Tricia and Jenny are friends for over 40 years and love working together. They are excited to lead this pilgrimage, hoping that all who come may experience a deepening into the life of the Spirit as we experience Iona together.

Jenny M. Rankin

Rev. Jenny Rankin is a Unitarian Universalist minister.  Born in Boston and raised as a Unitarian Universalist, she was ordained in 1988 and has served as a parish minister and college chaplain.  Currently, she serves the First Parish in Salem as interim minister. She believes in the “power of place” to move and inspire us and has led a number of travel seminars overseas as well as local walking tours. 

During her years as Minister at First Parish in Concord, Jenny became a student of Transcendentalism, and has taught classes, lectured, and led walking tours and travel seminars on this strand of American spirituality.  More recently, Jenny has been drawn to explore Celtic spirituality, reading widely, traveling and beginning to teach and lead groups on this topic.   She first led an Iona pilgrimage in 2018 and this will be her fourth Iona retreat with long-time friend, Tricia Brennan, as co-leader.  She is drawn to the contemplative tradition and has explored the mystical strand in different world religions, probably being most deeply steeped in the Christian contemplative tradition through reading, travel and her studies at the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry.

Jenny loves to help people experience the power of “thin places” where we can encounter the holy and share our stories with one another, building community as we sojourn together.  She loves to learn and likes to help build “learning communities” in which each person is both student and teacher.  

Jenny has an undergraduate degree in history and literature from Princeton University and is a graduate of Harvard Divinity School.  Jenny and her writer/photographer husband Rich Higgins have three (young adult) children and live in Concord, Mass.

Tricia Brennan

Rev. Tricia Brennan is a Unitarian Universalist parish minister who has served nine congregations in New England, primarily as an Interim Minister. She has lived in the Jamaica Plain neighborhood of Boston for most of her adult life and has a young adult daughter.

Ordained in 2001, ministry is Tricia’s second career. Her first was social work, where she worked with homeless families, founding and directing two shelters for homeless families and also directing a pro bono legal program that help created affordable housing.

Rooted in Christianity, and open and curious about all faith traditions, Tricia values the contemplative spiritual path which winds through all religions. In social work, ministry and personal life, she seeks to enable congregations and individuals to embody a faith that does justice. Her ministry aims to build up courageous people and communities who see the world as it is, in its brokenness and beauty, and work to heal the pain and delight in the good.

Tricia has a BA in English from Holy Cross College, a Masters in Social Work from Columbia University and a Masters in Divinity from Andover Newton Theological School. She is a graduate of the Shalem Institute’s Spiritual Guidance Program and offers spiritual guidance to those desiring to deepen their spiritual lives.