Patricia Blaze Clark

Patricia Blaze Clark (b. 1938) was born and raised in Pennsylvania in the Roman Catholic tradition and spent eleven years as a member of a Religious Congregation of Sisters. Now a member of the Episcopal Church, she began writing hymn texts while in seminary and later attended a hymn-writing workshop at St. Olaf College. After receiving a Master of Divinity degree from the Episcopal Theological Seminary of the Southwest, she served for five years on staff at Good Shepherd Church, Austin, Texas, working in the areas of Communications, Spirituality, Liturgy, and Christian Formation. While no longer a staff employee, she, along with her husband, sings in the Good Shepherd Choir and Evensong Choir. Devoting a good portion of time to writing, she is also available to direct retreats and workshops and to speak and teach on various topics relating to liturgy, church music, and spirituality. In addition to an M. Div., she also holds a Master of Education degree and a Bachelor of Arts in science. Several of her hymn poems have found their way into various hymnal supplements as well as anthem settings. She brings to her hymn-writing a longtime love affair with hymnody and poetry.