The Taiwan Episcopal Church has a new priest and a new deacon ~ Thanks be to God! YES! ❤️

Rev. Alex Hsin-Tai Tso 左心泰 was ordained priest, and Mr. Ben Simmons 史博恩 ordained deacon by the Rt. Rev. Lennon Yuan-Rung Chang, Bishop of Taiwan at St. John’s Cathedral, Taipei at 10:30 am on Saturday, January 17, 2026 (the Confession of St. Peter).

Over 170 people gathered for the service, including a coachload from St. James’ Church, Taichung, who came to support Alex and Ben ~ both regard St. James’ Church as their home church ~ and including Ben’s parents, visiting from the USA. Rector Emeritus of St. James, Rev. Charles C. T. Chen and his wife, MaryJo, both now over 90, came too, and as always, were full of energy and life ~ and so happy to reconnect with MaryJo’s youngest sister, a member of St. John’s Cathedral.

Two choirs sang anthems, St. James’ Church Choir sang ‘Will You Come and Follow Me?” and the Buna Choir, dressed in red, from St. John’s Cathedral sang, ‘Most Beautiful Blessings’. Archdeacon Lily Chang, rector of St. James’ Church, preached, speaking very movingly about the importance of non-stipendiary clergy in the Taiwan Episcopal Church. It was clear from her sermon just how much she was personally involved in both Alex and Ben’s path to ordination, and her love and support for them both.

The service was also live-streamed:

Rev. Alex Hsin-Tai Tso 左心泰 was previously ordained deacon at St. John’s Cathedral, Taipei on the Feast of St. Mary Magdalene, Monday, July 22, 2024. He is the full-time General Secretary of Campus Evangelical Fellowship 校園福音團契 (CEF) in Taiwan, and will continue to serve in a non-stipendiary ministry at St. John’s Cathedral, Taipei. He introduces himself for our diocesan Friendship Magazine, as follows,

‘I was born in 1975 and raised in Taipei. My father worked for the army while my mother took care of me and my two brothers. My family did not have any religious affiliation. In December 1989, my family sent me to Canada to study. Shortly after I moved to Vancouver, a Christian reached out to me and introduced me to a Chinese church. I was baptised a year later, and about two years after that, I felt God calling me into full-time ministry. I spent the next 13 years in the same church, where I was discipled and learned to work with other peers. After I completed my bachelor studies at Simon Fraser University, I applied to Regent College and completed a Master of Christian Studies in Marketplace Ministry in 2003. Right after my graduation, I returned to Taiwan to work in secular jobs. First, I taught English in Yilan. Then I moved to Taipei and worked with a company for 18 months.

In mid-2005, I returned to the field of full-time ministry and became a staff member for CEF. I moved to the Episcopal Church in 2017, when my family was transferred to Taichung to work with students there, and I joined St. James’ Church. I was drawn by the liturgical worship. The inclusivity of the Episcopalians appealed to me, probably because students are more likely to be more progressive. Another reason why I was attracted by the Episcopal Church is that I studied in Regent College for my master’s degree, which has a close relationship with the Anglican Church, and even provides a special program for Anglican study. I have been working in student ministry for over 20 years; my wife, Jasmin is also on staff for student ministry, and we have two young daughters.’ It’s the youngest daughter who loves pulling faces in photos, so our final family group photo turned out like this, posing free-style!

Newly ordained deacon, Rev. Benjamin Edward Simmons 史博恩 is a humanities teacher at a Christian international school in Taichung, where he lives with his wife, Jesse and their two young children. He has been in Taiwan since 2020, and is part of the English Congregation at St. James’ Church, Taichung; he plans to serve in non-stipendiary ministry there after ordination. He introduces himself, as follows,

‘I was born in 1989 and raised in Toledo, Ohio, USA in an evangelical Christian family, but despite that, I did not really have an active faith of my own until I was in high school. My first real steps of faith came late in high school in 2005, through the influence of a youth minister who took a special interest in my life. I was asking some very deep, existential questions at the time – looking for hope, looking for something real, something that would give my life meaning and direction. My heart was restless, and I was tired of the rather shallow answers that seemed to satisfy my high school peers. This youth minister showed me what a life rooted in love of Jesus could look like: a life of peace, of compassion, and of depth. My life then took a drastic turn, and over the course of a year my life completely changed orientation. This led to my baptism in the Summer of 2006, and then to studying theology (as well as philosophy and English literature) in undergraduate college.

I then began teaching in Christian international schools right after college, eventually picking up a Master’s in Education and more theological training. I have since taught in Papua (Indonesia) for four years, Dakar (Senegal) for five years, and now Taichung (Taiwan) for the last six years. My wife – who is also American, and who I met as I was moving to Indonesia – grew up in Europe as the child of French missionaries, and we have kept our family living internationally in an attempt to expose our kids to cultures outside the United States, and out of a desire to serve at schools with a strong sense of Christian mission.’

Photos before the service….

In her sermon, Archdeacon Lily Chang gave thanks for the ministry of CEF and shared how she herself became a Christian in high school through CEF, and was then nurtured and trained during her university years at CEF summer camps and winter discipleship programs. She recalled how, when Alex and his family came to St. James’ Church, Taichung, it felt like a family long separated, finally reunited, saying that his ordination is truly a wonderful work of God. She also gave thanks for Morrison Academy, Taichung, where Ben serves, and how his life and ministry reflect a deep missionary calling. As partners with CEF and Morrison Academy, it is especially meaningful for Alex and Ben to be called to a bivocational ministry as non-stipendiary clergy in the Taiwan Episcopal Church.

Photos during the service & ordination…

Archdeacon Lily Chang also spoke about the sudden death, on Thursday, just two days before the ordination service, of Taiwan’s much-loved former Methodist bishop, Kwan-Wah Pong 龐君華會督 (Pang Jun-Hua). He had hoped to be at the ordination service, particularly to support Alex; he was a close friend of both the Taiwan Episcopal Church and CEF, and he will be much missed. May he rest in peace and rise in glory.

Holy Communion followed, then at the end, many people lined up to receive blessings from the new priest, Rev. Alex Tso.

Near the end of the sermon, Lily said, ‘Finally, we welcome you both into the clergy of the Episcopal Church in Taiwan and into the wider Anglican Communion. Your service as non-stipendiary clergy brings new depth and creativity to our clergy community. Through your ministries, the Episcopal Church in Taiwan will continue to bear faithful and life-giving witness to Christ in this land.’

Congratulations to Alex and Ben and to all the Taiwan Episcopal Church ~ and thanks be to Almighty God! ❤️