Meet Our Clergy

Revd Dr Catriona Laing - Chaplain
Catriona’s call to the priesthood was influenced by her desire to join those building the Kingdom of God with the poor and marginalized. Her academic interests, which stem from a childhood spent in the Middle East, are in the area of Muslim Christian relations and specifically the role of prayer in deepening inter-faith relations.  Before coming to Brussels, she worked in parishes in London and Washington D.C.. In addition to serving St Martha & St Mary’s, Catriona is Associate Chaplain at Holy Trinity with a particular remit to encourage the chaplaincy’s social justice ministry. Catriona also serves as Assistant Dean of Women’s Ministry for the Diocese in Europe. ​
Revd Sarah-Jane King - Curate
Originally from North East England, Sarah-Jane lived in Oxford, Leiden and Florence before settling in Belgium. She did not grow up in a Christian family and came to faith as a student. For her, following Christ is an adventure, a journey of discovery. Part of it is growing in how we see ourselves and others as God sees us, since Jesus offers life in all its fullness to everyone. Sarah-Jane studied theology at KUL and did her further training at St Mellitus College in London with an MA in Christian Leadership. Her interests are theologies of power and justice, resilience and wellbeing, pioneer ministry and outreach, Ignatian spirituality and contemplative prayer. She is married with two children, and she likes walking and singing.
Revd Canon Alan Strange
Alan lives in Leuven, and works from Leuven and Brussels as Chaplain to the Church of England’s Bishop in Europe. He served at Holy Trinity Brussels in the early 1990s, where he met and married Natalie; they have two grown-up children.
Revd Dr Hector Patmore
Hector is an Associate Professor in Biblical Studies at the KU Leuven and a priest in the Diocese in Europe. Once an atheist, it was the study of theology and the beauty of worship at Durham Cathedral that helped him find his way back to God. After Durham, Hector studied at Oxford, where he trained for ordained ministry at Ripon College Cuddesdon. He was ordained deacon in Llandaff and priest in Jerusalem. He welcomes the opportunity to put his academic training to the service of the wider church and finds joys in gathering with fellow pilgrims around Christ’s table.

The Chaplaincy Council

​Our church is governed by two councils, the Chaplaincy Council and Kerkraad.
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Meet our Chaplaincy Council! The parish administration in relation to the Church of England is undertaken by these wonderful members. If there is anything you wish to bring to the attention of the church council, please contact the secretary.
Revd Dr Catriona Laing - Chaplain
Catriona’s call to the priesthood was influenced by her desire to join those building the Kingdom of God with the poor and marginalized. Her academic interests, which stem from a childhood spent in the Middle East, are in the area of Muslim Christian relations and specifically the role of prayer in deepening inter-faith relations.  Before coming to Belgium, Catriona worked in parishes in London and Washington D.C.. In addition to serving St Martha & St Mary’s, Catriona is Associate Chaplain at Holy Trinity with a particular remit to encourage the chaplaincy’s social justice ministry. Catriona also serves as Assistant Dean of Women’s Ministry for the Diocese in Europe. ​
Revd Sarah-Jane King - Curate
Originally from North East England, Sarah-Jane lived in Oxford, Leiden and Florence before settling in Belgium. She did not grow up in a Christian family and came to faith as a student. For her, following Christ is an adventure, a journey of discovery. Part of it is growing in how we see ourselves and others as God sees us, since Jesus offers life in all its fullness to everyone. Sarah-Jane studied theology at KUL and did her further training at St Mellitus College in London with an MA in Christian Leadership. Her interests are theologies of power and justice, resilience and wellbeing, pioneer ministry and outreach, Ignatian spirituality and contemplative prayer. She is married with two children, and she likes walking and singing.

Sarah Jones - Safeguarding Officer & Churchwarden
Sarah is a PE and psychology teacher at a large international school. She is training to be a licensed lay minister and is one of our churchwardens, she enjoys exploring different musical styles as part of our worship. Away from church she enjoys hiking, camping and watching sport, in particular cricket.

Lydia Patmore - Churchwarden 
Lydia moved to Belgium in 2019 with her young family after a decade of living and working in the Middle East and western Europe.
A museum curator by training, since moving abroad, Lydia has worked within the education sector supporting international students in their studies and for the Anglican Diocese of Jerusalem. Within the M&M's community Lydia is church warden and part of the 'M&M's Kidz' team providing ministry to the church's younger members.

Paul de Pender - Treasurer 
​I'm 40 years old, born in the Netherlands, I moved to Belgium for a Master in Theological Studies at the Evangelical Theological Faculty. I left my job in banking to receive training and to be more prepared to serve God and his people. I've joined M&M's in 2020 and I feel at home in the liturgy and I'm happy about the space the Anglican Church has for the breadth of the body of Christ. I have a heart for prayer and for unity within the body of Christ. In the church I'm responsible for the Welcoming team, which is a great joy and I'm also active as the church's treasurer.

Nathan Shepura - Secretary 
​Nathan is an American who has lived in several parts of the world, including three years in the Middle East and nearly ten in Europe. He's worked since 2016 in Brussels.  
Nathan enjoys literature and sports and hearth fires and stained glass. He's grateful to have (re)discovered the M&Ms community in 2022.

Filipe Francisco - Intern @ M&Ms 
​Filipe Francisco is a lawyer that feels like a theologian and a theologian that feels like a lawyer. Originally from Brazil, he moved to Europe 05 years ago to enhance his skills and serve people around the world. First living in Portugal, he finished a Research Master's in Fundamental Rights at the University of Lisbon, where his research focused on the conflicts of values in the Public Sphere, applying the idea of the common good of religion as a system of belief and as a tool to contribute to public dialogue. Currently, he is completing a second Research Master's in Theology and Religious Studies at KU Leuven, researching the interconnection of the book of Deuteronomy as a sort of model of Constitutional Jurisdiction to the interpretation of Scripture in the 21 century. Recently, he has begun an internship at M&M's to discern his vocation for the priesthood. He has been impacted on how to love and let himself be loved more deeply by God through M&M's community.
He loves to spend his free time walking in nature, taking pictures, watching tv shows, reading books and playing chess and Zelda.

Karen Papellero 
Karen is currently a PhD student / researcher at the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies, KU Leuven. When she is not making notes on her books or sorting out her schedule, she enjoys trying out recipes in the kitchen and talking to the house cat. She also likes to listen to stories and adventures of ordinary people.
 

Shelley Hall 
Originally from Leeds, UK, I have been living in Leuven, Belgium for the past 18 years. I am probably the oldest member of the original church here and that goes back to before we even had a priest! At the time we were lucky to get a visiting priest once or twice a month. It is lovely to see how this church has progressed thanks to the addition of new and dedicated members. Sometimes there were as few as five of us at a service in the beginning.
I studied theology at KU Leuven for a total of 6,5 years and duly graduated. Since then I have been teaching religion and English in various schools in Flanders and Brussels. At present I am teaching Catholic religion at St. Martinus College in Overijse. I find this to be a highly positive ecumenical experienced and am thoroughly enjoying it.
At St. Martha and Mary I have previously served as a council member, church warden and secretary and am at present serving on the council. My hobbies are painting, reading and listening to music.

Rebecca Breekveldt 
​Rebecca currently works as a freelance translator and copywriter.
After living in many different countries, she and her husband have made Leuven their home for the next few years and have greatly enjoyed becoming part of M&M’s welcoming community.
When she is not at the computer working and answering emails, she can be found experimenting in the kitchen, curled up with tea and a good book, or exploring the great outdoors by bike or on foot.

The Kerkraad

Meet our Kerkraad! The civil administration of our church in relation to the City of Leuven is undertaken by Dutch-speaking members.
Alan lives in Leuven, and works from Leuven and Brussels as Chaplain to the Church of England’s Bishop in Europe. He served at Holy Trinity Brussels in the early 1990s, where he met and married Natalie; they have two grown-up children.

Revd Canon Alan Strange - President 
Revd Catriona Laing - Chaplain
Catriona’s call to the priesthood was influenced by her desire to join those building the Kingdom of God with the poor and marginalized. Her academic interests, which stem from a childhood spent in the Middle East, are in the area of Muslim Christian relations and specifically the role of prayer in deepening inter-faith relations.  Before coming to Brussels, she worked in parishes in London and Washington D.C.. In addition to serving St Martha & St Mary’s, Catriona is Associate Chaplain at Holy Trinity with a particular remit to encourage the chaplaincy’s social justice ministry. Catriona also serves as Assistant Dean of Women’s Ministry for the Diocese in Europe. ​
Paul de Pender - Treasurer 
​I'm 40 years old, born in the Netherlands, I moved to Belgium for a Master in Theological Studies at the Evangelical Theological Faculty. I left my job in banking to receive training and to be more prepared to serve God and his people. I've joined M&M's in 2020 and I feel at home in the liturgy and I'm happy about the space the Anglican Church has for the breadth of the body of Christ. I have a heart for prayer and for unity within the body of Christ. In the church I'm responsible for the Welcoming team, which is a great joy and I'm also active as the church's treasurer.

Elsie Wilms - Secretary 
​Elsie was born and raised in Lanaken, Limburg. At age 27 she migrated to Belize, Central-America where she managed the George Price Centre for Peace and Development. In Belize she came to faith and became part of the Nazarene Church. She obtained an MA in Christian Studies and returned home in 2013. Since that time she has headed the Academic Secretariat of the Evangelische Theologische Faculteit, Leuven.

Volunteers

Mathias Weikl - Environmental Officer
Originally from Austria, Mathias studied Theology in Belfast before starting his Research Master’s in Theology at KU Leuven in 2021. Through conversations at M&M’s, he has become interested in how the Christian faith relates to the Ecological Crisis. He enjoys talking theology, reading and listening to
music. Having grown up in the mountains of Austria, Mathias also enjoys spending time being active in the outdoors, biking, climbing, or running.
Tatiana Ntompridou - Website Maintenance
​Tatiana was born in Ukraine but grew up in Greece with her mother and their beautiful cat. After studying Preschool Education and Theology in Greece, she came to Leuven in 2019 to pursue a Master of Advanced Studies in Theology and Religion at KU Leuven, which she accomplished in 2021. In her free time, she enjoys listening to jazz music, reading non-fiction books, going for long walks, exploring nature, and visiting old churches and monasteries.