E-Blast for Friday, January 23, 2026

The Third Sunday after the Epiphany

January 25, 2026

7:45 & 10 a.m.

View as Webpage

Celebrant:

The Rev. Steve Keplinger

Sermon:

Discovering Living Water in the Sea

My soul cries out

with a joyful shout!

A Giving & Receiving

News Release

THE JOY OF FAITH

Our 2026 theme scripture is the Canticle of Mary in the first chapter of the gospel of Luke. In the first verses Mary, a young woman who agreed to bear the Son of God, expresses an overwhelming joy from deep within her spirit. She praises God and calls herself blessed because of the great things that God has promised – both to her and to all humankind. She sings of the power of God, God’s compassion and mercy for the poor and hungry, and the promises God made to Abraham and his descendants.

In spite of her youth and lack of formal education, Mary has knowledge and unwavering faith rooted in centuries of Hebrew history and tradition. She believes and trusts in those promises despite few of them being visibly fulfilled in her home country. Israel in Mary’s time was ruled by the Roman empire, a colonial power imposing a cruel, repressive regime. The turmoil of our

society today – in government, housing, civility, job opportunity, injustice, the wealth gap, and discrimination – shows some similarity to Mary’s era.

Each year, Grace St. Paul’s asks its members and friends to donate money to pay for the ministries we do throughout the year. The request is not a cold, materialistic business action, but one that relates to this important passage of scripture. We are called to be like Mary – to know our tradition and history and to align ourselves faithfully with the word of God and rejoice in its promise to transform lives. Please donate joyfully to GSP as a faithful response to

the generous blessings you and all of us receive from God.

It’s that time of year again!

Annual Meeting will be held in the Sanctuary on

Sunday, February 1st at 12 p.m.

We urge those of you who live in town to take part in person, and there will be a potluck between the service and meeting!
Please bring a dish to share.

We will livestream for those who cannot attend in person.

Navigating the Journey:
As Care Needs Increase with Aging and Illness
Begins this Sunday!
Upcoming educational series presented by
Sr. Susan Hillman, Hospice Chaplain

Time: 9:00 - 9:45am in the Bloom Room on the following dates.
You can attend any or all of them, depending on your interests and possible needs.

Sunday January 25
Advanced Directives and the importance of letting family members know what you want and don't want as you age and/or become ill.

Sunday February 1
Palliative Care and Hospice

When to choose each of these and what is covered by each

Sunday February 15

Ethical Wills

What they are and various ways to write one.

Since I (Sr. Susan Hillman) have been participating in the services at GSP, several people have asked me about my habit, the religious community I belong to (Community of Francis and Clare), and other related questions. I thought that Religious Life Sunday would be the perfect time to, hopefully, answer questions for some of you who may have wondered but have not asked.

Religious Life Sunday is the third Sunday of Epiphany every year. It focuses on telling Episcopalians and Anglicans about the monastic and Christian Communities within the Episcopal church and the worldwide Anglican Communion, what they offer the church, and celebrating these communities.

The Episcopal Church canonically recognizes 18 traditional orders, in which the members live together in common spaces or monasteries; and 14 dispersed Christian communities for men, women, or both. Religious Orders and Christian Communities serve the greater church in several ways. Some offer retreat houses and individual spiritual direction. Each community has a Rule of Life and is committed to prayer, life in community, and hospitality.

Community of Francis and Clare

The Community of Francis and Clare is a contemporary vowed community of religious women and men who live a common life of prayer and service within the Episcopal church and the worldwide Anglican Communion. We seek to follow Jesus in the footsteps of Francis and Clare by living simply; taking vows of simplicity, humility, and fidelity; serving and praying with and for the marginalized members of our communities; helping to rebuild the church in our day-to-day contexts; and having continual formation in the lives and tradition of Francis, Clare, and fellow followers of theirs. As a contemporary expression of the Franciscan tradition, members are lay and clergy, partnered or single, live individually or in common with their families, and support themselves through a secular or church-related employment. We have diverse ministries in our communities, as the Spirit and the needs of the church lead us.

For more information, you can look at the following websites:

www.cfcfranciscans.org www.episcopalchurch.org

We are called to a be a compassionate community who welcomes all. Whether you have been directly impacted by immigration or have been relatively untouched personally, this is without a doubt one of the most burning issues facing our country at present.

MIGRATION MONDAYS AT GRACE ST. PAUL'S

1ST AND 3RD Mondays 2:00 P.M. Bloom Room Migration Ministry
in-person meeting for worship, advocacy and other immigrant support.

2ND AND 4TH Mondays 2:00 P.M. Bloom Room Informal discussion of ways GSP members can support immigrants and others suffering from the draconian policies of our current government.

NEW BOOK AND EDUCATIONAL GROUP
Meetings will be held in the Bloom Room. We will begin at 9:15am.

The GSP Migrant Ministry invites you to join us as we explore the personal stories of individuals in our community and grow our awareness of the bigger picture through prayerful consideration, reviewing documentaries and books and other local resources to increase our knowledge.

Meeting Dates: February 22, March 8, and April 12.

On February 22, we will be discussing the memoir by Dora Rodriguez,
Dora: a daughter of unforgiving terrain

The book is available in local book stores, the library, and on Amazon.

MIGRANT SUNDAY

On February 8, join us in McBride Hall for a Migrant Ministries Resource Fair after both services. Focus will be on local activities and resources.

Harriet Bedell was a missionary and a Deaconess who served indigenous people in Oklahoma, Alaska, and Florida. Dr. Chuck Dickson takes us into her life of service and devotion to God's people: https://bit.ly/3LCusRN

Orphaned baby Sulcata in need of responsible and informed caretaker.
Age unknown but he’s about 2 1/2" long indicating he's under 6 months, active, and healthy. He’ll need daily soaks, some UV light, and dark leafy greens until he grows up a bit. He is very cute right now, but tortoises get very large and are a very long-term commitment, so please keep that in mind when considering this.

Please reach out to the office if you think you are able to take on this responsibility 520-327-6857

A Tucson First comes to GSP!

Passion Project: Opera! (PPO), in a first-time collaboration with the Southern Arizona Symphony Orchestra (SASO), is bringing a program of two, brief one-act opera gems to Grace St. Paul's on Friday, February 13^th at 7:00 p.m.

Puccini’s Suor Angelica and Debussy’s L’enfant prodigue will be set in the Chancel to create the perfect atmosphere for stories of forgiveness and redemption.

The cast will feature singers from the GSP family, including Susan Marcus (GSP Interim Choir Director), Barbara Pritchard (GSP choir member and PPO Co-Director) and Korby Myrick (GSP guest keyboardist and PPO Music Director). Linus Lerner, SASO’s longtime Music Director, will be conducting.

Tickets for this exciting event can be purchased in advance online by scanning the image’s QR code or at passionprojectopera.org. Don’t miss this opportunity to immerse yourself in an exquisite musical experience that supports the place of nonprofit organizations in our Tucson community!

Grace St. Paul’s “Nurturing the Grieving Heart”
A Virtual Soul Support Group

Six Fridays, February 20^th – March 27th, 2026 from 4:00 -5:30 PM – via ZOOM

Loss comes to all of us at different times in our lives. The loss of a beloved partner, family member, friend, animal companion, job, health, housing or even the loss of democracy can feel overwhelming and isolating. While others might be eager for us to “get over and on with it,” grief doesn’t adhere to any timetable. We know now that grief is not only a feeling, but it also manifests in body, mind, and spirit. It colors our relationships with self, others, and Divine Presence. Grief is both individual and collective, and when the larger community suffers, individual grief can be awakened or aggravated.

Nurturing the Grieving Heart- A Soul Support Group will be a safe and confidential place to explore our grief experiences and the potential for spiritual transformation. This group is process-based with guided meditations, prayers, short readings, and opportunities to share our experience, strength, and hope within a supportive environment.
Those with all kinds of grief experiences are welcome.

This group will meet on Zoom for six weeks on FRIDAY afternoons from
4:00-5:30 pm starting February 20th, 2026 through March 27^th, 2026.
It will be team-led by two GSP faith leaders.

Please call the Church Office at 520-327-6857 to preregister by
February 13^th. Helpful materials will be provided.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Pastor Delle McCormick at (520) 204-6295 or revdellemc@gmail.com

Sandwich Volunteers Needed

Join the fun!

Joseph’s Café needs help making PB&J sandwiches so we can continue to feed our local unhoused community. The sandwiches are made here in our kitchen at GSP (we provide the supplies) and we’re looking for help on Thursday mornings.

It takes about 2 hours and you can bring a friend! Training will be

provided and we need 2 people to keep this going.

Contact Connie at cjones634@yahoo.com or 520-490-6230

-Thursday, January 29th, 5pm, in McBride Hall, Communion service on “The War Within” led by Father Allen.

We’ve heard from church members that they’d like a smaller venue – Spirit Now’s answering that call … our services are held in the Chancel, in McBride Hall, or on Zoom, and are building blocks for the larger church to get together and share faith practices in smaller groups. It’s a more intimate place to read and reflect about our thoughts, our church, our communities, and our world.

If you’d like to receive announcements regarding Spirit Now’s services direct to your email, please contact Kim at moanatucson@gmail.com

Every Friday from 12:15pm - 1:30pm in the Bloom Room

Our Centering Prayer group continues to meet every Friday at 12:15 in the Bloom Room for the shared practice of Centering Prayer. Our membership includes people from other faith traditions as well as many GSP parishioners.

The practice of Centering Prayer can be done alone by anyone anywhere, but our members find that being together (even in silence) really makes a difference. Our group is open to all who are in need of some quiet, dedicated time to rest in the presence of God in this busy and uneasy world.

Blessings,

Sara Heitshu scheitshu@gmail.com