The Rev. Arthur Jenkins
1476 Harborsun Dr. Charleston, SC, 29412
843-568-0876
Born in a small town in northeastern North Carolina, the Rev’d Arthur Jenkins graduated from Hargrave Military Academy, Chatham, VA and North Carolina State University. The first 12 years of his adult life he spent working with the family farm. During this time Arthur met Jesus in a very personal way. His favorite way to describe this is, “I had read the Book, but then I met the Man.” In the mid-eighties Arthur answered our Lord’s call to ministry and earned a Masters of Divinity at Virginia Theological Seminary. Ordained in the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina, he served two years at Saint James Church, Charleston, South Carolina. In 1992 he was called as Rector of Christ Church, Fitchburg, Massachusetts in the Diocese of Western Massachusetts. After serving in New England for five years he returned to Charleston as Sr. Pastor of Saint James Church. An evangelical, Arthur’s ministry continues to be rooted in the Word of God and interested in the ministry of reconciliation, relationships, and intergenerational sin and men’s ministry. Ephesians 2:4 & 5, Luke 2:30, and 1 Corinthians 1:23 continue to be touchstones for his life and ministry. He is active on James Island with the James Island Out Reach Ministry and his ministry to the homeless. On June 5, 2022, Pentecost Sunday, Rev. Arthur Jenkins gave his final sermon to the congregation of Saint James. He served Saint James church first as an assistant priest from 1991 to 1993, answered the call to be rector at Christ Church in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, and then returned to Saint James as rector from 1998 to 2022. According to the 302 years of the historic church, Jenkins is the third longest serving priest. Although Rev. William Guy and Rev. Charles Martyn of the 1700s both served at Saint James for more years than Rev. Jenkins, they preached on the average of one Sunday a month whereas Rev. Jenkins has often preached three sermons per Sunday and spearheaded many other spiritual endeavors on weekdays. Arthur and his wife Kay have two daughters, Kate and Lawson.