 He was ordained in 1973 and served his first congregation in Knoxville, Tennessee.He then became Senior Minister of First Unitarian Church in Dallas in 1981 and following that, Co-minister of the Unitarian Church of All Souls in New York City.He was then elected to become the sixth president of the Unitarian Universalist Association; he served from 1993 to 2001 and resided in the Boston area.