Diocese: Diocese of the West
Deanery: Missionary District
Address
1763 N Gilbert Rd
Mesa, Arizona 85203-2802
Mailing address:
St. John the Evangelist Eastern Orthodox Church
PO Box 27447
Tempe, AZ 85285-7447
Email:
Website: stjohnaz.org
Office: 480-427-0630
Parish Contacts
Lay Leadership
Schedule of Services
All services are celebrated in English using liturgical music from the Slavic and Byzantine traditions.
5:00 PM Great Vespers / Vigil (Great Vesper + Matins) served once a month and on eve of major Feasts.
Saturday Evening
9:00 AM Hours; 9:30 AM Divine Liturgy, followed by Coffee Hour
Sunday Morning
Confessions are heard at the end of Vigil and by appointment.
Confessions
For schedule of Feast Day Services, Great Vespers and Divine Liturgy, etc., please see the Calendar at www.stjohnaz.org
Parish Background
St. John the Evangelist Eastern Orthodox Church was established in February of 2005 to bring the Orthodox Christian Faith to Tempe, one of the largest cities in the country without an Orthodox Church and home to one of the largest state universities in the country. Our parish is part of the Orthodox Church in America (a self-governing church with historical roots in Russia). The Mission continues under the care of His Grace, ArchBishop Benjamin, Diocese of the West (OCA).
The services at St. John’s are all conducted in English. Our common musical tradition is rooted in Russia; however, we also sing hymns in the Byzantine style. We are blessed to have a number of talented singers in our Mission who work very hard at making our services beautiful, and hope our visitors find worship inspirational.
Visiting today, you will find us approximately 40 or so people struggling to live the fullness of Christian life together as it has been preserved and handed down to us. The members of St. John’s Mission come from a wide variety of a wide variety of religious and ethnic backgrounds – more than half of us are relatively new to Orthodoxy. Some of us are “cradle Orthodox,” but most of us have come from traditions like Evangelical Protestant, Roman Catholic, Episcopal, Baptist, non-denominational, Presbyterian, Disciples of Christ, etc.. St. John’s is a multi-generational, “kid-friendly,” and welcoming place to explore the Orthodox Faith, and to make a parish home with a fellowship of new friends.
As a local parish, we are devoted to the apostles’ teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayer. We encourage the ministry of the laity through the recognition and use of spiritual gifts, an understanding of the priesthood of all believers, and an emphasis on spiritual disciplines given by the church, including fasting, almsgiving, and prayer. We retain the traditional understanding of the church as a spiritual hospital where we can receive divine help in the struggle to purify our hearts and to be healed in soul and body.
