Carolyn Winfrey Gillette is a

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' ...

writer and

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

. She has written over 400 hymns. Gillette and her husband Bruce are the pastors of First Presbyterian Union Church in Owego, New York since December 2018. They have previously served as pastors in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington ( Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...

, Pitman, New Jersey and Sussex County, New Jersey. Gillette was born in

Harrisonburg, Virginia Harrisonburg is an independent city in the Shenandoah Valley region of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. It is also the county seat of the surrounding Rockingham County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. At the 2 ...

on May 28, 1961. She grew up in a Methodist family, and her father was a graduate of Drew Seminary. She was baptized and

confirmed In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. For adults, it is an affirmation of belief. It involves laying on ...

in Methodist congregations. She graduated from United Methodist Church-related Lebanon Valley College. She and her husband Bruce are graduates for Princeton Theological Seminary. They are the parents of three children and four grandchildren.

External links

* "Carolyn Gillette talks to Joshua Rothman About Writing Hymns in Tragic Times" o
Politics and More Podcast
at ''The New Yorker'' website. 1961 births Living people American Presbyterian ministers Former Methodists Converts to Presbyterianism American hymnwriters American women hymnwriters 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American writers 21st-century American women writers 21st-century American writers People from Harrisonburg, Virginia Writers from Virginia Religious leaders from Virginia Lebanon Valley College alumni {{US-reli-bio-stub