About Our Church
Who We Are. How We Began.
Our Vision
O God, help us to be progressive Christians in an open,
inclusive and affirming community of faith.
O Jesus, guide us in providing a safe harbor for those
on their spiritual journey.
O Holy Spirit, be with us in our endeavors to reflect
God’s peace and loving justice into our world
Our Priest in Charge
The Rev. Arienne Davison
Baptized and ordained in the Diocese of Olympia, the Rev. Arienne Davison served in several congregations and as the Canon for Multicultural Ministries (2011-2017) before accepting the call as Canon to the Ordinary in March 2020.
A student and teacher in the field of intercultural ministry, The Rev Davison is also a trainer in the College for Congregational Development network and consultant.
Arienne lives in Bremerton with her family and extended family nearby. In her spare time she observes the night sky and plays games with friends and family.
Our Associate Priest
The Rev. Linda Logan
income, carrying out a capital campaign which led to a three-phase rebuilding program that included major structural repairs and historic restoration of the 1909 tracker organ and the 1860s-era stained glass windows. Mother Linda served the area as chair of the ecumenically-sponsored food pantry and thrift store in Boonville and became known throughout the five-county broadcast area of WBRV Radio for its weekly broadcast of her sermons.
On the diocesan level, Mother Linda served on the board of directors of the Foundation of the Diocese and as a member of the diocesan Formation for Ministry Committee and the Task Force for Formation charged with developing standards of learning and competencies for persons studying for ordained and licensed lay ministries. She served as a tutor and mentor to persons studying for the priesthood and, for diocesan ministry fairs, led workshops in writing children’s liturgies. She also served on the diocesan Episcopal Fund for Human Need and the Resolutions Committee of the annual diocesan convention.
Mother Linda came to Central New York from the Diocese of South Dakota where she served as rector of Trinity Episcopal Church in Pierre. In that diocese she served as a member of the Board of Examining Chaplains/Theological Education Committee, the Constitution and Canons Committee, and as dean of the Central Deanery, in which position she facilitated the planning and hosting of the diocesan convention, the diocesan middle school convention, the diocesan high school convention and deanery preaching missions that featured the Rt. Rev. Mark MacDonald, Bishop of Alaska, and the Rt. Rev. John S. Thornton, retired Bishop of Idaho. For one summer, she also served as supply priest for the four churches of the Mnisose Cluster of the deanery, continuing to serve as supply priest for Holy Comforter on the Lower Brule Indian Reservation until that mission received its own priest the following year. While in Pierre, Mother Linda also served as mentor to a student working on a Master of Divinity degree in the Native Ministries Program of the Vancouver School of Theology in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Mother Linda became an Episcopal priest following years of working in university and church editorial positions and several years of teaching high school English and journalism and adult basic education. She served as assistant editor, then editor, of the Publications Service Bureau for the statewide system of the University of Tennessee. She left that position to become communications officer for the Knoxville-based Episcopal Diocese of East Tennessee and editor of the diocesan newspaper, The East Tennessee Episcopalian, in which position she won national awards from the Associated Church Press and Episcopal Communicators.
Mother Linda earned the Bachelor of Arts degree in English at Idaho State University and did graduate work in English at Vanderbilt University. She also holds the Master of Divinity degree from the Church Divinity School of the Pacific in Berkeley, California.
The Reverend Linda M. Logan was named associate priest at St. Paul’s in 2024 following her retirement in the Diocese of Central New York and her move to Bremerton to relocate near family.
While in New York, Mother Linda served as rector, first of a three-church cluster which had its office at Trinity Church in the village of Boonville, then as rector of Trinity alone, later also as rector of Trinity Church in the village of Camden.
During her tenure at Trinity, Boonville, that parish grew in program, membership, and pledged
Our Deacon
The Rev. Bill Thaete
The Rev. Bill Thaete is the new deacon at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Bremerton. He was appointed by the Rt. Rev. Philip N. LaBelle, bishop in the Episcopal Diocese of Olympia. The Rev. Arienne Davison, priest in charge at St. Paul’s, made the announcement during the March 9 Sunday service: “St. Paul’s hasn’t had a deacon for quite a while and some folks aren’t familiar with what a deacon is and what a deacon does. I wanted to take a few minutes to talk about the ministry of deacon and how Deacon Bill will work with us.
“In the time after the first Pentecost, the apostles would become leaders of their own churches. Their ministry would later be called ‘Bishop.’ This is the story of how the first Deacons were called”:
A reading from Acts
“Now during those days, when the disciples were increasing in
the whole number, the Hellenists complained against the Hebrews because the(ir) [Hellenist] widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of food. And the twelve called together the whole of the disciples and said, ‘It is not right that we should neglect the word of God in order to wait at tables. Therefore, friends, select from among yourselves seven men of good standing, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this task, while we, for our part, will devote ourselves to prayer and to serving the word.’ What they said pleased the whole community, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, together with Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. They had these men stand before the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.”
Deacon Bill was ordained 9 years ago. He felt called to ministry as a young man, but knew he wasn’t a priest. When he learned about the ministry of Deacon, he was nominated by our siblings in Christ at St. Bede, Port Orchard to study for ordination. In addition to his ministry inside the church, Deacon Bill has served as a fire and emergency services Chaplain for South Kitsap Fire for about 11 years.
As our Deacon, he will be responsible for specific liturgical tasks: reading the Gospel, setting and clearing the Table during Communion, and sending us out into the world.
Because of his experience as a chaplain, I’ve charged Deacon Bill to work with us to provide spiritual and pastoral care to our neighbors and members at Canterbury Manor.
A copy of the Bishop’s agreement with us about Deacon Bill’s ministry is available if anyone is curious about more details.
Let’s welcome Bill to this new ministry among us!"
Our Church History
The 1855 Treaty of Point Elliott, between the U.S. government and the Suquamish and other area tribes, had made the land available for non-Native settlement. Bremerton, named for founder William Bremer, was incorporated as a city in 1901. St. Paul’s became an Episcopal mission in downtown Bremerton. The first service was conducted in Charleston,
Navy officials had a low opinion of Bremerton public behavior in the city's early days.
what’s now part of West Bremerton, in the Presbyterian Church.
But church leaders in this new town, population 1,700, faced an uphill battle. Bremerton quickly become known for its gambling, prostitution, wild saloons, opium houses and robberies of sailors. Charles Darling, assistant secretary of the Navy, in 1902 pulled all repair work from Bremerton and moved it to Mare Island near San Francisco.
In 1903, Bremerton’s leaders responded by revoking all liquor licenses in town. Business and civic leaders in Seattle also wanted the economic boost the Navy brought, and Darling moved work back to Bremerton. Saloons soon prospered again, though.
In 2013, the church completed a renovation of the Parish Hall kitchen to provide better services to the diner and to other organizations and groups using the building. Providing space to nonprofits is part of the vision for serving the community.
Now the church faces another crossroads. Harrison Medical Center, a focal point of this neighborhood for decades, has moved to Silverdale. It’s unclear what will happen to this area.
And then the COVID-19 pandemic hit in the spring of 2020, thrusting Kitsap County and the rest of the country into a recession. St. Paul’s closed the church and services moved to Facebook. We worshipped from home, but as “together” as possible.
Ever industrious, the congregation took the opportunity to repaint the church sanctuary and make much-needed repairs to the roof.
Finally, on Pentecost 2021, St. Paul’s reopened and people returned to worshipping together in their beloved church. Services continue to be streamed on Facebook.
You’d think that would be the end. But then in November 2021 a storm and a rare “atmospheric river” slammed Bremerton and caused severe damage and leaks to our recently repaired sanctuary roof. Undaunted, the parish moved services downstairs to the Parish Hall during months of repairs and remodeling to the sanctuary (and ultimately the leak-damaged Parish Hall itself).
The congregation finally returned to the remodeled sanctuary on April 10, 2022 — Palm Sunday.
In January 2024, the Rev. Kathleen Kingslight retired from St. Paul's after 14 years as rector. An interim priest, the Rev. Dr. Jane Maynard, was named in mid-January.
Throughout 2024, Pastor Jane led the congregation and worked with the Vestry on preparation to call a new rector. Late in the year, the Vestry accepted the Diocese's recommendation to hire a priest in charge. The vestry hired the Rev. Arienne Davison in November for that position and she began serving at St. Paul in February 2025.
Hang on as our second century continues ….
St. Paul’s was formed in Bremerton, Washington, in 1902, 11 years after a Naval Station was established on the shore of Sinclair Inlet at Turner Point.
This was in the territory of the Suquamish Tribe, which had called this area home for as long as 5,000 years.
But St. Paul’s was doing well enough to move to a new location — Sixth Street and Chester — in 1915. Then came the U.S. entry into World War 1 in 1917, the Influenza Epidemic of 1918 and then the Great Depression in 1929. St. Paul’s survived it all. And following the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Navy Yard took on a vital role, and Bremerton grew to about 80,000 people.
Starting in the late 1930s, the church became well-known for making and canning English plum puddings for the holiday season as a fund-raiser. These were sold in stores and became quite popular, and St. Paul’s became known around Kitsap as “the Church of the Plum Puddings.” This tradition lasted for 40 years.
St. Paul’s finally became a Parish, graduating from Mission status, in January 1943.
In 1957, the U.S. Government began to sell the land on which war-time housing stood, giving first right of refusal to area churches. St. Paul’s a year later bought a 7.9 acre tract of prime view property in East Bremerton, its current location — 700 Callahan Drive.
In 1968, St. Paul’s leaders finished the new church home near the recently constructed Harrison Hospital. It included a new Balcom & Vaughan pipe organ.
Then in 1986, church leaders made the commitment to remain in Bremerton despite the rapid development of Silverdale thanks to the
deployment of Trident submarines
at nearby Bangor.
St. Paul's popular plum pudding was sold in stores as a church fundrasier starting in the 1930s.
The church the next year completed a major rebuilding and redevelopment on the Callahan property — the building we know today.
St. Paul’s continued with an increasingly progressive vision, supporting the local LGBTQ community and partnering with Lord’s Neighborhood Diner to host a weekend meals program in the Parish Hall for low-income families.