Rev. Maur Horton serves the Woodland Chapel Center for Spiritual Living in Salem as its Senior Minister. Immediately prior to being elected as Senior Minister in November of 2013, he served as President of the Board and Executive Officer. He was an Assistant Minister at the Chapel from 1991 through October of 2013. Rev. Maur joined Woodland Chapel in 1976, completed four years of Science of Mind classes and has both taken and taught many additional classes since.
Rev. Maur was born in San Francisco, California, was baptized a Catholic and then attended parochial schools in California, Washington, and Oregon as his father moved his business. He was first a seminarian and then a monk of Mount Angel Abbey for 10 years. He completed four years of theological studies for the Roman Catholic priesthood. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Mount Angel Seminary College and a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Portland. His desire to have a family led him to leave the monastery and holy orders. In time became a husband and then a father to six children and twelve grandchildren. He retired from the State of Oregon as a Bank and Finance Officer. He then became a financial advisor with AG Edwards and Merrill Lynch.
Friends introduced Rev. Maur to Woodland Chapel late in 1975. Upon hearing Revs Al and Mary Dee Cameron speak, he began attending the Chapel regularly. He joined the Chapel and took all the classes he could seeking to understand and practice this new thought. He completed the first three years of Science of Mind classes with Rev. Tony Bonaccorso. He especially enjoyed completing his fourth year, ministerial class, because it was taught jointly by Rev. Tony and Dr. John Ingram of the Eugene Church of Religious Science. These classes were accredited by Religious Science International. He received his Practitioner and Ministerial Licenses in 1991 from Doctor George Bendall at the Chapel, by then an independent Church of Religious Science. He was ordained at Woodland Chapel in 1993.
Here are some highlights of his service at Woodland Chapel. One of his early responsibilities was teaching, then leading the youth church. His wife and he had their children in the church school at the time. He has enjoyed teaching students a variety of certificated and non-certificated classes here at Woodland Chapel. He also fondly remembers leading a weekend retreat for a dozen congregants held at the beach. Over the years he has helped raise funds for and managed building projects for the Chapel, including the new roof in 2006 and repairing the parking lot in 2011. I has also served a number of terms as board member, vice-president and president of the board of trustees. It is his joy to serve the chapel. .