Roy L. Heller

Where is the place that you call “home”?
Home is Dallas, where I and my family have lived since 1999.

How long have you been Episcopalian?
I’ve been an Episcopalian since around 1990… so that’s 27 years… just a bit over half my lifetime.

Who would you call your greatest “teacher” of the Christian faith and life?
Hmmmm… tough question. My grandfather, Roy Harvey, was one of the earliest teachers I had about the depth and complexity of what it means to be a Christian. Although he himself never went beyond the third grade in his education, he had an incredibly sharp mind and deep soul.

If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?
I’d probably like to return to Israel and, specifically, Jerusalem. Quite apart from its relevance for Scripture and the histories of Judaism and early Christianity, I find the place and the people to be strangely familiar to me.

What is your favorite book about spirituality?
No joking, I find the short stories of Flannery O’Connor to be incredibly deep and sacramental (if aberrant and somewhat troubling) visions of Christian spirituality.

What is something we might be surprised to know about you?
During the summers of the past eleven years, I have worked at the oldest continuously-run boys camp in the United States, Camp O-AT-KA in the state of Maine, where I teach rifle sharpshooting, as well as fly-tying (making little hooks look like insects) to boys 9 to 15.

Who in your life is important to you?
This is easy: my family, especially my beloved wife, Amy.

What is a risk that you would like to one day take?
I wouldn’t mind jumping out of an airplane, preferably with a parachute attached to my back.

What’s your favorite word?
Splendid. (No other word completely encompasses the facets of meaning that “splendid” does.)

What is your favorite memory?
By far, this is the most difficult question. There are too many memories, and more are coming in every day… and the vast, vast majority of them are “splendid.” I’ve had a very fortuitous life.

Why do you serve on the Adult Formation Committee?
Because, although the Altar and Font are the spiritual centers of the church, the body of Christians who make up the church are zombies or robots unless each and every one of them are learning and growing and exploring more and more their own selves, their relationship with other people, and their relationship with the Mystery of all Being. There is, perhaps, nothing more important that the church does than provide opportunities for its members to explore what it means to be a human and to be a Christian. It literally affects EVERYTHING that we are about and what we do and the effect we have upon this world.