A progressive Christian minister in the United Church of Christ ordained to preach and teach the Gospel of Jesus, the Prince of Peace, and university chaplain emeritus / professor emeritus at Pacific University. He has built regional and national interfaith coalitions to address critical national issues, such as homelessness, healthcare, gun violence, climate change, and immigration reform over a
thirty-year career in ministry, activism, and higher education. He most recently served as director of the Center for Peace and Spirituality, university chaplain, and assistant professor of religious studies at Pacific University. His academic work has focused on the intersection between theology and public policy. Pacific University granted Dr. Currie emeritus status as a Creighton Honoree in 2021. Dr. Currie served as the long-term interim minister at Parkrose United Church of Christ in Portland, acting minister at First Congregational United Church of Christ in Salem, and as senior minister at Sunnyside Church and University Park Church in Portland. Before entering the ministry, Dr. Currie spent 17 years working directly on homelessness and housing issues. His work included overseeing redesigns of the Multnomah County and the City of Portland service delivery systems for homeless single adults and homeless youth. Dr. Currie also played a pivotal role in opening the Goose Hollow Family Shelter and, as a member of the board of directors of the National Coalition for the Homeless, advocated for successful federal law changes that led to new protections for students experiencing homelessness in the United States. Dr. Currie writes frequent opinion pieces for national and local publications and often appears in the news for his work. In addition to providing volunteer assistance to various local and state national public policy campaigns, Dr. Currie served as a surrogate for Obama for America (2008, 2012) on faith outreach and a surrogate for Correct the Record during the 2016 election cycle. Dr. Currie earned a Master of Divinity degree at Eden Theological Seminary in St. Louis and a Doctor of Minister degree, focused on public theology, at The Chicago Theological Seminary. In 2021, Eden Seminary conferred an honorary Doctor of Divinity Degree on Dr. Currie. Chicago Theology Seminary presented Dr. Currie with their Distinguished Alumni Award in 2020. Dr. Currie is married to Liz Smith Currie, a senior policy advisor to the Multnomah County Chair. They have two children, Frances and Katherine, who attend Portland Public Schools. He worships at Ainsworth United Church of Christ in NE Portland.
