THIS WEEK AT ASCENSION + January 27, 2021 |
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"Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness." - Psalm 96
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The Annual Meeting Issue
Morning Prayer, 9:30 a.m.
Mass with organ, motet, hymn, 10:00 a.m.
Annual Meeting 11:30 a.m.
More information below.
Image: the St. Michael window in St. Michael's Hall
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Wednesday, January 27
The Conversion of St. Paul
6:00 p.m. Evening Prayer
6:30 p.m. Live-Streamed Mass
Image: Conversion of St. Paul, Spinello Aretino, ca. 1391-2-1392, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
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Sunday, January 31
The Fourth Sunday after
The Epiphany
9:30 a.m. - Morning Prayer
10:00 a.m. - Live-Streamed Mass with hymn(s), organ, and choir motet
11:30 a.m. - ANNUAL MEETING
Image: Christ preaching at Capernaum (unfinished), Maurycy Gottlieb, ca. 1878-1879
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Candlemas, or The Feast of the
Presentation of Jesus in the Temple
Wednesday, February 3
Morning Prayer, 8:00 a.m.
Evening Prayer, 6:00 p.m.
Mass with organ, motet, hymn, 6:30 p.m.
Note: The celebration is being transferred from the normal February 2 liturgical calendar date. Sadly, we will likely be unable to offer the traditional Blessing of Throats in which we at Ascension typically share on Candlemas.
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Masses, Daily Offices & Fellowship remain online/virtual only, until further notice. Connection information and links are below.
Thank you for keeping up-to-date with changes that may arise and that will be shared through our parish newsletter and website.
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What it takes: The Annual Meeting
Dear people of Ascension,
A worthwhile and effective annual meeting can be wrapped up in 60-90 minutes. But only if a small regiment mobilizes long beforehand.
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Planning for our January 31 annual meeting started last July. By Michaelmas, the treasurer and finance committee had begun to form our 2021 budget. It was scrutinized and re-worked many times before presentation to the Vestry in December.
The nominating committee began its work later in the fall. Then the inevitable flurry in recent weeks: solicitation, writing and compiling of financial and ministry reports and nominee statements, finalizing the agenda, and more.
Meeting basics will be different this year due to the pandemic. We won't meet in person and won't be able to share a meal or the greetings, small talk and questions (before, during and after) that characterize most annual meetings. Instead, we'll do our best to successfully gather and do business by Zoom.
As always, we'll tend to procedural matters and details. Some brief 'ministry spotlights' are included, to invite our appreciation for others' ongoing good works. By God's grace, the whole of our meeting will add to our resolve to hang in there through this disorienting, uncomfortable time.
Whether a longtime member, newcomer or guest, please do join us Sunday if you're able. I hope all members will do so as an expression of commitment to Ascension, and to share in a time of review and prayer, and to support all those who -- in some cases for months -- have been and now continue to do their best to prepare for a meeting that will be efficient, interesting and meaningful.
As always, your advance preparation by tending to matters described below will contribute to a positive meeting. Thanks for joining us.
- Fr. Patrick Raymond+, Rector
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Annual Meeting Preparation |
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THANK YOU FOR PAYING
CLOSE ATTENTION!
The Annual Report may be viewed by clicking here. (Hard copies were mailed to members on Monday.) It includes an agenda, a Voting Member list, Treasurer's Report and financial statements, nominee profiles, ministry reports, some nice photos, and more.
Please note that following the agenda in the Annual Report are two pages of procedural matters that we will have to approve in order to 'do business' remotely. If you're the kind of soul who digs into and questions such things, and if you have concerns that should be addressed, please contact either warden or the rector prior to the meeting (and not on Sunday morning).
The letter from the Rector that was included in the mailing with the printed Annual Report may be viewed here.
The special Zoom instructions that were printed on the back of the Rector's letter just mentioned may be viewed here. Additional Zoom information from Senior Warden Gary Alexander is provided below.
Copies of the January 2021 Parish Directory were also included in the recent mailing and may not be viewed here! Sorry -- privacy/Internet concerns. Members and others with a bona fide connection to Ascension may contact the parish office to inquire about getting a copy.
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Zooming to (and through) the Annual Meeting
with Senior Warden Gary Alexander
The Good News (regarding Annual Meeting, that is!)
We’ve figured out a way to make it even easier for you to participate in our Annual Meeting. We’ll be using our regular Zoom meeting format, the same one we’ve been using for services and meetings all along, but with a few added features to make your experience as close to an in-person meeting as possible.
· To keep the meeting orderly, MB Hwang and I will be assisting Fr. Raymond as virtual moderators. Deacon George Arceneaux will also be on call to assist with any tech questions you may have.
· During the meeting, your mic will be muted. If you would like to ask a question or make a comment, you will need to use the ‘raise hand’ function found in the chat. Once you are recognized, you will be given the opportunity to un-mute. During the meeting you’ll also be able to vote. MB and I will take a couple of minutes at the beginning of the meeting to review and demonstrate both of these features.
· As a reminder, the meeting is open to all. However, only members in good standing are allowed to vote.
· There is no need to pre-register. Simply Zoom in as you normally would (see here for additional details).
· You will be able to participate in the meeting via phone only but will not be able to vote.
· For those of you in a household with more than one voting member, you must separately log in to the meeting using your own computer or smart phone in order to vote.
· In case you missed the information above: A copy of the Annual Meeting Report was mailed to you on Monday. You can also access the electronic version here or by way of the link above.
· If you are a regular host of the Daily Office or are used to signing in to the Ascension Zoom account as a leader, we ask that you log in using your own credentials.
I look forward to seeing you in the Zoomasphere on Sunday for our first ever virtual Annual Meeting.
Gary Alexander
Senior Warden
WE HOPE AND ASK FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION.
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Ascension parishioner Charlene Gehm MacDougal, who lived with her husband Gary MacDougal both here in Chicago and in New York City, died on January 10 in New York due to complications from cancer. Charlene and Gary first came to Ascension due to their connection with Fr. Gary Fertig, Ascension Rector from 1995-2012. Father Fertig had previously served as Vicar of St. Thomas’ Church, Fifth Avenue, in New York, where he presided at the MacDougals’ 1992 wedding. I grew to know Charlene, among other ways, as one who intently and thoughtfully listened to sermons from her regular front pew on the gospel side at Ascension. She often gave feedback, at the door or by email -- sometimes lauding a message, other times challenging it, and either way always doing so intelligently and faithfully. Her obituary in the Sunday New York Times for January 24, which can be read by clicking here, focuses on her long and impressive career as “a dancer who thrilled audiences and critics alike with her excellence in an unusually wide range of roles with the Joffrey Ballet and other troupes …’ Due to pandemic circumstances, no requiem or memorial for Charlene has been planned. Those wanting to send a written condolences to Gary may contact the parish office for an address.
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Beth Hall, more active at Ascension than ever in 2020 thanks to Zoom, is featured in the current issue of The Knit Before Christmas. It's an annual publication of The Seamen's Church Institute, a novel and long-enduring ministry of the Episcopal Church. Beth is not featured as a sailor! Rather, the story looks into the charitable aspects of her hand-work, in particular her accomplishments as a Master Crocheter and her contribution of a new crochet pattern for a knit Watch Cap and Seafarer's Scarf to SCI for the ministry's annual Christmas at Sea outreach program. As you can see from the photo above, husband Sam Sommers also picks up the needles -- sometimes for crochet, more often for knitting (so explains the article). A cincture the two crocheted for Ascension in 2019 is also mentioned in the article, which may be read here solely -- or look into the entire Knit Before Christmas issue here.
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Yes, but when will we return
to in-person worship?
It's the question we all want answered ... and under the circumstances any reasonable answer will always be provisional. For now, let me share below an email sent last week to clergy of all Chicago Episcopal congregations, by Courtney Reid, Director of Operations for our diocese. The direction in the letter codifies and allows our consistent practices at Ascension since the second closure of churches in mid-November 2020. For those unaware, the term 'ecclesiastical authority' in this context indicates a diocesan bishop, or, if none (as is our case in between bishops) the authority of the diocesan Standing Committee with regard to fiduciary and administrative (but not episcopal/sacramental) matters. - Fr. Raymond +
Dear friends and colleagues in Region 11,
As you may have read, Governor Pritzker announced today [January 18] that Region 11 meets the metrics to return to Tier 2.
Having consulted with the ecclesiastical authority, we agree that congregations in Tier 2 may gather for in-person worship with no more than 10 people present - including the altar party - effective this coming weekend. Other gatherings may also resume, again with no more than 10 people present.
If you do resume in-person worship, please also continue offering virtual services for those who are unable to attend. Also remember that resuming in-person worship is not required. We will support you in whatever decision you make. It is especially important if you gather in-person, to remind your members of all safety protocols such as mask wearing, physical distancing, and frequent hand sanitizing.
While as a state, we are doing better than November 17 when we entered tier 3 mitigations, the situation remains fluid and a change in metrics may result in a return to tier 3.
Please know of our continued prayers for your ministry and your community.
All the best
The Rev. Courtney Reid
Director of Operations, Episcopal Diocese of Chicago
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The Rector's homily for the
January 20 mass commemorating the
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February-March-April 2021 issues of the Forward Day by Day devotionals are now available. Please contact the Parish Office. We have a limited supply of both the regular and large print booklets.
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Organ Repertoire for Sunday, Jan. 31 |
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ORGAN
Schmücke dich, O liebe Seele
Two settings:
Opus 122, no. 5 [1896]
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Opus 17 [2012]
Gaël Liardon (1973-2018)
Hymn at the Offertory
339 SCHMÜCKE DICH
ORGAN
Præludium in e minor BuxWV 142
Dietrich Buxtehude (1637-1707)
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Choir of the Ascension:
Now on Soundcloud!
Please visit our Ascension SoundCloud! There you will find recordings made by our choir, including one motet for every Sunday and 20 tracks for Christmastide!
Benjamin Rivera, Choirmaster
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Reminder: All In-Person Worship and Gatherings at Ascension (and at all parishes in the Diocese of Chicago) were suspended again as of Monday, November 16.
Our Interim Sunday and Weekday Worship Schedule and Connections are as follows:
All masses live-streamed from the church.
Sundays
9:30 a.m. Morning Prayer—Zoom
11:00 a.m. Coffee Hour—Zoom
Weekday Mass: Wednesday Evenings
Daily Offices continue as before:
Morning Prayer
Evening Prayer
6:00 p.m. Monday-Friday—Zoom
Special/Upcoming
Parish Annual Meeting, January 31
Candlemas (observed), Wednesday, February 3
More information will be provided as these dates and opportunities near.
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Other than for urgent or essential matters or for brief personal devotion in the church, visits to Ascension are presently to be avoided. Any (other) visit should be arranged in advance with Br. Nathanael Rahm. Thank you for your understanding. |
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Due to COVID-19, Church of the Ascension’s Treasurer and Bookkeeper are limiting the amount of time they spend working in the parish offices. All checks received at Ascension via the United States Postal Service, not always a reliable service in our area, will be bank deposited approximately every 4-6 weeks. You may contact the Treasurer by email anytime at Finance@AscensionChicago.org.
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Ascension Connections
Below
(with your click and God's help)
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Meeting ID:
792 031 7452
Password: 1133
Join-by-Phone Option: (312) 626-6799
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Weekly Ascension Schedule
For connections:
except for Morning Prayer,
SUNDAYS
9:30 a.m. Virtual Morning Prayer
10:00 a.m. Live-Streamed Mass
11:00 a.m. Virtual Coffee Hour
MONDAY-FRIDAY
6:00 p.m. Evening Prayer via Zoom
WEDNESDAYS
6:30 p.m. Low Mass
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Yes, but I still haven't Zoomed ... |
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Please give generously as you are able.
Treasurer Susan Schlough has asked me to remind you of Ascension's ongoing expenses at this time. To the extent that you are able, payment on your pledges or the offering of Holy Day or other special gifts will be greatly appreciated. You may still write a check and mail it to the church, or online payment is possible through the buttons at various places on our website. Thank you!
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For our prayers: August 'Augie' Alonzo, Jim Berger, Ethel Martin, Dean Pineda, David Byerly, Bonnie Joseph, Diane Burnett, Steven Wallis, Sarah Ponder, Paula Budzban, Taffy Wehe, Neil, Canola Malone, Br. Jonathan Wheat, Rocky Ermilio, Catriana Patriarcha
Birthdays and Anniversaries:
Phillip Reinert, 1/27; Patrick Johnston, 1/28; James Baran, 1/28
Requiescat in pace:
Bruce Jordan, nephew of Jim Berger
Charlene MacDougal, wife of Gary MacDougal, 1/10/2021
Rest eternal grant unto them, O Lord, and let light perpetual shine upon them;
May their souls and the souls of all the departed through the mercy of God rest in peace.
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I suppose what's written on a grave marker could be considered the ultimate last word! In this case (these cases?), I have two last words, from two grave markers ... for the same person, Edward Allen [or Allan] Larrabee, Tenth Rector of Church of the Ascension (1884-1909). Do read on below ...
- Fr. Raymond +
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The first grave marker for Fr. Larrabee came to my attention in the past few days by way of an email with attached photo from Ascension Junior Warden Cheryl Peterson. Here's the photo she sent and along with it this message:
"This is a photo I took in November of Fr. Larrabee's grave in Graceland Cemetery [Chicago]. It is located in Section C, lot 321 off of Center Avenue (Center branches north/left from Main). The best way to locate it is to look for the chapel building (which is visible to the east as you walk north on Center Ave.) and find a grove with some trees that is due west of the chapel. The grave is distinctive but a little difficult to spot until you get close. It is maybe 5-6 yards from the street.
"The carvings on the stem and arms are of archangels, I believe. The crossing is marked by the chi-rho. The cross faces east. On the right side of the stem is marked "Edward Allan Larrabee, Priest, 1852-1924". On the left side is carved "May light perpetual shine upon him". Other more traditional headstones are included in the plot, including his parents, Charles Rollin Larrabee and Mary Ann Woods Larrabee, and sisters and maybe a step brother or uncle.
"It is interesting to note that the spelling of his middle name varies from source to source. - Cheryl"
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I found the second grave marker for Fr. Larrabee by Internet search happenstance as I was following up on a detail in Chery's email. This second grave marker is from the cemetery at Nashotah House, the Episcopal seminary in southern Wisconsin of which Fr. Larrabee became Dean in 1909, after leaving Ascension. The 365-acre campus of Nashotah House includes a cemetery in which alumni and faculty are traditionally buried.
Left for now to further research is the question of where, in fact, Fr. Larrabee was buried. My guess is that the Nashotah monument is To anyone with a verifiable answer: I'll be happy to publish your findings and give credit where credit is due in a future newsletter. - Fr. Raymond +
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The Very Rev. Patrick Raymond, Rector
Susan Schlough, Treasurer
Br. Nathanael Deward Rahm BSG, Parish Office
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