St. Brendan the Navigator Episcopal Church
Our Mission: "To Love, Praise, Welcome and Serve"

Third Sunday after the Epiphany

January 25, 2026

Worship this Sunday:


10:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist

The Rev. Donna Downs, presiding

Casting (c) Jan Richardson. janrichardson.com


Scripture readings for this Sunday (notes are below)


Isaiah 9:1-4

1 Corinthians 1:10-18

Matthew 4:12-23

Psalm 27:1, 5-13


The bulletin can be found here.


Join us in-person or online. Click below for the Zoom link.

Join us after the service for a discussion about how we might respond

in solidarity with our immigrant population.

Weekly Calendar

All services and meetings will be held both in-person and via Zoom unless otherwise designated.

Monday, January 26

8:30 a.m. Simmering Pot

4:30 p.m. Meditation/Silent Prayer (Zoom)

Tuesday, January 27

4:00 - 5:30 p.m. Bible Study 101 (Zoom only)

Wednesday, January 28

10:00 a.m. In-person Meditation

10:30 a.m. Bible Study with Dr. Pam Shellberg

Sunday, February 1

10:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist with Pastor Elaine Hewes presiding

Looking Ahead

Monday, February 2

6:00 p.m. Feast of the Presentation followed by soup in the Parish Hall

Friday, February 6

5:00 - 7:00 p.m. Annual Mardi Gras Gathering at the Dane's

Tuesday, February 17

4:00 - 6:00 p.m. Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper

Second Sunday after the Epiphany

I find Nadia Bolz-Weber’s description of Epiphany light as being “phosphorescent” to be so helpful… In part because I’m not sure I could muster a glimmer of light on my own at this present moment… And so the possibility of absorbing light that is proximate, near and here, as our faith assures us is true, offers me some hope as I wonder how in the world I might share the light of Christ in the darkness of these days...


Sermon given by Pastor Elaine Hewes on January 18th.

Click below for the video recording. A text copy is available here.

The Gratitude Corner

Gratitude is liberating. It is subversive. It helps us realize that we are sufficient,

and that realization frees us.

Joanna Macy

From our Pastor

Ten Commandments of Nonviolent Christian Action


As many of us consider taking action in support of our immigrant neighbors in resistance to the actions of ICE, it’s helpful to remember the “Ten Commandments of Nonviolent Christian Action” used by Martin Luther King Jr. and others working for civil rights in the 1960s. As we have said many times, this is very hard work, and we need all the help we can get to act in the way of Jesus. Perhaps these “Ten Commandments of Christian Nonviolent Action” might help as we consider how we might participate in acts of resistance. Notice how they all flow from commandment #1…


1.   Meditate daily on the teachings and life of Jesus.

2.   Remember always that the nonviolent movement seeks justice and reconciliation – not victory.

3.   Walk and talk in the manner of love, for God is love.

4.   Pray daily to be used by God in order that all people might be free.

5.   Sacrifice personal wishes in order that all people might be free.

6.   Observe with both friend and foe the ordinary rules of courtesy.

7.   Seek to perform regular service for others and for the world.

8.   Refrain from the violence of fist, tongue, or heart.

9.   Strive to be in good spiritual and bodily health.

10. Follow the directions of the movement and of the captain on a demonstration.


Pastor Elaine

Giving our Priorities Shape (GPS) Action Item

“It is worth remembering today that Jesus is God’s small good thing for the world. The path of life Jesus sets out for us isn’t forged by victory through force. It is forged by the small good thing of standing in the broken, forgotten places, with the forgotten, vulnerable people. It is forged as God’s extravagant love reaches over every division that tears God’s children apart.” 

Bishop Craig Loya of Minneapolis


Please keep your eyes, ears, and heart open as ICE’s “Operation Catch of the Day” arrives in Maine. And please support these organizations however you can. Click on each for more information.


Mardi Gras Celebration

        Open House at the Dane's

         5 - 7 pm

       Friday, February 6

       8 Weed Point Road, Little Deer Isle


    Sign up at St. Brendan or contact Martha

         947-8043 

    mndane-114@hotmail.com

Bible Study in January

Bible Study 101 on Tuesday, 4:00 to 5:30 pm, on Zoom only

This course continues through February 10.

Bible Study on Wednesday at 10:30 am


Dr. Pam Shellberg continues to lead our class using the words of Isaiah, from the Christian Old Testament. They were given to an ancient people in times of great political, economic, and spiritual upheaval. Poetic and prophetic, they were words of warning and admonishment, and also of reassurance and encouragement. Isaiah was tremendously influential on the heart of Jesus.


In these sessions, we'll have the chance to open our hearts to that same influence through words that echo from a time long past into our own time of upheaval. In our conversations and reflection, we'll lean into their power to inspire our spiritual imaginations, lead us to an ancient well of wisdom, and offer us a through-line of hope. We will meet in person and on Zoom.

Education & Spiritual Development Ministry

 "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom then shall I fear? "

Psalm 27:1


Zoom Meditation/Silent Prayer at 4:30 p.m. 

Readings, poems, and prayers are shared before a period of silence.

10:00 a.m. Wednesdays

In-Person Meditation/Silent Prayer at St. Brendan

Bible Study on Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m.

January Birthdays

Emily Blair Stribling - 9

Martha Dane - 14

George Pazuniak - 15

Mickey Jacoba - 21

Agnes Love - 23

Patricia Donahue - 24

Lis Ingoldsby - 24

Dan Bright - 31

News from Near and Far

Nancy Greene brought the following to our attention:


The Hearing Loss Association of America’s Downeast Branch has brought to our attention that the Maine CITE (Community Inclusion through Technology) is a federally funded, statewide program at the University of Augusta.


It has free technical devices that boost your hearing, for example:


  • Personal listening devices
  • Voice amplifiers
  • Visual alarms
  • Cell phone apps
  • Captioning phones
  • Funding resources

 

They can be reached at https://mainecite.org/

In Our Prayers

We pray for those in special need:

Peter McKee

Caroline Dane

Mike S.

Jennifer Hutchinson

Meredydd Cooper

 Henna Torrey Roy

Liz Leuthner 

Jerry

Helen and Gibbie Nauman

Agnes and Billy

Barbara K.

Julie and Tom

Gwyn Murray

Sally

Beth Kyzer

David

Preston Henderson


Mollie Ann Meserve

Tammie and Jason Cox

Tyler Goss

Kate Hallen & Bob Blum

Judith Jerome

Mimi Maslan

Semantha

Judy Miller

Megan

Bishop Thomas Brown

Naomi

Anne Burton

Hewit

Mary Ann and Terry

Nishah

David Morrish

Corbin

Rebecca

Pam B

Jaxson

Heather Corey

Stephen Gill

Bill Scaife

Brent Was

Gary and Wellesley

Mary Lawrence Hicks and family

Nancy Greene

Peter Brown

Seth

Linda Shepard and family

Lindsay Bowker

Marcia Scott

Tony Stoneburner

Carol Stoneburner

We pray, also, for those who love and care for them.

We continue to hold in prayer those in our community who have recently lost loved ones; among them are the Sherman, Hewes, Putnam, Wright, Clauson/Hewes, Pierson, Wade/Scaife, Dahlen, Stoessel, and Miller/Budd families.


We pray for those struggling with addiction and mental illness and their caregivers.

We pray for all those receiving care through Neighbor Care and for all the relocated residents of the Island Nursing Home and their families.

We pray for the victims of gun violence -- in our cities and towns, in our schools, in our places of worship, and in our homes.

We pray for the victims of the violence of armed conflicts around the world. We pray for those made refugees by the violence of armed conflicts. We pray for the victims of terrorist attacks everywhere.

We pray for all who suffer the effects of domestic violence and the violence of bullying in our schools and workplaces.



We pray for our nation, our president and vice-president, and all elected and appointed leaders.

We pray for all peacemakers and all those who work for justice; may we be found in their ranks.

We pray for all those serving in the armed forces of our country.

 

We pray for Sarah Mullally, Archbishop of Canterbury; Hosam, Bishop of Jerusalem; Sean, our Presiding Bishop; and Thomas, our Bishop.

In the Diocesan Cycle of Prayer, we pray for St. James', Old Town, for our retired clergy, their spouses, and surviving spouses, and for Trinity Jubilee Center.

In the Anglican Cycle of Prayer, we pray for Iglesia Anglicana de Chile.

On the Island and Peninsula, we pray for Deer Isle/Sunset Congregational Church, Deer Isle.

Scripture Notes

The Third Sunday after Epiphany


On the Sundays after the Epiphany, the liturgy continues to reveal ways in which Jesus was shown forth to be the Messiah in his ministry. In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus calls his first disciples, at least two of whom he had met earlier. Taking them from their work as fishermen, he calls them to fish for people. Matthew began his account of Jesus calling his Galilean disciples beside the sea by repeating the vision of Isaiah that salvation for all would begin there beside the sea. Therefore, we have as our first reading that passage from Isaiah.


In today’s reading from 1 Corinthians, Paul addresses one of the problems plaguing the church in Corinth: disunity. Here it is the breaking of unity into little cliques each claiming superiority because of who first preached the gospel to them: Paul, or his successor Apollos, or Cephas (Peter), or Christ. Paul appeals to them to overcome their divisions and to be united in Christ.


Jesus’ ministry was corporate rather than individual from its beginning. His first act was to gather a community of believers that announced God’s plan to the people; united in trust in Jesus. We also are part of that community. Each time we celebrate the Eucharist we are shown forth to be the extension of the incarnation of God’s Son into our own time and place.


Notes on the Sunday Readings and Seasons of the Church Year. Copyright © 2009 by Michael W. Merriman. Church Publishing Incorporated, New York

Links

Office Hours: Tuesday 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.


Pastor Elaine Hewes

Tel: 207-479-5651

elaine.hewes@gmail.com


Emergency Contacts:

Warden - John Arrison, 207-505-2474 arrison17@gmail.com

Warden - Allen Downs 207-348-2560 agdowns53@gmail.com

Vestry Members:

Emily Hawkins - Treasurer

Cindy Beyer - Clerk

Beth Carter

Kassie Grey

George Pazuniak

ST. BRENDAN THE NAVIGATOR EPISCOPAL CHURCH, 627 NORTH DEER ISLE ROAD, DEER ISLE Mailing Address: P.O. Box 305, Deer Isle, ME 04627

(207)348-6240 OFFICE@STBRENDANS-ME.ORG

www.stbrendans-me.org