Advisory Circle Members

Rev. Brian Weis - Co-Administrator
Rev. Alix Amar - Co-Administrator

Member Biographies  (alphabetical)

Reverend Alix Amar MSS, LCSW is the Director of Bereavement at Keystone Hospice.  Since enrolling in the School of Sacred Ministries, she has been working more closely with the chaplaincy program at Keystone to increase awareness and appreciation of the diversity of faiths they serve. She also chaired a committee to address the needs of Jewish hospice patients.

Reverend Nan Cardella is an energetic participant in the ever changing dance of spirit. She is an interfaith minister, officiating weddings and other ceremonies. She is also an AOBTA (American Organization of Bodywork Therapies of Asia) certified Shiatsu practitioner, helping people grow through gentle hands-on bodywork. Nan is currently enrolled in a 4-year improvisational music program called "Music For People" and enjoys interactive percussion, piano, and voice as well as training to facilitate interactive music gatherings. She is also currently enrolled in the "Institute for the Work of Byron Katie" Facilitator Certification program, embracing the process of self-inquiry to better bring peace to the world by first bringing peace to ones' own mind.

Reverend John B. Evans PE, PP, is a Structural Engineer by profession, who also felt a spiritual calling early in his life. During the course of his ensuing spiritual quest, he explored many religious and spiritual paths and, over time, found that there was some truth to be learned from all of them. This path eventually led him to ordination as an interfaith minister. He offers spiritual counseling to seekers, and encourages tolerance of all paths. A mystic by practice, he believes that God can be directly experienced, and that everyone's relationship with God is unique.

Reverend Beverly Larue is a visionary who had the dream of attending an interfaith ministry school that represented her own belief system and philosophies such as Pebble Hill Church, in Doylestown, PA. She co-founded the School of Sacred Ministries and was ordained in the first class in 2000. She has been on the Advisory Circle that runs the school since its inception, and was the school Administrator from December 2004 to December 2007.

Reverend Linda 'Rukmini' Spiritoso, MSW was ordained in 2004. Reverend Ruk received the name 'Rukmini' from a spiritual master when she was in India some years ago. She is retired from the Philadelphia Dept. of Human Services where she was employed as a social work supervisor/trainer for case managers who work with abused and neglected children. Presently she is an independent consultant/trainer throughout Pennsylvania. Besides teaching Child Welfare curriculum, she teaches Stress/Time Management, Cultural Diversity, and trains foster parents. She has also run parent groups and is a hypnotherapist. She combines these skills to create a holistic approach in areas of communication and relationships. In addition to incorporating an understanding of diverse traditions and practices, she shares her knowledge of body/mind principles, utilizing various techniques, such as guided imagery, in her groups and workshops for a comprehensive program of mental, spiritual, emotional and physical health.

Reverend Brian Weis is a Black Belt, a veteran firewalker, and a journeyman runeworker. Although he is a technical writer by training and profession, he has always felt a keen interest in spirituality and a desire to aid others that eventually led him to interfaith ordination. During his journey of exploration, Rev. Brian has co-facilitated a Talking Circle and Insight Workgroup, studied personal development and motivation in Switzerland and Peru, and led classes in women's empowerment and self-defense. He has also participated in the Hatun Karpay (a personal initiation into Andean nature mysticism) in Peru and in Natural Chi Activation with Natural Chi Movement founder, Tienko Ting. Rev. Brian follows the reconstructed folk faith of his Northern European ancestors, and he loves ceremonies that seek to celebrate cultural background through honest, authentic expressions of family and ethnic traditions.

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