McConnell was ordained a priest in 1983. He went on to become curate of St. Thomas, Fifth Avenue; Chaplain for the Episcopal Church at Yale; Rector of Church of the Epiphany, New York; and Rector of St. Alban's Church, Edmonds, Washington. In 2004, he was called to the rectorship of Church of the Redeemer, Chestnut Hill, in the Diocese of Massachusetts where he served until his election as Bishop of Pittsburgh.
