Get Rooted and Grow at GSP!
We've made a few adjustments to the program schedule in August.
Check out the revised schedule for the rest of the month!
Programs for Children, Youth & Families
(& Everyone Else)
Swim Party for
Children, Youth and Families
Saturday, August 19th from
4-6pm at Highland Vista Pool

Godly Play Training in Phoenix

Sept 15-17


Crop Walk

October 29
Contact Amy Cormode here for more information!

Sunday Mornings

for Children & Youth

during August


  • Nursery care and children and youth spiritual formation classes are all located in the Education Center, below the sanctuary.
  • Nursery care is available from 8:45 am to 12:45 pm for children ages 3 and under and is located in the Theresa of Avila Room.
  • At 10 am the Preschool thru Fifth Grade children will use Illustrated Children’s Ministry curriculum along with work on a summer long mosaic project facilitated by volunteer members of the congregation.
  • Evening youth group is on break for the summer and will resume in the fall.
Weekday Contemporary Worship
Sundays for Adults at 9:00 am & 11:45 am
Have an idea for a class or group? Would you like to present a class
for Adult Spiritual Formation  at GSP? Please email us here.
We welcome all suggestions!
How Did We Get the Eucharistic Service Music?
2 Sundays, August 13 & 20 at 9:00 am in the Bloom Room

Join us for this multi-media program on the development of the music that is sung during a Eucharistic service, answering such questions as:

  • How did the ancient Jews sing in the Temple and in the synagogues?
  • How did the Christians of the Early Church sing?
  • Why did most Christians stop singing in church?
  • Did the English sing the words of the first Prayer Books?
  • Where did the Church get the wording for the Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Benedictus, and Agnus Dei?
  • Why did each of these become part of the traditional Eucharist?                  
  • Where did the present English words come from?

Presented by Chuck Dickson, a member of the Adult Spiritual Formation team. Chuck is a retired history teacher and a popular presenter at GSP
Sermons on Tap
Sunday, August 13 at 11:45 am in the Bloom Room

Ever leave worship on Sunday and wish you could talk about the sermon with others? Why not join like-minded folks for an open discussion of the day's sermon over beer and sandwiches? This group is for anyone with a desire to connect more deeply with others and a willingness to explore their own questions about how we live into the "good news" as preached at GSP. The setting will be informal and relaxed. No need to register, come anytime. All are welcome! Beer, iced tea, and snacks will be available. Donations will be accepted to cover the cost of lunch.

Facilitated by Brian Arthur, a member of the Adult Spiritual Formation team.
Two Faces of Biblical Female Prophets
2 Sundays, August 20 & 27 at 11:45 am in the Bloom Room

Many of us equate prophecy with the classical (male) prophets of Israel (e.g. Jeremiah, Isaiah). In this two-part series, we will dig out evidence about female prophets of the Bible, whose legacies are sometimes buried underneath discrediting stereotypes (e.g. a reputation for ecstasy or witchcraft). Miriam, Huldah, the Witch of Endor, the unnamed "soul catchers" in Ezekiel, the Corinthian women prophets, and the Pythian slave girl (in Acts) will all be considered. Not only will we excavate historical facts, about these prophetic women, we will also reflect upon literary and theological methods, for assessing their impact upon on our lives of faith as Christians.

Margot Stevenson is a scholar of New Testament and early Christianity (PhD, Harvard University). She is currently working on a book (tentative title: Meeting Ezekiel) consisting of dialogues, on key themes, with figures in biblical and religious history. She is also a spiritually oriented coach in Tucson.

Shakespeare and the Bible
Sunday, August 27 at 9:00 am in the Bloom Room

Shakespeare, our most profound Judeo/Christian moral philosopher, enfolded words, phrases, plots and general themes from the Holy Writ into his plays. He brought the Scriptures to the theater. Under his pen, the Bible fairly sings the lessons of life.

Ron Lancaster is an author and storyteller by trade and a former teacher and a graduate of the U of A.

GSP Readers Group and Summer Film Series
GSP Readers Group: All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
Friday, August 11 at 9:30 am
in the Bloom Room

From the highly acclaimed, multiple award-winning Anthony Doerr, the beautiful, stunningly ambitious bestseller about a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II. Doerr’s “stunning sense of physical detail and gorgeous metaphors” (San Francisco Chronicle) are dazzling. Deftly interweaving the lives of Marie-Laure and Werner, he illuminates the ways, against all odds, people try to be good to one another. All the Light We Cannot See is a magnificent, deeply moving novel from a writer “whose sentences never fail to thrill” (Los Angeles Times). All are welcome. No registration necessary.

For more information, please contact Vicki Stefani at 520-743-3978.
Join us for a free film and discussion on the third Friday of each month. This summer’s films examine the faces of faith in the Middle East and elsewhere in Asia.

Where Do We Go Now? (2011)
Friday, August 18 at 6:30 pm
in the Bloom Room

Set in a remote village where the church and the mosque stand side by side, Where Do We Go Now? follows the antics of the town's women to keep their blowhard men from starting a religious war. Women heartsick over sons, husbands and fathers lost to previous flare-ups unite to distract their men with clever ruses, from faking a miracle to hiring a troop of Ukrainian strippers.

Rating: PG-13 (for thematic drug material, some sensuality and violent images)

This film series is hosted by Vicki and Joe Stefani. They are involved in a variety of ministries at GSP; Joe also serves on the vestry. Both are retired from the University of Arizona, where each taught writing and Vicki also taught literature and film.
Understanding Scripture
For Everyone: Coffee, Bagels
and Bible Stuff
Every Thursday from 7:30-8:30 am in the Weeks Room

Join a diverse group in a discussion of the Bible. In our second year many are attending their first bible study and are enjoying the attempt to put the weekly readings into historical prospective while finding current application. 

All materials are provided. Drop-ins are welcome, and we start and end on time.

Facilitated by Bill Moore, GSP Junior Warden.

Bible Women
Friday, August 18 from 10:30-11:30 am
in the Weeks Room

What do the voices of women in scripture have to say to us about our own lives, regardless of our gender? This class studies the Bible through the words of women in the Old and New Testaments. The focus is on actual scripture and its contexts; an optional text, Bible Women: All Their Words and Why They Matter by Lindsay Hardin Freeman is available through Amazon.

The group meets twice a month on the 1st and 3rd Friday. No registration is necessary and participants are welcome to join the group at any time.

For more information contact Vicki Stefani at 520-743-3978.
Weekly Small Group Discussions
Sharing Our Spiritual Journeys
Aug 21 from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
in the Bloom Room

In this small discussion group, we focus on a different intersection between spirituality, religion, and culture. For the summer months we will focus on developing a contemplative practice using the breath and sound, utilizing a variety of approaches. Each session will stand alone and all are welcome. No registration is necessary.

Each session stands alone and participants are welcome anytime. 

Co-facilitated by Brian Arthur, Jim Franks and Catherine Penn Williams.
Saturday Java Jive:
Coffee & Conversation
Every Saturday from 8:30-11:00 am
at Epic Cafe (745 N 4th Ave, at University Blvd)

Want to meet and get to know folks in a relaxed and friendly environment? All are welcome to join this long-running motley crew that meets every Saturday morning for coffee and conversation. We never know who will show up, the topic is always up for grabs, and hilarity often ensues.