ABOUT ST. PAUL’S
A Place to Belong.
A Community to Grow With.
St. Paul’s Episcopal Church:
the oldest continuous Episcopal Church in Massachusetts
For more than 300 years, St. Paul’s has been part of the Newburyport community—a place where people come together to worship, ask meaningful questions, grow in faith, care for one another, and serve our neighbors.
We are an Episcopal community rooted in the love of Christ and committed to creating a place where everyone is welcome to come as they are.
You Are Welcome Here
At St. Paul’s, we believe church should be a place where you can show up as you are—not a place where you need to have everything figured out.
Whether you have been part of the church your entire life, are returning after time away, or are simply curious about faith, you are welcome here.
What You'll Find at St. Paul’s
Worship
Gather in pray, music, Scripture, and Communion as we encounter God together and carry that love into the world.
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Learn & Grow
Explore faith through conversation, teaching, prayer, and opportunities for people of all ages to ask questions and grow.
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Serve
Put faith into action by caring for our neighbors and supporting ministries that make a meaningful difference in our community.
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Community
Experience the beauty of music and the arts as part of worship and the wider life of St. Paul’s.
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The Rev. Dr. Jarred Mercer
Fr. Jarred is our Parish Priest, or Rector. He leads our mission and communal life together, administers the sacraments, teaches, and encourages our spiritual life of worship and prayer. Fr. Jarred came to St. Paul’s in May of 2020 after 11 years in the UK where he was a priest in the Church of England and an academic researcher and chaplain at the University of Oxford. His passions include poetry, music, books, books, books, soccer, hiking, and more books. His interests used to include rock climbing and backpacking, but life as a parent has gotten in the way of these things the past 15 years or so. Fr. Jarred is available for pastoral care, personal confession, or to talk to anyone for any reason.
Our Priest and Staff
Mary Jodice, Director of Music
Mary is the Director of Music. She directs our choir and leads our music for Sunday worship. Mary is an Organist, Choral conductor, Pianist and Harpsichord player based on the NorthShore of Boston. She has a Masters in Music, Organ, and studied Collaborative Piano from the Longy School of Music at Bard College. As a Choral Conductor she is the Artist Director of The Jubilate Chamber Choir. Jubilate will be in residence at Chichester Cathedral in August of 20205. Mary performs many solo and collaborative concerts of all kinds of music from Early Music to Gospel to contemporary works of living composers. As a Choral Conductor she is the director of The Jubilate Chamber Choir. Jubilate at its smallest is an eight-voice chamber choir and can also grow to over twenty people to perform Evensong and large-scale choral works. Mary is also a founder and harpsichord player in the Phoenix Consort, a chamber group that specializes in little known Early Music for upper voices and Continuo accompaniment.
The Rev. Canon David Lee Carlson, Priest Associate
The Rev’d Canon David Lee Carlson was born in New York on the 24th of December in 1958, the youngest of three sons. He received a BA from Hamilton College in 1981 after which he attended The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. After London he moved to Manhattan and joined The Church of the Ascension on 5th Avenue. While serving in that parish’s food pantry and homeless shelter the call to the priesthood, which he had been struggling with since the age of 11, could no longer be ignored. The Rector and Vestry agreed and sponsored him for ordination. After attending The General Theological Seminary, where he served as Seminarian at San Juan Bautista Mission in the South Bronx, David was called to be Curate of The Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Manhattan. He was ordained priest at St. Mary’s on the 29th of September, 1992 (Michaelmas). He went on to be the Rector of St. Augustine’s in Croton-on-Hudson, NY; and then Rector of The Church of the Good Shepherd, Manhattan. After two rectorships he was called to serve as Canon Missioner of The Delaware Catskill Ministry in the Mid-Hudson Region of the Diocese of New York. David and his husband Timothy Smith, retired in 2021. Back in 2014 they purchased one of the oldest homes in Newburyport, dated to 1678 by a recent dendrochronology study. Over the last ten years they have attended St. Paul’s mostly while vacationing in Newburyport. This spring they formally joined the parish as members. Their primary residence is in Haverhill, New Hampshire, but St. Paul’s is their spiritual home.
Our Vestry, the Representative Leadership of the Parish
Stu Tuthill, Senior Warden
Meryl Longval, Jr. Warden
Deirdre Budzyna, Clerk
Nick Ives, Treasurer
Laura Keenan, Children & Youth
Kim Wright, Communications
Pam Jones, Art & Culture
Dorothy Doyle, Fundraising
Sue Blumenscheid, Local Outreach
Frank Condella, Capital Campaign
Cathleen Porter, Spiritual Formation & Broadcast