Pastor, Musician, and Advocate for the Endangered
A Senior Pastor of Resurrection Life NYC
Jenn Petersen has over twenty years of pastoral ministry experience, having served in a variety of areas. In 2017, Jenn and her husband Branden planted Resurrection Life NYC, a multi-ethnic congregation on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. Together the Petersens co-pastor the church, guiding the congregation towards Christ in all areas.
Wesley Seminary
While the church was still in its earliest stages, Jenn began to work on her master’s degree through Wesley Seminary. Although it was a very busy period, as she had to both serve as an ordained minister and work as a student, Jenn was grateful for her time in the program, the practicality of classes, the care and wisdom of the professors, and the support of her cohort of peers.
Two aspects of Wesley Seminary which still impact her life daily were the Spiritual Formation courses and Professor Patrick Eby’s Social Justice in Wesleyan Tradition class.
As a senior pastor, the experience of other early church pastors and local church pastors from across the history of Christianity is something which is an invaluable resource for her, and an area where the Wesley Seminary has knowledge in abundance.
International Justice Mission
Jenn graduated in 2020, and then that same June she began working with International Justice Mission. IJM is a global organization which works to bring protection to the most vulnerable people around the world - this includes those who are experiencing modern slavery, violence against women and children, and police abuse of power.
Jenn currently serves as Director of Mobilization for New York City, which means that she gets to connect people all across the New York metro area to the work of International Justice Mission. This can be through a variety of methods, such as giving, prayer, and advocacy work.
Runway and Broadway
Jenn has also had the honor of partnering with many churches, corporations, and individuals as she preaches about God’s heart for justice around the world - speaking everywhere from her own local community in New York to a conference in Finland.
Along with her team at Runway for Justice, Jenn had the privilege of creating a runway show during New York Fashion Week that partnered with Elegantees - a fashion brand that works with women impacted by human trafficking.
Jenn has also had the opportunity to direct an event called IJM x Broadway, bringing together many people from the Broadway community to specifically bring awareness to and raise funds for fighting against the Online Sexual Exploitation of Children (OSEC).
Music
In addition to all of this, Jenn is also a musician and songwriter - her bachelor’s degree having been in music - and in 2023 she wrote a song inspired by the work of International Justice Mission called “Until All Are Free” which was then recorded by Broadway artist Kennedy Caughell.
Her current usage of her musical talents is consequently something that comes alongside her work as an advocate for the needy, proponent of God's word, pastor, and community member.
In this way Jenn is able to use even her musical talents to help do the work of Christ within the world by using them as yet another avenue through which she can champion the plight of those in need.
Jenn is not the only musically inclined Petersen, however, as her two children, Aidan and Emma, both currently attend Berklee College of Music in Boston and intend to pursue careers in music.
Following Christ
From pastoring Resurrection Life NYC to her time at Wesley Seminary to her work with International Justice Mission and everything in between, Jenn is incredibly grateful for the journey God has taken her and her family on throughout her and Branden’s life in ministry, and she can’t wait to see where He continues to lead them.
While there’s no way to know what the future might hold, Jenn and Branden intend to faithfully and obediently follow wherever God may call them.