Welcome to Straight Answers by Rev. Monsignor William P. Saunders, Ph.D., Episcopal Vicar for the Office of Faith Formation. Straight Answers may be accessed at catholicstraightanswers.com. Monsignor Saunders is also pastor of Saint Agnes Catholic Church in Arlington, Virginia.
Biography
Monsignor William P. Saunders was born on March 9, 1957, in Washington, DC to Dr. Joseph F. and Pauline C. Saunders. In 1959, his family moved to Springfield, Virginia where he was raised. He has one older brother Joseph F. Saunders, Jr.
After graduating from West Springfield High School as the class valedictorian in 1975, he attended the College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, Virginia. He graduated in 1979 with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in accounting and with membership in Beta Gamma Sigma Honor Society.
During the summer after college graduation, Monsignor Saunders focused on the vocation to the priesthood, with which he had been wrestling since college. He applied to the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia for admission into the seminary, and was assigned to St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1984 Monsignor Saunders graduated from St. Charles Seminary with a Master of Arts in Sacred Theology, Summa cum laude, and was ordained to the Holy Priesthood on May 12.
As a priest, Monsignor Saunders has served as the Assistant Pastor at St. Mary Catholic Church in Alexandria, Virginia (1984-1988), the Campus Chaplain and Adjunct professor of Theology for Marymount University, Arlington, Virginia (1988-1993), and the Assistant Pastor (1993-1995) and subsequently the Pastor (1995-2000) at Queen of Apostles Catholic Church in Alexandria, Virginia.
During this time, Monsignor Saunders pursued studies at Catholic University, receiving a Doctor of Philosophy in Education Administration in 1992.
He was appointed as President of the Notre Dame Institute for Catechetics in 1992, and Graduate School offering a Master of Arts in Catechetics, Sacred Scripture, and Spirituality. On February 1, 1997, the Notre Dame Institute officially merged with Christendom College, Front Royal, Virginia, becoming the Notre Dame Graduate School. At that time, Monsignor Saunders was appointed Dean of the Graduate School.
All of his education and experience until now were needed to prepare Monsignor Saunders for his next challenge. On March 29, 2000, Monsignor was tapped by Bishop Paul S. Loverde, Bishop of the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia to be the founding Pastor of a new parish to be located in Potomac Falls, Virginia. The appointment was made public on June 6, 2000, in the Arlington Catholic Herald.
The parish of Our Lady of Hope held its first Mass on August 6, 2000, at Potomac Falls High School. Monsignor Saunders was officially installed as Pastor by Rev. Msgr. James W. McMurtrie, Episcopal Vicar for Parish Devlopment for the Diocese of Arlington, on behalf of Bishop Loverde.
