About Immaculate Heart school [Ruthenian] (temporary location) · Tucson, Arizona
The Immaculate Heart School Chapel in Tucson, Arizona is the temporary Sunday worship site (mission chapel) of the Byzantine (Ruthenian) Catholic community in northwest Tucson, administered by Saint Melany Byzantine Catholic Church. A 10:00 AM Sunday Divine Liturgy is celebrated in the chapel on the grounds of the historic Immaculate Heart School campus on Magee Road, serving Byzantine Catholic faithful in Marana, Dove Mountain, Oro Valley, Rancho Vistoso and the surrounding areas. The mission belongs to the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Phoenix (Holy Protection of Mary), one of four Ruthenian eparchies in the United States, and it currently sits geographically within the territory of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tucson. Father Robert Rankin, full-time pastor of Saint Melany since 2002, shepherds this mission together with the parish's other sites at mid-town Tucson and the Mary, Undoer of Knots Shrine on Mount Lemmon.
- Established
- 1977 (parent mission: Saint Melany); Magee Road chapel service began as an outreach of that mission
- Rector
- Father Robert Rankin (full-time pastor of Saint Melany; Syncellus for Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado)
- Diocese
- Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Phoenix (Holy Protection of Mary of Phoenix); geographically within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tucson
Why belong here
If you live in northwest Tucson, Marana, Dove Mountain, Oro Valley or Rancho Vistoso, this chapel brings the full Byzantine (Ruthenian) Catholic Divine Liturgy to your side of town at a comfortable 10:00 AM Sunday — no long drive to mid-town Tucson. The community is small enough that Father Rankin knows parishioners personally (in the Byzantine tradition he greets each by name for Holy Communion and blesses their home once a year), and it connects directly to Saint Melany's faith-formation programs (children, teen ByzanTeens, adult formation, music ministry), the Mary Undoer of Knots Shrine on Mount Lemmon, and the wider life of the Eparchy of Phoenix.
Mass times at Immaculate Heart school [Ruthenian] (temporary location)
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Prior to every Divine Liturgy (see weekly bulletin for this mission's current times)
About the Immaculate Heart School Chapel (Mission)
The Immaculate Heart School Chapel on Magee Road is a temporary Sunday mission chapel operated by Saint Melany Byzantine Catholic Church for the Byzantine Catholic faithful of northwest Tucson. At 10:00 AM every Sunday, Father Robert Rankin celebrates the Byzantine (Ruthenian) Divine Liturgy here for the communities of Marana, Dove Mountain, Oro Valley, Rancho Vistoso and nearby neighborhoods. Because the chapel is the north-Tucson outreach of Saint Melany, its schedules, bulletins, ministries and pastoral care flow through the parent parish.
Byzantine Catholic Identity (Ruthenian Rite)
Saint Melany is in full communion with the Roman Pontiff but observes the Byzantine (Ruthenian) liturgical tradition. There are four Byzantine Catholic eparchies in the United States: Passaic (East Coast), Pittsburgh (lower Midwest), Parma (upper Midwest) and Phoenix (Rocky Mountain states, Pacific Coast, Southwest, Pacific Northwest, Alaska and Hawaii). Saint Melany and its Magee Road mission belong to the Eparchy of Phoenix (formally the Eparchy of the Holy Protection of Mary of Phoenix).
- Eparchy of Passaic — East Coast
- Arch-Eparchy of Pittsburgh — lower Midwest
- Eparchy of Parma — upper Midwest
- Eparchy of Phoenix — western United States and Pacific
Worship Schedule
The Sunday Divine Liturgy at the Magee Road mission chapel is at 10:00 AM. Confessions are heard prior to every Divine Liturgy; consult the parish bulletin or website for current times. The main Saint Melany church in mid-town Tucson celebrates a Saturday Vigil Divine Liturgy at 4 PM and Sunday Divine Liturgy at 9 AM, except that the last Saturday Vigil of each month is celebrated at the Mary, Undoer of Knots Shrine on Mount Lemmon.
- Immaculate Heart School Chapel — Sunday 10:00 AM Divine Liturgy
- Saint Melany (mid-town) — Sat Vigil 4 PM, Sun 9 AM
- Mary Undoer of Knots Shrine (Mt Lemmon) — Tuesdays and Saturdays at 4 PM
- Holy Days — Vigil 7 PM, day 12 Noon at Saint Melany
Pastoral Team and Clergy
The mission is served by the pastor and parish team of Saint Melany Byzantine Catholic Church in Tucson.
- Father Robert Rankin — Pastor, since 2002; Syncellus for Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado; specialty in marriage and family counseling.
Our Pastor: Father Robert Rankin
Father Rankin was ordained to the Roman Catholic priesthood in 1980 and received bi-ritual faculties in 1984, after studying Eastern Christian subjects and Greek Patristics at the University of Scranton, Saint Pius X College Seminary and as an exchange student at Saint Tikhon's Orthodox Seminary. He assisted at the Byzantine Proto-Cathedral of Saint Mary Protection of the Mother of God for 18 years before transferring to full-time ministry in the Eparchy of Phoenix. He has pastored Saint Melany and its missions since 2002. He credits the Franciscan and Jesuit formation he received for shaping his priestly life.
History of the Mission
The Byzantine Catholic presence in southern Arizona was planted by Father John and Pani Cecelia Bovankovich, who travelled from Phoenix into New Mexico and southern Arizona as missionaries. Their work, together with the dedication of local laity, led to the founding of Saint Melany Byzantine Catholic Church in Tucson in 1977. By the early 2000s the parish was large enough across the metro area to support a Sunday Divine Liturgy on the Immaculate Heart School campus on Magee Road, serving the rapidly growing northwest side of Tucson and the Oro Valley / Marana corridor.
- Saint Melany founded in Tucson in 1977 as a mission of the Eparchy of Van Nuys (now Phoenix).
- Own church dedicated in 1982 in mid-town Tucson.
- Northwest-Tucson Sunday outreach established on the Magee Road campus.
Ministries
Mission-chapel parishioners participate in the ministries of Saint Melany Byzantine Catholic Church, including faith formation for children, teens and adults, Byzantine-rite music, and the wider Eparchy of Phoenix life.
- Music Ministry
- Religious Education / Children's Faith Formation
- Adult Faith Formation
- ByzanTeens (youth ministry)
- Marriage and family counseling
- Sacramental preparation and religious-studies education
Sacraments and Devotions
In Byzantine theology, the seven sacraments are called the Holy Mysteries. The Mystery of Reconciliation (confession) is offered before every Divine Liturgy, including at the Magee Road mission. Father Rankin places particular emphasis on marriage preparation and on knowing each parishioner personally — he greets each person for Holy Communion by name and makes an annual home blessing visit for his flock.
- Mystery of Reconciliation (confession) before every Divine Liturgy
- Marriage preparation and counseling
- Sacramental preparation
- Annual home blessings
Mary, Undoer of Knots Shrine (Mount Lemmon)
A sister site of Saint Melany is the Mary, Undoer of Knots Byzantine Catholic Shrine at 12849 N Tucson Avenue, Mount Lemmon, AZ 85619. The shrine hosts Divine Liturgy on Tuesdays and Saturdays at 4 PM and is also where the last Saturday Vigil of each month is celebrated. It was conceived by Father Rankin after his first summer trip up the mountain, and is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin's patronage for 'undoing knots' in the lives of the faithful.
Annual Bishop's Appeal (Eparchy of Phoenix)
Saint Melany joins the Annual Bishop's Appeal of the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Phoenix, which supports 19 parishes, 4 missions and 3 outreaches across 9 of the 13 western states. The parish's recent goal has been set at $21,600 and the Mission at $5,400. Funds support seminarian formation, clergy pension care, vocations initiatives, youth programs and family retreats such as 'Alive in Christ' and 'Myrrh Bearers'.
- Parish goal (recent year): $21,600
- Mission goal (recent year): $5,400
- Supports youth rallies, father-son and mother-daughter retreats, seminarian formation
Visit and Contact
Join Father Rankin and the Byzantine Catholic community of northwest Tucson for the 10:00 AM Sunday Divine Liturgy on Magee Road. For bulletins, homilies, the parish calendar, formation programs and the most current information about this mission chapel, use the Saint Melany parish resources linked below.
- Address (parish office): 1212 N Sahuara Ave., Tucson, AZ 85712
- Phone: (520) 886-4225
- Bulletins: http://stmelanybcc.org/bulletins/
- Main parish site: https://stmelanybcc.org
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Future Metropolitan Archbishop William Charles Skurla, OFM1993–2002
Served as Pastoral Administrator of Saint Melany Byzantine Catholic Church, Tucson, before his appointment as third Bishop of the Eparchy of Van Nuys (now Phoenix); later Metropolitan Archbishop of Pittsburgh.
- Father Robert Rankin2002–present
Ordained Roman Rite 1980, received bi-ritual faculties 1984; for 18 years assisted at the Byzantine Proto-Cathedral of Saint Mary Protection of the Mother of God before transferring to the Eparchy of Phoenix.