Quinn has been overseeing the Cathedral as Canon to the Ordinary ”” or assistant to the bishop ”” since June 2014. The new priest at Church of the Nativity, built in 1908, will be the Rev. Shawn Malarkey, 41.
Quinn, who was ordained on Feb. 1, 1983, will be responsible for all services, events, maintenance and fundraising at the Cathedral, which is considered the center of the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh.
He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 1977 and Trinity Episcopal School for Ministry in Ambridge in 1982. He’s also served as a councilman in Thornburg since 2002, and has three children with his wife, Vera.
Quinn said he first attended an Episcopal service as a Pitt student, when he spent a semester at Gordon College near Boston.
I wish Quinn well, but in some ways, moving to Trinity Cathedral is a step down: the church has lost half of its attendance since 2007 (down to less than 50 persons on an average Sunday), and plate-and-pledge has dropped to about $130,000 — a very modest amount for a Cathedral. Church of the Nativity in Crafton has a similar attendance, but probably has much more modest upkeep expenses compared to Trinity. With the revitalization of downtown Pittsburgh, there is a growing downtown population that the church could serve, so hopefully they will be able to connect with new residents.