The PEOPLE WE PAY

a.k.a. our pastoral staff

lead evangelist

REV. DR. KATIE HAYS — **REV. DR.** **KATIE HAYS**

KATIE (she/her) went to M.I.T. before she moved on from engineering (which she really liked, but was really terrible at) to theology. She was educated for traditional church ministry at Yale Divinity School (M.Div.) and Princeton Theological Seminary (D.Min.). She did traditional church ministry for almost 20 years.

Galileo Church is Katie’s attempt to do something completely different, because she had an epiphany while sprawled on the floor of a Spring Creek BBQ. You can ask her about that when you meet her in person.

Katie has a husband of maaaaaaany years, Professor Lance Pape of Brite Divinity School, whom she has repeatedly asked to call her “Reverend Doctor.” And their kids are now actually young adults — wicked smart, super nerds, unusually kind, with a hunger for justice — who are also co-conspirators with Galileo Church. Lydia and Jack will make your life better just by knowing them.

Katie has learned to love it when God takes an unexpected hard left turn, tires squealing, seat belts locking, cars all around God honking in indignation. She imagines God shouting, “Buckle up, suckers!” every time God gets another one of us in God’s muscle car. Or, in the words of a Yiddish proverb she’s fond of, “God is an earthquake, not an uncle.”

Katie has written a handful of books, all of them about or inspired by Galileo Church. Find out more about her writing and other stuff at katiehays.net.

Here is Katie's job description.

worship architect

STEPHANIE HORD

STEPHANIE (pronouns: she/her/hers) is originally from Houston, TX, and has been living in DFW since 2016. She got a B.A. in Music Business from Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, TX, and subsequently realized her love for music and its ability to build community.

Stephanie is passionate about God’s love and justice for all in the world and is constantly pursuing how the intersections of music, design, and technology can reach and create vibrant communities within this world God still loves. Steph swears by the inexplicable nature of music to give a beautiful common voice to our shared human experience and loves when she can hear that in practice every Sunday evening of the world at Galileo Church.

Here is Stephanie's job description.

Youngster Czar

CARISSA (she/they) is a full-time seminary student and Galileo ministry intern. They plan to graduate with their MDiv and get ordained in the Christian Church, Disciples of Christ in the Spring of 2026. In their free time, Carissa is a free spirit who loves to try out new hobbies, write, travel, get out in nature, and engage in spiritual practices.They also enjoy deep, rich conversations about philosophy and theology (basically, poetry). Carissa lives in Crowley with her wonderful family— hubby Ryan and three kids, Aydon, Emma, and Ev— whose favorite things are playing games, getting out into nature, and having deep convos, especially about culture, society, and social justice.