✢ E-PISTLE WEEK OF SUNDAY, JANUARY 25th, 2026

WEEK OF SUNDAY, JANUARY 25th, 2026
✢ THIRD SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY ✢

The Eyes of Jesus

Dear Beloved of Trinity,

As you may know, each day this month, I have been posting a short video reflection on social media, working my way through John O’Donohue’s book To Bless the Space Between Us.

Today, I offer a brief reflection on O’Donohue’s blessing entitled The Eyes of Jesus.

I imagine the eyes of Jesus were harvest brown,
the light of their gazing suffused with the seasons:
the shadow of winter,
the mind of spring,
the blues of summer,
and the amber of harvest.

The eyes of Jesus gaze on us.¸
This gaze knows the signature of our heartbeat.
It recognizes us before we explain ourselves,
names us before we speak.

Forever falling softly on our faces,
his gaze piles the soul with light.

What we cast our gaze upon, over time, shapes our lives. Our attention is never neutral; it forms our desires, trains our loves, and slowly makes us into a certain kind of person. So we are wise to be gentle and cautious with our looking—with what we linger over, what we scroll past,
what we allow to claim our eyes and our hearts.

And yet, there is a gaze that does not drain us or scatter us.
The gaze of Jesus does not demand or diminish.
It rests upon us with patience and delight.
To meet his eyes is to be seen without fear,
known without being reduced,
loved without condition.

This is the gaze that changes us.
This is the gaze that sustains us.
This is the gaze that quietly reminds us, again and again,
that we are already beloved.

Grace and peace,

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STEWARDSHIP 2026

Greetings,

Let's reach our $1.2 million stewardship goal! Your individual pledge can help us reach our goal of 300 pledges for 2026. Your financial support has a direct impact for our staff, clergy & pastoral care, family ministries, music programs, buildings, and outreach efforts. Engage in the great work we are doing together. Pledge today and make a difference. Our sincere gratitude to those members below who have pledged to date.

Bill Hackett & Cynthia Westbrook, Co-Chairs of Stewardship

We have a clear stewardship goal for 2026: 300 pledges!

If each of us contributes, we'll reach this target and fully fund our 2026 annual budget.

Total # pledges = 227

Total $ = 902,999

Goal: 1.2m

This Sunday’s Sermon:

The Rev. Paul Jeanes III

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9:30am Adult Forum

NO FORUM DUE TO INCLEMENT WEATHER

❄️ IMPORTANT: Please be aware that we will notify you of any cancellation or modification to Sunday morning worship no later than 6:00 AM on SUNDAY.

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SUNDAY READINGS

First Lesson:

Isaiah 9:1-4

Second Lesson:

1 Corinthians 1:10-18

Gospel:

Matthew 4:12-23

Download Bulletin

January 25th

10:30 AM BULLETIN

LIVESTREAM

Trinity’s Children and Family Ministries

23 January

Dear families,

This Sunday we are excited to welcome everyone back to regular Sunday School! Classes run from 9:30 to 10:15. Grades 3-6 are in room 208 and K- 2 in room 207. For children 4 and under, our nursery is open from 9-noon for stories and free play.

We had a small but mighty group last Sunday making sack lunches and valentines for our neighbors. We’re hoping to do something similar on February 8th. Our January Fun Friday the 30th at Jadwin for a basketball game. Send an email to Anne to reserve your tickets now!

Upcoming Events

1/25 9:30 a.m. Sunday School, Children’s Chapel, Youth Group

1/26 8:30 a.m. Move on Mondays

1/30 7 p.m. Fun Friday at Jadwin, Princeton University women’s basketball game

1/31 10 a.m. Tour Arm In Arm at Mill One in Hamilton

2/1 9:30 a.m. Church Family Breakfast , ABC Choir sings, child-friendly sermon, no Sunday School or Children’s Chapel, Youth Group meets as usual.

2/13 6:30 p.m. Father Paul’s Spread Your Love Princeton event

REGISTER BELOW:

CHILDREN AND YOUTH RETREATS

Registration for the January 31st Arm in Arm volunteer morning is full.

If anyone wishes to be placed on a waiting list, please contact Melissa Scott directly at mebscott@comcast.net.

Spots do open up.

Phil Unetic volunteers for Arm in Arm once a week on Monday or Wednesday. If you wish to join him any week, please contact him at phil.unetic@gmail.com. Thank you, Phil!

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Adult Formation Corner: A Few Rearrangements

Dear friends,

I am on medical leave until February 5 following the surprise addition of two coronary stents to my life. I will be fine, but I do need a few weeks to recover before I’m back at work. Accordingly, there will be a few changes to the Formation calendar.

Most importantly, we will re-run the Foundations class after Lent because there won’t be time to finish it after I return but before Lent. There will be an adult confirmation class on Wednesday evenings during Lent that will cover some of the same material, but with a different focus. If you are an adult who is interested in being confirmed or received into the Episcopal Church, please email me at sladek@trinityprinceton.org, or just show up at the first class on Wednesday, February 25 at 6:30 PM (dinner starts at 6).

In addition, note the changes in the formation schedule below due to the impending snowstorm. Thank you for your patience and your prayers as we navigate unexpected events both personal and climatological!

Yours in Christ, and in Christ alone,

Adult Formation This Week:

Sunday, January 25 at 9:30 AM: NO FORUM DUE TO INCLEMENT WEATHER

Monday, January 26 at 7:30 PM at Yankee Doodle Tap Room: NO PUB THEOLOGY DUE TO INCLEMENT WEATHER

Sunday, February 2 at 9:30 AM: Forum TBD

CHOIR TOUR DEADLINE IS SOON!

Our choir will be touring the UK this August, spending the first week at Ely Cathedral and the second at Westminster Abbey. Trinity Church invites YOU to join the choir for the London week of the tour, August 8-17.

We will be traveling on British Airways and staying in London about 10 minutes from Westminster Abbey. In addition to supporting our choir at Evensong and Sunday services, we will have time to tour some historic sites in London as well as travel to Oxford and Canterbury for a day.

There will also be plenty of free time for shopping or your own activities. Thanks to some good group rates, the cost should be quite reasonable for a week in London.

We do need to make a commitment for the group airfare BY THE END OF JANUARY, so please indicate your interest on this Google Form: CLICK HERE

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Travel to the Holy Land

A couple of years back, some members of Trinity Church traveled with our Rector, Paul Jeanes, and The Rev. Keith Marsh and to the Holy Land.

It proved to be a marvelous and spiritually uplifting experience for all who made the pilgrimage! After retiring in June of 2023, Keith started Spirited Pilgrimages, a business devoted to planning, promoting and hosting unique, small-group pilgrimages around the world for people of faith.

Two pilgrimages have been planned for the fall of next year and you are invited to join:

The Footsteps of Paul – September 9-19, 2026 – travel through Turkey and Greece by land and sea - visit sites from the Book of Acts associated with St. Paul on his missionary journeys: Ephesus, Patmos, Corinth, Athens and more, including the islands of Crete and Santorini
Celtic Christianity – October 12-24, 2026 – follow the path of Christianity’s early years in the Celtic kingdoms, beginning in Ireland and expanding into Scotland and northern England – trace the spread of Celtic Christianity from its introduction by St. Patrick to its demise at the Council of Whitby.

These pilgrimages will be led by Keith, an experienced pilgrimage planner and host. To learn more about these two all-inclusive pilgrimages – expansive itinerary, roundtrip airfare, lodging and meal details, price and deadlines, as well as how to reserve your spot – visit the Spirited Pilgrimages website at: spiritedpilgrimages.com

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PRAYER LIST:

Please keep the following individuals in your prayers:

Susan Barry, Zoe Beaton, Vanessa BelhommeJohn Bertalot, Peter Brown, Peter, Kevin F. Cunningham, Karen D, Chip Dongara, Daryll Eatmon, Gus Escher, Amy G., Pat Grabiec, Reverend Dana Hall, Josh Hannan, William Hannan, Ellen Jane, Patricia Killian, Edwin Metcalf, Nancy Metcalf, Billy Mitchell, Dorothy Morin, Joan Nester, Bob Pietrucha, Lisa Witt Pinair, Cornelia Jane Reeder, Carol Reynolds, Claire Roberts, Jennifer Sanborn, Nancy Slade, Clive Muncaster, Dulcie Muncaster, Dianne Senko, Samantha Seto, Isaiah Stevens, Gary Sykes, P.A. Tippett, and Joshua.

Please pray for the following souls who have recently passed:

Gordon Brooks

Larry Evans

Richard Pittenger

Amber Schuppan

Alex Waugh

Individuals will remain on the prayer list for one month, unless we are otherwise notified.

➨ If you want to add someone to the list, please email Annie Bryson at brysona@trinityprinceton.org.

RECOVERY MEETINGS: Looking for recovery meetings? See our list of recurring meetings here.

ZOOM EVENTS: Join all Zoom meetings, unless otherwise advertised, at ZOOM.US/J/2859819016 [By phone: 1 646 558 8656 Meeting ID: 285 981 9016 Password: 1979].

ABOUT US: Trinity Church ➨ Est’d 1833 ➨ An Episcopal Church in the Diocese of New Jersey ➨ 33 Mercer Street, Princeton, New Jersey 08540 ➨ (609) 924-2277 ➨ The Rev. Paul Jeanes III, Rector; The Rev. Cn. Dr. Kara N. Slade, Associate Rector ➨ Website: trinityprinceton.org

“We believe God’s love is expansive and unconditional and that through Christ, God has called us to love one another as God loves us. We welcome all people of every gender, race, age, culture, ethnic background, sexual orientation, economic circumstance, family configuration, or difference of ability. We celebrate the worth, dignity, and gifts of every person as a child of God.”

PARISH CARE

Please know that we are here for you, to support you and pray for you however best we can. Feel free to reach out to the clergy.