This Week at Ascension + May 11, 2022
"Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness." - Psalm 96
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Tonight, May 11, 2022
The Fourth Wednesday of Easter
In-person and Live-streamed Said Mass at 6:30 p.m.
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Sunday, May 15, 2022
The Fifth Sunday of Easter
9:00 a.m. In-person Sung Mass
with Organ and Hymns
11:00 a.m. In-person & Live-streamed
Solemn High Mass
Image: Illuminated "N," The Lord's Supper, Italy, c. 1500, British Library
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Dear ones,
The Feast of Title of the Church of the Ascension should be pretty obvious: Ascension Day. It always falls on a Thursday, as it is ten days before the Day of Pentecost. It is one of the Principal Feasts of The Episcopal Church, along with Easter Day, The Day of Pentecost, Trinity Sunday, All Saints’ Day, Christmas Day, and The Epiphany. (BCP p. 15)
The Feast of Title in a parish church should be a big deal. It should be an over-the-top celebration of the life and witness of the parish to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It should be a celebration of all past, present, and future members of the Body of Christ who have called/call/will call that parish their church home. And so it will be for us; more on that in a bit.
“Ascension” refers to the bodily ascension of Our Lord into heaven. It is recounted for us in the Gospel According to Mark, the Gospel According to Luke, and alluded to in the Gospel According to John. The most widely held belief by biblical scholars is that the section In the Gospel According to Mark was a later emendation, comprised of a collection of sayings added in the second century CE. All three can be read as Jesus’ ascension occurring on the Day of Resurrection. The Acts of the Apostles, also written by the author of Luke, contains the forty day reference. Forty is a a number of certain importance in scripture, think: duration of the rains that caused the flood, years of travel in Exodus, Elijah’s escape to Mt. Horeb, and Jesus’ time in the wilderness. There are others, too. Whether it happened as implied in the Gospels or in Acts, doesn’t really matter. What matters is that it happened: Jesus returns to his Father, reuniting the Trinity. We’ll talk about that next month.
On Thursday, 26 May, we will have a celebration of our Feast of Title. It will be a Solemn High Mass at 7:00 PM, followed by a reception in Saint Michael’s Hall.
Mtr. Kara Scherer Wagner, Dean of the Chicago North Convocation, will be our guest preacher. I hope that each of you will be able to join us; it should be a joyous occasion.
—Fr. Heard
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A Pastoral Note:
Requiescat in pace Jim Berger
Longtime Ascension member James "Jim" Berger died at his home in Lombard, Illinois early on the morning of May 10th. There will be visitation on Friday, May 20th from 3-8 p.m. at Brust Funeral Home, 135 S Main Street, Lombard, IL and a brief visitation at Church of the Ascension on Saturday, May 21st at 11 a.m. followed by a Solemn Requiem Mass at 11:30 a.m.
Please join in praying for the repose of his soul and for all who knew and cared for him, especially Jim Drury. The above photo of Jim is from the last Ascension Pictorial Directory.
Rest eternal grant unto him, O Lord, and let light perpetual shine upon him;
May his soul and the souls of all the departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.
Eternal Lord God, you hold all souls in life: Give to your whole Church in paradise and on earth your light and your peace; and grant that we, following the good examples of those who have served you here and are now at rest, may at the last enter with them into your unending joy; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (BCP, p. 253)
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The CAT is Coming! The CAT is Coming! |
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So, what is the CAT? It stands for Congregation Assessment Tool. It’s a survey filled out by each parishioner that will provide information to the Search Committee regarding the qualities you want in a rector, our worship experience at Ascension and our vision for outreach, to name a few.
Each voting member of the parish will receive a survey via email (or in the mail for those without internet) to be filled out on-line. It’s important that your answers reflect your own thoughts. Please don’t discuss the survey with each other.
The answers from the survey will generate a profile of Ascension. Not only is the profile a tool for the Search Committee, but also for priests looking for a position.
The surveys will be sent out around May 22. Please fill out the survey as soon as possible. It bears repeating, the future of Ascension depends on all of us.
Blessings,
The Rector Search Committee
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Acolyte Training Opportunities on May 15 and 22 |
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I'm grateful for the service of all who pitched in to help with Holy Week, and that includes our acolytes, both new and experienced -- you've gone above and beyond to fill much-needed slots and learn unfamiliar roles. Many of us are ready to learn more, so we'll be offering some upcoming Solemn High Mass acolyte training opportunities planned for 1:00 PM on Sun, May 15 and May 22.
On May 15, those who have served as Crucifer or Torchbearer are invited to try the Acolyte role, and on May 22, those who've experienced the Acolyte role may learn what it's like to be Thurifer. If you're planning to attend, please let me know. I'm also available for walk throughs or assistance by appointment if you have questions about something else, would like a refresher, can't make these times, or are simply curious about the ministry of the acolytes, so please feel free to get in touch with me (quidquid@gmail.com).
—MB Hwang, Verger
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Calling All Photographers |
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"Hold it." Snap, click, click. "Got it, thanks." If you have a phone and like to take snapshots, Ascension needs you! Our weekly newsletter, our website, our Facebook page and our bulletin boards are always more lively and engaging when we include recent photos.
We want photos of everything Ascension. Think:
- Social occasions in Wheeler Hall
- Special gatherings for worship prayer, or education,
- A chat in the garden.
- Arranging Sunday flowers;
- Choir rehearsals in the loft;
- Cooking and enjoying a festive meal
Haul out your phone and capture a moment to remember! Maybe you can submit a few photos every week or every month. Let Nathanael in the church office know if you have photos to share. We’re creating a database of Ascension photos and would love to add yours to the mix. And bless you for helping!
—Cheryl Peterson
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Sacred Space May 18
You are all invited to Seminarian Bonnie Scott’s presentation on Sacred Space which will take place after mass next Wednesday, May 18th. There will be light refreshments provided. She will be exploring the relationship between theology and architecture and in what ways the spaces we worship in reflect our understanding of God, with particular emphasis on Church of the Ascension’s church building and history.
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Confirmations and Receptions June 11
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This spring, Bishop Chilton Knudsen will preside at four diocesan confirmation and reception services open to candidates from all congregations in the Diocese of Chicago. At least one member of Ascension will be received into the Episcopal Church on June 11 at St. James Cathedral. If you are interested in being confirmed or received or have questions about what this might look like for you in the future, please reach out to Meghan Murphy-Gill via email or by calling the church.
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Pastoral Listening Learning Opportunity
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Fr. Bob Petite, a Supervisor in Clinical Pastoral Education, has offered to lead a 3- to 4-session training series on pastoral listening for those interested in learning or improving listening skills. This will likely take place over the summer. If this is something that interests you or you would like to hear more about it, please fill out this form or reach out to Mtr. Murphy-Gill.
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Contribute to This Week at Ascension
If you would like to include an announcement in our weekly newsletter, please email your contribution to office@ascensionchicago.org by Monday at noon. Include a photo if you can!
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Organ and Choral Repertoire for May 15, 2022 |
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ORGAN
Gallardas de primo tono M158
Corrente Italiana M209
Juan Bautista Cabanilles (1644-1712)
At the Entrance Procession
577 UBI CARITAS (MURRAY)
At the Offertory
Hymn BLAENWERN
At the Communion
Hymn 439 WONDROUS LOVE (9 a.m.)
Hymn LYDNEY (11 a.m.)
At the Retiring Procession
Hymn 610 BLAENHAFREN
ORGAN
Pasacalles de primer tono M386
Juan Bautista Cabanilles
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Mass Ordinary
Geoffrey Burgon (1941-2010)
Short Mass (1965)
Offertory Motet
Patrick Hawes (b. 1958)
Hallelujah for double chorus,
from Revelation (2016)
Chanted Propers of the Day
from Graduale Romanum
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Between Masses, please don’t forget that The Choir of the Ascension has recorded upwards of 60 tracks that you can listen to anywhere you have an internet connection. They can be found here: https://soundcloud.com/choir-of-the-ascension
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Ascension Connections
(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:
SUNDAYS
9:00 a.m. In-person Sung Mass
11:00 a.m. In-person and Live-Streamed Solemn High Mass
MONDAY-FRIDAY
WEDNESDAYS
6:30 p.m. Said Mass
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For our prayers: August 'Augie' Alonzo, Taffy Wehe, Beth Hall, Sue Lenz, Ben, David D. Jones, Gina, Tom Baer, Edward Minieka, Brenda Martins, Daniel Martins (Bishop), Claire Green,
Marion Cantore, Lee Gould, Gertrude Isaac, Kenneth Kelling, Marty Stenson, Howard Yeager, Paula Clark (Bishop-elect)
Birthdays: Jolene Walsh Juskiewicz, 5/8/2019; Claudia Vargas, 5/9; Jenna Jones, 5/10;
Ellen Janis Anfossi, 5/13
Requiescat in pace: Jim Berger, 5/10/2022; Rodney Carl Pribbanow, 5/10/1990;
Alfred “Jackie” Sawyer, 5/10/1996; Essie Echols, 5/10/2016; Gail DePriest, 5/11/2013;
Suzanne Elizabeth Mauntel, 5/12/2014
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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The Rev. Thomas Heard, Interim Rector
The Rev. Meghan Murphy-Gill, Curate
Susan Schlough, Treasurer
Br. Nathanael Deward Rahm BSG, Parish Office
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Vestry of Church of the Ascension
Ian Barillas-McEntee, Jim Lo Bello, Ken Cozette, Marlea Edinger, Sean Hansen, George Pineda, Joshua Simpson, Sam Sommers, Enrique Vilaseco, Vestry
Approved minutes of Vestry meetings are always available online to parishioners who request the link. If you would like Internet access to these Vestry Minutes, please email the Parish Office and request the link. Once you access the web page, you can read all recent Vestry meeting minutes.
The link remains live indefinitely. Any parishioner who has the link will not need to request a new link from month to month.
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