconess on the Feast of St. Bridgid (Bride), January 31, 1993.

A Deaconess is 'set apart' but not an ordained office of ministry in the same respect as Deacons, Presbyters, and Bishops. These offices are reserved for men according to Holy Scripture. However, the ministry of Deaconess is an ancient and useful ministry for women. To learn more about the ministry of Deaconess, you may visit the Deaconess page.