Rev. William Critzman

Senior Minister

The Rev. William Critzman was called as Pastor of West End Church in 2018 and is the 58th Senior Minister of The Collegiate Protestant Dutch Reformed Church in the City of New York founded in 1628. Since 2022, Will has also served as President of Collegiate, the oldest continually worshipping church in the country that today also includes the congregations at Ft. Washington Collegiate Church, Marble Collegiate Church, and Middle Church. Will is the first openly queer person to lead these historic institutions, and is committed to leading with love by dismantling patriarchal and gender norms, racial hatred, and misogynist agendas.

We do not have one answer to any one question. In truth, we’re seeking better questions and need your voice to help us.

With Will’s pastorate, West End Church worships by coupling a mix of liturgy and tradition that your grandmother might recognize with a theology of liberation you and our children need. Our faith holds scripture, sacred tradition, modern day prophets, artists, justice warriors, and the state of our modern world as interrelated matters of faith. We do not have one answer to any one question. In truth, we’re seeking better questions and need your voice to help us. We hope to be a church where you may find not just a place to be welcomed or to join, but a place to belong. 

Will is also a certified psychoanalyst who applies both theology (the study of God) and psychology (the study of self) to the work of creating healthier individuals and communities so that together we may all thrive.

Schools & Associations

Will attended Cornell University and Wagner College. Rev. Critzman’s Master of Divinity degree is from Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York, where he was awarded the Jonathan Kneeland Preaching Prize. Will completed 8-years of post-graduate training in Psychoanalysis, graduating from the Blanton-Peale Institute in 2023.

In 2024, Will was named one of ABC’s “Champions of Change” for their work advocating for the LGBTQ+ community and is featured in the forthcoming feature-length documentary Sanctuary about the intersection of faith, LGBTQ+, art, and justice.

Will serves on the Executive Committee and is formerly the moderator of the Reformed Association, New York Conference, United Church of Christ.

Fun fact

Will learned to cook at an early age from his grandmother on his mom’s side, whose strongest belief was that she would have no part in raising any more men who couldn’t make dinner.