Patricia Lyons

The Rev. Dr. Patricia Lyons is currently serving as Affiliative Faculty and Director of Evangelism at the Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, VA. Prior to her current teaching at VTS, Tricia served in the Episcopal Diocese of Washington as Canon for Evangelism. Dr. Lyons is one of the most sought-after teachers, speakers and preachers across many mainline denominations. She was formerly a chaplain, teacher, and administrator in Episcopal Schools. Early in her career she began publishing and consulting with schools across the country on stages of moral and spiritual development, delivering keynote addresses to the National Association of Independent Schools, the National Association of Episcopal Schools and other educational and religious institutions. For the past 15 years, Tricia has taught as an adjunct professor at the Virginia Theological Seminary, teaching masters and doctoral students in Systematic Theology, C.S. Lewis, Sigmund Freud, Theology and Fiction, Christian Apologetics and Evangelism. After 20 years in the field of education and educational consulting in schools and seminaries, Tricia felt called by God to work full-time for the Church. She was ordained an Episcopal priest in 2014 and has served as priest at multiple churches in Washington, DC, before joining the Bishop's staff in 2017. Tricia is an honors graduate from Harvard College in the Comparative Study of Religion. She holds a Master of Divinity degree from the Harvard Divinity School, with a focus on Biblical languages and systematic theology. Also at Harvard, Tricia was captain of the Women's Varsity Track and Field Team and the founder of the C.S. Lewis Society of Harvard, an organization of theological study and evangelism thriving to this day. She received her doctorate from the Virginia Theological Seminary in 2004. Her doctoral thesis was a study of the stages of moral and spiritual development of adolescents. She has published numerous articles, sermons and book chapters, including two acclaimed books, "The Soul of Adolescence" and her latest, "Teaching Faith with Harry Potter." Her next book, "What is Evangelism?" is due out in the fall of 2019. Dr. Lyons' unique mix of Ivy League academic training in theology with genuine humor and a contagious love of Jesus Christ has made her a national leader among the next generation of professors and preachers in American Christianity.