If you like ice cream, join us in the Murphey Gallery on July 5 at 10:15 a.m. for a celebration of our nation's Independence Day.  Red, white, and blue is the order of the day. Please come and enjoy the festivities with ice cream and all the "fixins." Hosted by the Parish Life Ministry.




Laundry Love, an Outreach Ministry of St. Philip's, takes place on the second Wednesday of each month. Members of our Come and See community have partnered with the national Laundry Love initiative to lead this ministry, which helps to wash the clothes and bedding of individuals and/or families living in poverty while offering compassion, conversation, and connections with community resources. The Laundry Love ministry seeks to nurture the well-being of each person through intentional networking and friendship, and we welcome you to join us. We are actively seeking volunteers and donations. To volunteer for an evening of Laundry Love, contact Patty. To make a financial donation, make your check payable to St. Philip's ("Laundry Love" on the memo line).

Join members of the local immigration reform community to remember our brothers and sisters who perished in the desert and learn about recent developments in US immigration and border policies. On Thursday, July 9, meet us at El Minuto Restaurant, Main and Cushing St., at 6 p.m. for dinner. We'll walk next door to El Tiradito Shrine for the vigil at 7. The vigil is sponsored by Derechos Humanos and is held every Thursday at 7 p.m. This is an early evening of music, fellowship, prayer, reflection and celebration. You can attend with friends and family or by yourself. Information: Suzanne, borderimmigrationmin@stphilipstucson.org.



The Mental Illness Ministry at St. Philip's hosts a mental health book club, sponsored by the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) of Southern Arizona. The group meets on the second Wednesday of each month, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in Mesquite. On July 8 the group will discuss "I Always Want to Be Where I'm Not: Successful Living with ADD and ADHD" by Wes Crenshaw. For registration or more information, contact Club Facilitator, Dio de la Vina, or call 270-4794. All are welcome.

A heart-felt thank you to those who showed up on June 20 to help make sandwiches for the homeless. Our next sandwich-making will be Saturday, July 18, beginning at 7:30 a.m. in the East Gallery. We especially appreciate extra hands during the summer, when many of our "regulars" are out of town. Thanks for helping our neighbors in need.

On Sunday, July 19, at 2 p.m. in the Church, St. Philip's Friends of Music presents Titan Valley Warheads. Known for their tight harmonies and instrumental skills, the Titan Valley Warheads have been voted Best Bluegrass Band by the Tucson Area Music Awards, won the prestigious "Best Band" title at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival and performed for appreciative crowds at Tucson Bluegrass Festival, Prescott Bluegrass Festival, Tucson Folk Festival and Flagstaff's Pickin' in the Pines Festival. The band consists of Gary Kuitert (mandolin), Earl Edmonson (guitar), Ed Davenport (bass), Andy McCune (banjo) and Tom Rhodes (fiddle). Suggested admission $20. In the Church.



Whether you attended one year of Education for Ministry (EfM) or all four, whether at your previous parish or St. Philip's ... please come to brunch on Sunday, July 19, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.,  at the home of co-mentors Howell and Mary Herring (near St. Philip's). This brunch is intended to celebrate our newest graduates (Leah Authier-Krausz and Christopher Fullerton), visit with old EfM friends, meet people who participated in other EfM cohorts, and help identify and invite people who might be interested in joining EfM at this time. Please RSVP to the Herrings for directions: EfM@stphilipstucson.org or 299-0390.

Join other parishioners and friends to witness Operation Streamline, the "fast track" legal process created for the purpose of deporting undocumented migrants. We'll meet in the office at St. Philip's on Thursday July 23, at 12:30 p.m. to carpool (or you can meet us there). OS proceedings occur every weekday afternoon in the Evo Deconcini U.S. Courthouse, 405 W. Congress St. The hearing starts at 1:30 p.m. and will last 1.5-3 hours. Bring an official photo ID; you will go through a security check and a metal detector. Cameras and any other form of electronic capturing, recording, broadcasting, or transmitting devices are prohibited in the courtroom. Citizen observers are almost always in attendance. To RSVP contact Suzanne Hesh, BorderImmigrationMin@stphilipstucson.org.

Believe it or not, the new school year is just around the corner! On Sunday, August 2, we will celebrate "Back to School Sunday," with blessing of the backpacks and other symbols of schoolwork and occupation at the 9 a.m. service. Coffee Hour for the whole parish will be a potluck celebration in the Murphey Gallery. Bring your favorite finger food and join in the fun! This will also be our opportunity to meet the Rev. Canon Clark and his wife, Carol, as well as hear other updates from the Wardens and Vestry.

The University of Arizona Division for Late Medieval and Reformation Studies joins with St. Philip's to present their annual summer lecture series, entitled "Protestantism and the Anglican Church in the Seventeenth Century," on Sundays in August beginning August 9, at 10:15 a.m. in the Music Center. This series of lectures will depict major events in this unstable but exciting century, one in which the Anglican Church played a major part. You are invited to attend and help support these future scholars of Reformation history.



The Arizona Diamondbacks invite all members of the Episcopal Diocese of Arizona, family and friends, to see the Diamondbacks take on the A's on Friday, August 28, at 6:40 p.m. Tickets are $12 and $25, depending on seat choice, and a portion of each ticket purchased will be donated to Chapel Rock Camperships. New this year, the Diocese is hosting a pre-game celebration at Trinity Cathedral at 5:00 p.m. Enjoy refreshments and soft drinks, as well as food available for purchase from local food trucks. Then take the light rail to the ballpark ($4). If you are interested in attending, and and/or if you would be the point person to organize a group from St. Philip's, please call the office (299-6421) and leave your name, phone number, and email address. Read more here.

You may have heard recently that St. Philip's Ministry Endowment Fund (MEF) has received an anonymous $50,000 matching gift. Since this generous gift was publicized, we have received gifts for the MEF totaling $9,590. With our matching gift, this increases the endowment by $19,180, bringing the MEF balance to $45,854. If you've thought about making a gift to support the ministry of St. Philip's in perpetuity, whatever the size, doing it now will double the impact!

Thanks to the following donors (listed in the order received), whose contributions are being matched: Anonymous, Bridget McHale, Judith Cavallon, Christine Durboraw, Wm. Kendall, Ed Alexander, Anonymous, Karl Yordy, Stuart Hunter (deceased), Margherita Harris, Kathy Kitagawa.

Two years ago, after the Newtown, Connecticut shootings, Bishop Smith requested that St. Philip's and the other Episcopal Churches in Arizona review the issue of posting "no firearm" signage on church campuses. The posting of such signage had been recommended by the Episcopal Council of Bishops.  During the intervening period, a committee of the Vestry -- Prevention of Gun Violence Committee -- was created and held a series of forums and campus conversations about the many aspects of gun violence and what we should do as a faith community to address this issue. Based upon the input received at these events from parishioners, several resolutions addressing gun safety were developed. All three resolutions were presented and approved by the Vestry in May 2015. These include: (1) the posting of "No Guns in God's House" signage around the St. Philip's campus (those signs were posted on June 23); (2) St. Philip's representatives to the Diocesan Convention will work with other churches to develop resolutions in support of federal, state, and local laws which promote gun safety; and (3) St. Philip's will collaborate with other churches and groups in our community to support federal, state, and local laws which promote gun safety. If you need more information or have comments regarding our efforts to promote gun safety, please contact Mike Humphrey, Vestry Member.

At its June, 2015 meeting, the Vestry endorsed the establishment of a campus multi-hazard safety plan.  This plan is intended to aid staff, volunteers, parishioners, and guests in better protecting St. Philip's from a variety of hazardous situations. A copy of the plan has been posted on the St. Philip's web site. If you need more information or have comments regarding the campus safety plan, please contact Mike Humphrey or Lois Britton, Parish Administrator.

Ever wish you knew more about the Bible, church history, and theology? The Education for Ministry program (a.k.a. "EfM") has helped more than 80,000 people like you deepen their  knowledge and express their faith in their day-to-day lives. St. Philip's EfM program might be a good fit for you too. Stop by our EfM table this summer during Sunday morning coffee hour or at the July 5 Ice Cream Social and talk to EfM mentors Mary and Howell Herring to learn more. Or talk to recent students: Leah Authier-Krausz, Charles Bloeser, Ellen Duax, Christopher Fullerton, Wayne Fulton, Leslie Holmes, or Halsy Taylor. We're registering now for Tuesday night classes that begin September 8. For more information contact EfM@stphilipstucson.org.



The Ben Day Acolyte Scholarship is awarded to graduating high school senior acolytes or those in college who have not previously been chosen in recognition of exemplary service as an acolyte. This scholarship was established in memory of beloved former Parish Administrator, Verger, and Acolyte Coordinator Ben Day. The recipient of the Ben Day Acolyte Scholarship for 2014-2015 is Jessica Eppard. Jessica is in her fifth year of service as an acolyte. You may have also seen her around campus, as she has participated in cooking and cleaning for church dinners as well as Sunday morning breakfasts, making luminarias, greening the church, Casa Maria sandwich making, and helping at St. Philip's Day. She plans to attend the University of Arizona.

Donations to the Ben Day Acolyte Fund to continue these scholarships are always welcome. Checks may be made payable to St. Philip's with "Ben Day Fund" in the memo line.

In "Revelations: Visions, Prophecy, and Politics in the Book of Revelation," Dr. Elaine Pagels has written a first-rate book about the most misunderstood book in the New Testament Canon, the Book of Revelation. A short (175 pages) and lucid explanation of the meaning of Revelations, the author fortunately does not do an exegesis (line by line analysis) of the book, but focuses on the history behind the book, its meaning, and why it was included as the last book in the New Testament Canon. Read more.