Leadership

Rector

Rev. Dr. (Sam) Dessórdi Peres Leite
email: rector@stjamestempe.org
phone: (480) 345-2686

Fr. Sam was ordained in 1997 and came to us from St. Stephen and the Incarnation Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C. where he was the Senior Priest. Prior to that, he was the Vicar at St. James the Apostle Episcopal Church in Oakland, CA.

He is originally from Brazil and has a unique experience of being Episcopal/Anglican growing up in a Roman Catholic and diverse country. His master’s degree is in Liturgical Inculturation and his doctoral degree on Latino and Multicultural Ministries in the Episcopal Church. While in Brazil he was the Assistant Dean of the Holy Trinity National Cathedral. He worked as the Head for the National Christian Education Department and Youth Ministries and Mission Department. For two General Conventions, he was the Custodian of the Brazilian Book of Common Prayer.

His knowledge and experience of Ecumenism come not only from a country filled with religious diversity but also for his work as the Chair of the National Liturgical Committee of the 9th Assembly of the World Council of Churches. Also, at the international level, he was the representative for the Region of Americas on the International Anglican Youth Network for two mandates, as well as the representative for Brazil at the World Conference of Religions for Peace. Fr. Sam’s ministry in the U.S. has been working with spirituality and liturgical inculturation to enable Episcopal communities to engage in better dialogue with groups that bring cultural diversity and a diversity of languages to the table.