Welcome Father Dwight Longenecker!

Photo: Portrait of Father Dwight Longenecker (taken from Our Lady of the Rosary Church & School website)

Father Dwight Longenecker was raised an Evangelical in Pennsylvania. After studying theology at Oxford University, he was ordained as an Anglican priest and served as a curate, a school chaplain in Cambridge and a country parson on the Isle of Wight.

Photo: Father Dwight with his wife and 4 children (taken from his website)

Realising that the Anglican Church and he were on divergent paths, Father Longenecker and his family were received into the Catholic Church in 1995.

Photo: Father Dwight and his family in 2015 (taken from his website)

Photo: Father Dwight celebrates Good Friday at his parish, Our Lady of the Rosary Church in Greenville, South Carolina. (taken from parish website)

In December 2006, God’s Providence opened the door for him to return to the USA and be ordained as a Catholic Priest under the special pastoral provision for married former Anglican clergy, and who now serves as Pastor of Our Lady of the Rosary Church in Greenville, South Carolina.

Photo: Father Dwight in his office (taken from his Facebook account, Standing on My Head)

A prolific speaker and writer, Father Longenecker has written numerous books including his earlier works: ‘Adventures in Orthodoxy’ (2002), which is popularly described as ‘a Chestertonian romp through the Apostles’ Creed, ‘More Christianity: Finding the Fullness of the Faith’ (2010) is a simple and popular explanation of Catholicism addressing Evangelical Christians and his more recent publications such as ‘Beheading Hydra: A Radical Plan for Christians in an Atheistic Age’ (2011), ‘There and Back Again: A Somewhat Religious Odyssey’ (2023), ‘Kicking the Brick: Restoring Reality in Everyday Life’ (2024).

Photo: Holy Mass celebrated by Father Dwight Longenecker at his parish, Our Lady of the Rosary Church in Greenville, South Carolina.

His books are readily available on Catholic Truth Society, Ignatius Press, Sophia Institute Press, Our Sunday Visitor, and Amazon. Father Longenecker has been featured on various prominent podcasts including EWTN’s ‘The Coming Home Network International’ (2014), Gospel Simplicity with Austin Suggs (2021) and ‘Rescuing the Novus Ordo’ (2022) with Brian Holdsworth.

Father Longenecker is a regular contributor to National Catholic Register,  The Imaginative Conservative and a range of other journals, websites and papers. He enjoys watching movies, blogging, books, and visiting Benedictine monasteries. 

We encourage all to visit his website here to find out more about his books, blogs, podcasts and various resources he has produced over the years.

We warmly welcome Father Dwight Longenecker to the Totus Tuus Apostolate!